The recently ended three-month subway card design contest aroused Kunming people's fond memories of the city's storied past.

On Oct 26 the contest concluded in Kunming with 18 out of 300 designs claiming prizes.

A three-month subway Card design contest in Kunming brought back local people’s memories of the city.[Photo/ynci.cn]

There is a common feature in the 18 winners – a depiction of Kunming's history and culture.

The first prize winner, for instance, is a pen drawing which puts ancient Kunming's landscape in black and white on the little card.

"Such a design of ancient Kunming scenery can shorten people's psychological distance as it arouses their love towards the city," said a member of the expert judge panel.

Before the 128 eligible productions from across China were given to the judges, they were posted on the Kunming Rail Group Co's micro blog to be voted on from Aug 29 to Sep 11.

The final result came from the combined scores of the online votes and judge panels.

The first prize winner received 10,000 yuan ($1,477), the second prize winner won 6,000 and the third got 4,000.

Edited by Peter Nordinger