A documentary about the Tibetan epic King Gesar was aired for the first time in northwest China's Qinghai Province on Saturday night.

The three-episode show made by Shanghai Media Group documents the geological environment and cultural roots of the Epic of King Gesar as well as the stories of the artists who have passed down the epic.

"It is the first grand TV documentary that shows the epic systematically and thoroughly," said Zhang Ximing, head of the Qinghai publicity department.

The Epic of King Gesar tells the story of how an 11th century Tibetan demigod king conquered his enemies and helped ordinary people.

The epic has been passed down orally by singers and illiterate herders or farmers from southwestern China's Tibet Autonomous Region, northern China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and Qinghai. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage in 2009.