A video presentation featuring the ancient Chinese sage Confucius and his home province of Shandong began showing in New York's Times Square on Saturday (Beijing Time), according to the Information Office of the provincial government.

In the 30-second video, Confucius greets the audience with a traditional Chinese courtesy by bowing with his hands folded in front.

The black-and-white image of Confucius was taken from a painting by renowned Tang Dynasty painter Wu Daozi (680-759). A stone carving based on the original painting is kept at the Confucius Temple in Qufu, Confucius' birthplace in eastern China.

The video also shows some of Shandong's scenery, including the Confucius Temple, Mount Taishan, the Yellow River and the port city of Qingdao where Olympic sailing competitions were held in 2008.

Starting Saturday, the video will be shown on a 238-square-meter screen in the Times Square to promote a confident and gracious image of China.

"I think the video will receive a warm welcome," said Liu Chang, deputy editor-in-chief of Nouvelles d'Europe and a professor at Communication University of China.

Confucius and his school of thought are widely recognized throughout the world, he said.

"When former French President Francois Mitterrand visited Confucius' hometown during a visit to China in 1983, he took out a French version of the 'Analects of Confucius' and read it aloud before the tour guide tried to explain who Confucius was."

The sage, who lived about 2,500 years ago, has been at the center of Chinese civilization for nearly two millennia.

China began setting up Confucius Institutes in 2004 to publicize Chinese language and culture throughout the world. More than 300 Confucius Institutes have been established in over 100 countries.

(Xinhua News Agency October 1, 2011)