The V&A censored catalogue images following demands by printer in China

The Victoria and Albert Museum has accepted demands by the Chinese firm that prints its catalogues to remove images that fall foul of the country's censorship laws.

- Matthew Weaver

The London museum has agreed to requests by the printing company to delete maps and images from at least two recent exhibition catalogues, according to documents released to the Guardian under freedom of information laws.

Like other prominent institutions, including the British Museum, Tate and the British Library, the V&A often uses Chinese printers because they can produce catalogues at half the cost of British or European firms.

But by so doing they have to accede to censorship requests relating to any topics or images deemed sensitive by the Chinese government, such as Buddhism, Taiwan, Tibet, Tiananmen Square and democracy.

The disclosures from the V&A lay bare the detailed scope of China's censorship of museum publishers. They show how Beijing's red pen even extends to historical maps and photographs on seemingly uncontentious subjects such as Fabergé eggs and British Black music.

They also show the apparent willingness of a publicly funded UK institution to agree to Chinese government suppression.