Xian Travel Guide
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.
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| Shaanxi History Museu |
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.
