Staff unpacks the Buddha statue head in Hebei Museum, Shijiaguang, Hebei province, March 29, 2016. The head statue was brought back to the museum on Tuesday after it was stolen 20 years ago. [Photo/Xinhua]

The head statue of Buddha Shakyamuni, carved during Northern Qi Dynasty (550-577 AD), originally belonging to Youju Temple in Hebei province was stolen in 1996.

Abbot Hsing Yun, one of Taiwan's most influential monks, received the statue as a gift from his follower in 2014, which was later confirmed to be the lost statue from Youju Temple.

After the signing of an agreement between Fo Guang Shan Foundation for Buddhist Culture & Education and China Cultural Relic Exchange Center, the statue head was donated to Chinese mainland. The donating ceremony was held in Fo Guang Shan of Taiwan in May of 2015.

The Buddha head was previously exhibited in the National Museum of China together with its body. The Hebei Museum will spend 15-20 days to restore the Buddha statue by combining the body with the head, and will be unveiled to the public at the end of April.