Provincial
History Museum
Shaanxi Province is the
birthplace of the ancient Chinese civilization.
Xian City was the capital city in thirteen
dynasties which in total lasted over 1100
years. Consequently, the ancient history
of Shaanxi is to some degree the ancient
history of China. The Shaanxi History Museum
considers it an obligation to be a showcase
of ancient civilizations. It is situated
in the southern suburb of Xian City, northwest
of the Big Wild Goose Pagoda.Since it was
opened to the public in 1991, its architectural
buildings, internal apparatus, and exhibits
have made it famous as a first-class museum
in China.
General Introduction
The museum occupies an area
of 65,000 square meters (16 acres). It is
a grand complex of buildings imitating the
architecture style of the Tang Dynasty (618-907).
A primary pavilion stands in the center,
and secondary pavilions of varying heights
are distributed orderly around it. With
black, white and grey as the predominant
colors, the buildings have a solemn and
rustic charm. The museum is furnished with
central air-conditioning and multi-functional
lighting system to ensure the protection
of the culture relics. It is a comprehensive
museum with more than 370,000 exhibits of
different times and kinds. The two-storied
primary pavilion is divided into the following
three main exhibition halls:
Basic Exhibition Hall
The Basic Exhibition Hall is
composed of the No 1 exhibition hall, the
No 2 exhibition hall and the No 3 exhibition
hall, marked by time order. The No 1 exhibition
on the first floor hall displays the articles
used during the period from 1.7 million
years ago to 206 BC of the Qin Dynasty (221
BC-206 BC). This exhibition contains rough
stone tools used by the ape man, the pottery,
bronze sacrificial vessels, weapons and
terracotta figures. By visiting the No 2
Exhibition Hall on the second floor, you
will gain a general understanding of the
historical process from 206 BC in the Han
Dynasty (206 BC-220AD) to 589 AD in the
Northern and Southern Dynasties (386-589).
Papermaking, one of China's great inventions,
and some important historical events are
portrayed on the scroll painting. The No
3 Exhibition Hall on the second floor is
dedicated to articles in the dynasties:
the Sui (581- 618), the Tang (618-907),
the Song (960-1279), the Yuan (1271-1368),
the Ming (1368-1644) and the Qing (1644-1911).
The model of the grand Chang'an City (Xian)
during the Sui and the Tang, the shiny silver
and gold utensils, pottery figures and the
high-quality chinaware all await to be relished
by the eyes.
Theme Exhibition Hall
To the west of the Basic Exhibition
Hall lies the Theme Exhibition Hall. The
hall is 2,500 square meters (26,909 square
feet) and usually features a variety of
theme exhibitions. The exhibitions in this
hall are often theme-oriented to show the
history or the culture relics of Shaanxi
Province, such as the 'Shanxi Bronze Ware
Exhibition', the 'Shaanxi Pottery Figure
Exhibition' and the 'Buddhist Culture Relic
Exhibition'. A fresco hall is under construction,
in which visitors will be able to enjoy
the frescos unearthed from the tombs of
the Tang Dynasty and explore the social
life of that time.
East Exhibition Hall
The East Exhibition Hall, equal
in size to the Theme Exhibition Hall, is
also on the first floor and to the east
of the basic hall. It is used for contemporary
exhibitions of high quality. The duration
of the exhibitions varies depending on the
exhibition theme. The various exhibition
themes, high-grade exhibition design and
lively exhibition forms will surely please
your eyes. Exhibitions of the frescos, the
culture relics, the folkways, the fine arts
and the calligraphy are conducted continuously.
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