Any replica of an ancient relic can be auctioned, but not when it is advertised as an authentic original piece, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage (SACH) reiterated in a notice published on its website on Thursday.

The notice was the result of a recent discussion organized by the country's top cultural heritage administrator in an attempt to further regulate the country's booming auction market in ancient relics.

"The booming market in ancient relics has played a positive role in promoting the country's cultural development and luring back from overseas looted or smuggled relics," said the administration's deputy director Song Xinchao at the country's biannual meeting on the management of the auction market in ancient relics, which was held in Nanjing, capital of Jiangsu province, on Jan 11.

However, the notice also revealed many loopholes in the management of the market, Song said.

"For example, we all know it is cheating if a seller or an auction company sells a replica as the authentic masterpiece, but we allow the sale or auction of replicas as replicas," said Tan Ping, director of the administration's division of private collection.

"When we review the items to be auctioned, auction companies designate those replicas as replicas, which we used to ignore as we focused mainly on checking the authenticity of items tagged as cultural relics. But when they print the catalogue, they might tag the replicas as authentic or blur the fact that they are replicas."

To prevent such fraud, the administration has required cultural relics administrators at all levels to review all items to be auctioned and double-check that catalogues are factually correct.

Besides replicas that have been advertised as original pieces, those which experts think have been stolen, looted, smuggled, newly unearthed or that come from underwater sites will also be removed from the auction list, the administration's notice said.

SACH also bans the auction of any articles that have phonographic contents or messages that might damage the interests of society and the country, such as the secret ingredients of a traditional Chinese medicine that is vital to the country's medical industry, Tan said.

Auctions cannot be held within 15 days of relevant reviewing reports reaching the administration, and relevant cultural relics bureaus must report the result of any auction within 30 days of the auction, the notice stipulated.