Famous sow moving into grand new pig digs

"She got so fat she couldn't even walk, so now we walk her twice a day," said Wang Fuqing, her fourth caretaker since last year.

Zhu Jianqiang topped an online Red Net forum poll of the "10 animals that moved China in 2008".

China Children Publishing House will soon release a children's book, entitled Zhu Jiangqian, based on the sow's incredible tale. The museum hall - built by the local government - was designed by renowned Bird's Nest architect Li Xinggang for displays including recreations of crumpled buildings fashioned from actual rubble, a car crushed in the quake and a fire engine used during rescue operations.

The hall, opened by the central government, will be oriented around photographs commemorating those who lost their lives.

Both halls, each more than 2,000 sq m, were open free of charge to the public on Monday.

Museum art director Guo Gang said the displays were a huge challenge for the museum to put together.

"We can't really represent the post-quake realities with 100 percent accuracy, but we have worked hard to get as close as we can to creating an environment like the real quake zone," he said.

Editor:Liu Anqi