Museums in China
Encyclopedia
As of 2006, there are more than 2,200 museum
s in China
, which includes public museums and museums of universities. Local non-governmental museums included, the number of museums nationwide has reached some 2,900. With a collection of over 20 million items, these museums hold more than 8,000 exhibitions every year and 160 million people visits. Some museums of cultural relic
s, such as the Museum of Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses in Xi'an
, have become internationally known tourist attractions. The government has exchanges of cultural relics exhibitions between museums and promotes the display and exchanges of legal non-governmental collections.
Beijing
Fujian
Gansu
Guangdong
Guangxi
Hubei
Jiangsu
Jilin
Liaoning
Shaanxi
Shandong
Shanghai
Shanxi
Sichuan
Tianjin
Yunnan
Zhejiang
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
s in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, which includes public museums and museums of universities. Local non-governmental museums included, the number of museums nationwide has reached some 2,900. With a collection of over 20 million items, these museums hold more than 8,000 exhibitions every year and 160 million people visits. Some museums of cultural relic
Relic
In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
s, such as the Museum of Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses in Xi'an
Xi'an
Xi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty...
, have become internationally known tourist attractions. The government has exchanges of cultural relics exhibitions between museums and promotes the display and exchanges of legal non-governmental collections.
BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
- Beijing Museum of Natural HistoryBeijing Museum of Natural HistoryThe Beijing Museum of Natural History is located at 126, Tian Qiao Nan Street, Chong Wen District, Beijing, 100050, and is the most popular natural history museum in China. It was originally founded in 1951 as the National Central Museum of Natural History, and its name changed to the Beijing...
- http://www.cstm.org.cn/ China Science and Technology MuseumChina Science and Technology MuseumThe China Science and Technology Museum is a major science museum established in 1988 in Beijing, China.The museum contains two separate buildings, Hall I & II. The Hall I was completed in 1988, and the museum exhibits ancient Chinese technology such as astronomical devices, the compass,...
- China Railway MuseumChina Railway MuseumThe China Railway Museum is a Chinese museum preserving locomotives built in the People's Republic of China since 1949. The museum offers a total exhibition space of 16500m² and 8 exhibition tracks....
, BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... - China National Film Museum, BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
- Geological Museum of ChinaGeological Museum of ChinaThe Geological Museum of China , built in 1916, is a geological museum, boasting 200 thousand specimens.This museum is located in the Xisi area of Beijing and opened on October 1, 1959. It is the earliest geological scientific museum of China....
, BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... - Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and PaleoanthropologyInstitute of Vertebrate Paleontology and PaleoanthropologyThe Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of China is a prominent research institution and collections repository for fossils, including many dinosaur and pterosaurand cat poo specimens...
, BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... - Military Museum of the Chinese People's RevolutionMilitary Museum of the Chinese People's RevolutionThe Military Museum of the Chinese People's Revolution, or China People's Revolution Military Museum is a museum located in Beijing, China immediately west of central Beijing in Haidian District...
, BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... - National Museum of ChinaNational Museum of ChinaThe National Museum of China flanks the eastern side of Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China. The mission of the museum is to educate about the arts and history of China...
, BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... - Palace Museum (Forbidden City), BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...
- National Art Museum of ChinaNational Art Museum of ChinaThe National Art Museum of China, or NAMOC is located at 1 Wusi Ave, Dongcheng District of Beijing, People's Republic of China. It is one of the largest art museums in China. The construction of the museum started in 1958, and concluded in 1962. It has a total land area of 30,000 square meters...
, BeijingBeijingBeijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's... - Capital MuseumCapital MuseumThe Capital Museum located at 16 Fuxingmenwai Dajie, Xicheng District is an art museum in Beijing, China. It opened in 1981 while the present building was built in the late 1990s and it houses a variety of items from Imperial China as well as other Asian cultures...
- International Friendship Museum
- Lu Xun Museum
- China Agricultural Museum
- Guanfu Museum (private)
- China Numismatic Museum
- China Museum of Telecommunications
- Beijing Folk Arts Museum
- China National Film Museum
- China Civil Aviation Museum
- Beijing Ancient Architecture Museum
- Liao and Jin City Wall Museum
FujianFujian' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
- Quanzhou Museum
- Quanzhou Overseas Relations Museum (泉州海外交通史博物馆), which houses the Quanzhou shipQuanzhou shipThe Quanzhou Ship, or Quanzhou wreck, was a 13th century Chinese sea-going sailing junk that sunk near the city of Quanzhou in Fujian Province, and was discovered in 1973...
GansuGansu' is a province located in the northwest of the People's Republic of China.It lies between the Tibetan and Huangtu plateaus, and borders Mongolia, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia to the north, Xinjiang and Qinghai to the west, Sichuan to the south, and Shaanxi to the east...
- Gansu Provincial Museum (Lanzhou)
- Lanzhou Museum (Lanzhou)
- Silk Road Museum
GuangdongGuangdongGuangdong is a province on the South China Sea coast of the People's Republic of China. The province was previously often written with the alternative English name Kwangtung Province...
- Guangdong Provincial MuseumGuangdong Provincial MuseumGuangdong Province Museum is located on 215 Wenming Rd., Guangzhou, Guangdong Province of China , on what was the original site of Zhongshan University. It is a provincial general museum, founded in 1959 and with a land area of 43,000 square meters...
, GuanzhouGuanzhouGuanzhou Island is an island at the southeast of the central district of Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. It has the total area of 1.8 square kilometers... - Longgang museum of Hakka culture, LonggangLonggangLonggang may refer to the following locations in mainland China or Taiwan:*Longgang District, Huludao , Liaoning*Longgang District, Shenzhen , Guangdong*Longgang Station , railway station in Miaoli County, Taiwan...
- Museum of the Mausoleum of the Nanyue King, GuangzhouGuangzhouGuangzhou , known historically as Canton or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of the Guangdong province in the People's Republic of China. Located in southern China on the Pearl River, about north-northwest of Hong Kong, Guangzhou is a key national transportation hub and trading port...
- Shenzhen Museum
- Dongguan Science and Technology Museum
GuangxiGuangxiGuangxi, formerly romanized Kwangsi, is a province of southern China along its border with Vietnam. In 1958, it became the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, a region with special privileges created specifically for the Zhuang people.Guangxi's location, in...
- Guangxi Museum
- Guangxi Museum of Nationalities
- Liuzhou Museum
- Museum of Guihai Tablets Forest
HubeiHubei' Hupeh) is a province in Central China. The name of the province means "north of the lake", referring to its position north of Lake Dongting...
- Hubei Provincial MuseumHubei Provincial MuseumHubei Provincial Museum is one of the best-known museums in China, with a large amount of State-level historic and cultural relics. Established in 1953, the museum moved to its present location in 1960 and gained its present name in 1963...
- Wuhan Museum
- Underground Project 131Underground Project 131Underground Project 131 is a system of tunnels in China's Hubei province constructed in the late 1960s and the early 1970s to accommodate the Chinese military command headquarters in case of a nuclear war...
, in XianningXianningXianning is a prefecture-level city in China's Hubei province. It is known as the "City of Osmanthus".-Geography and climate:Xianning is located in southeastern Hubei province, just south of Wuhan, between the southern bank of the Yangtze River in the north and the Mufu Mountains in the south. It...
Prefecture
JiangsuJiangsu' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located along the east coast of the country. The name comes from jiang, short for the city of Jiangning , and su, for the city of Suzhou. The abbreviation for this province is "苏" , the second character of its name...
- China Modern History MuseumPresidential Palace (Nanjing)The Presidential Palace in Nanjing, China, housed the Office of the President of the Republic of China before the republic relocated to Taiwan in 1949. It is now a museum, the China Modern History Museum. It is located at 292 Changjiang Road, in the Xuanwu District of Nanjing.-History:In the Ming...
, Nanjing - Nanjing MuseumNanjing MuseumNanjing Museum is located in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China, on East Zhongshan Road, about 3 km from the Xinjiekou traffic circle to the east, just inside Zhongshan Gate...
, NanjingNanjing' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions... - Nanjing Municipal Museum
- The Memorial Hall of the Victims in Nanjing Massacre by Japanese InvadersNanjing Massacre Memorial HallThe Memorial for compatriots killed in the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese Forces of Aggression is the Memorial Hall for the people killed in the Nanjing Massacre by the Japanese army in and around the then capital of China, Nanjing, after it fell to the Imperial Japanese Army on December 13, 1937...
, Nanjing - Suzhou MuseumSuzhou MuseumThe Suzhou Museum is a museum of ancient Chinese art, ancient Chinese paintings, calligraphies, and hand-made crafts, situated in Suzhou, Jiangsu, People's Republic of China.It is free to visit.-History:...
, SuzhouSuzhouSuzhou , previously transliterated as Su-chou, Suchow, and Soochow, is a major city located in the southeast of Jiangsu Province in Eastern China, located adjacent to Shanghai Municipality. The city is situated on the lower reaches of the Yangtze River and on the shores of Taihu Lake and is a part... - Suzhou Arts and Crafts MuseumSuzhou Arts and Crafts MuseumSuzhou Arts and Crafts Museum was established in 2002, and it officially open to society in January 2003. It is located in Suzhou No. 88 Northwest Street, in the original construction of the Qing Dynasty Emperor Qianlong years old building "Shangzhi Tang". It is east to Humble Administrator's...
- Changzhou Museum
- Zhenjiang Museum
- Yangzhou Museum and China Block Printing Museum (the two are locally known as the "double museum", as they share the lobby section)
- Xuzhou Museum
- Xuzhou Decree Museum
- Taiping Kingdom History MuseumTaiping Kingdom History MuseumThe Taiping Kingdom History Museum The building was originally a palace of the first ruler of the Ming Dynasty, Hongwu . In 1853, it became the residence of Yang Xiuqing, a military leader in the Taiping Rebellion. In 1958, it became the site of the current museum.-External links:*...
, NanjingNanjing' is the capital of Jiangsu province in China and has a prominent place in Chinese history and culture, having been the capital of China on several occasions... - The Museum of Guangling King's Tomb in Han Dynasty, YangzhouYangzhouYangzhou is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China. Sitting on the northern bank of the Yangtze River, it borders the provincial capital of Nanjing to the southwest, Huai'an to the north, Yancheng to the northeast, Taizhou to the east, and Zhenjiang across...
JilinJilinJilin , is a province of the People's Republic of China located in the northeastern part of the country. Jilin borders North Korea and Russia to the east, Heilongjiang to the north, Liaoning to the south, and Inner Mongolia to the west...
- Museum of Imperial Palace of Manchu StateMuseum of Imperial Palace of Manchu StateThe Museum of the Imperial Palace of the Manchu State is a museum in the northeastern corner of Changchun, Jilin province, northeast China...
, ChangchunChangchunChangchun is the capital and largest city of Jilin province, located in the northeast of the People's Republic of China, in the center of the Songliao Plain. It is administered as a sub-provincial city with a population of 7,677,089 at the 2010 census under its jurisdiction, including counties and... - Jilin University Museum
LiaoningLiaoning' is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the northeast of the country. Its one-character abbreviation is "辽" , a name taken from the Liao River that flows through the province. "Níng" means "peace"...
- Dalian Natural History Museum
- Dalian Modern Museum
- Shenyang Steam Locomotive Museum
ShaanxiShaanxi' is a province in the central part of Mainland China, and it includes portions of the Loess Plateau on the middle reaches of the Yellow River in addition to the Qinling Mountains across the southern part of this province...
- Shaanxi History MuseumShaanxi History MuseumShaanxi History Museum, which located to the northwest of the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda in the ancient city Xi'an, in the Shaanxi province of China, is one of the first huge state museums with modern facilities in China. The museum houses over 300,000 items including murals, paintings, pottery,...
, Xian - Xi'an Stele Forest MuseumStele ForestThe Stele Forest, or Xi'an Beilin Museum , is a museum for steles and stone sculptures which is located in Xi'an, China. Founded in 1944, it was the principal museum for Shaanxi province on the site of what was formerly an 11th century Confucius Temple...
(Beilin), Xian - Terracotta ArmyTerracotta ArmyThe Terracotta Army or the "Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses", is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China...
, Xian - Xi'an Banpo MuseumXi'an Banpo MuseumThe Xi'an Banpo Museum is a museum in Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. The museum houses artifacts from the archaeological site of Banpo. The museum gives access to the excavated buildings, has a collection of artifacts from the site, and also has several reconstructed houses designed to resemble the...
, Xi'anXi'anXi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty... - Maoling Museum
ShandongShandong' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
- Shandong Provincial MuseumShandong Provincial MuseumThe Shandong Provincial Museum is the principal museum of Shandong Province. It is located in the City of Jinan, Shandong, China.The Shandong Provincial Museum was established in 1954.. It houses acollection of more than 210 000 historical artifacts...
- Shandong Science & Technology Museum
- Jinan Museum
- Qingdao Municipal Museum
ShanghaiShanghaiShanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
- Shanghai MuseumShanghai MuseumThe Shanghai Museum is a museum of ancient Chinese art, situated on the People's Square in the Huangpu District of Shanghai, People's Republic of China.-History:...
- Shanghai Art MuseumShanghai Art MuseumThe Shanghai Art Museum is an art museum in the city of Shanghai, China. It is located in the former clubhouse building of the Today, it is the home of the Shanghai biennial and stands adjacent to People's Square...
- Shanghai Entomological Museum
- Shanghai History Museum
- Shanghai Science and Technology MuseumShanghai Science and Technology MuseumShanghai Science and Technology Museum is a large museum in Pudong, Shanghai, close to Century Park, the largest park within the inner districts of the city....
- Shanghai Water Displaying Hall
- C. Y. Tung Maritime MuseumC. Y. Tung Maritime MuseumThe C. Y. Tung Maritime Museum is located in the Shanghai Jiao Tong University. It houses the Chinese Maritime History Gallery and the C. Y. Tung Gallery. The former contains a permanent exhibition of maps, photographs, archival material, maritime trade routes and their artifacts, reflecting...
- Shanghai Museum of TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine)
- Museum of Contemporary Art Shanghai (MOCA Shanghai)
- Shanghai Museum of Public Security
ShanxiShanxi' is a province in Northern China. Its one-character abbreviation is "晋" , after the state of Jin that existed here during the Spring and Autumn Period....
- Shanxi Provincial Museum (Taiyuan)
- Shanxi Provincial Museum of Art (Taiyuan)
- Datong Museum (Lower Huayan Monastery of Datong)
- The Coal Museum of China (Taiyuan)
SichuanSichuan' , known formerly in the West by its postal map spellings of Szechwan or Szechuan is a province in Southwest China with its capital in Chengdu...
- Zigong Dinosaur MuseumZigong Dinosaur MuseumLocated near the Prefecture-level city of Zigong, China, in the smaller township of Dashanpu, is the Zigong Dinosaur Museum. The museum sits on top of a large concentration of dinosaur fossils — both in terms of quantity but also of diversity. The museum claims the largest number of dinosaur...
, ZigongZigongZigong , ancient name Ziliujing and Gongjing, is a prefecture-level city and the third largest city in Sichuan Province, in southwest China.-Geography:... - Zigong Salt History Museum, ZigongZigongZigong , ancient name Ziliujing and Gongjing, is a prefecture-level city and the third largest city in Sichuan Province, in southwest China.-Geography:...
- Sichuan Science and Technology MuseumSichuan Science and Technology MuseumSichuan Science and Technology Museum is a museum about science and technology in Sichuan. It was the Sichuan Provincial Exhibition Hall until 2006. The museum includes airplanes, flying saucers, 3D movies, robots and interactive model rockets....
, ChengduChengduChengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status... - Du Fu Cao Tang (Thatched Cottage of Du Fu), ChengduChengduChengdu , formerly transliterated Chengtu, is the capital of Sichuan province in Southwest China. It holds sub-provincial administrative status...
- Sanxingdui Museum
- Jinsha Site Museum
- China Colour Lantern Museum
- Jianchuan MuseumJianchuan MuseumThe Jianchuan Museum Cluster is located in Anren, Sichuan in Dayi, part of Chengdu and about a one hour drive from downtown Chengdu. It consists of 15 museums which showcase China's largest private collection of artefacts amassed during the last 60–70 years....
TianjinTianjin' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...
- Tianjin MuseumTianjin MuseumTianjin Museum is the largest museum in Tianjin, China, exhibiting a range of cultural and historical relics significant to Tianjin. The museum lies in Yinhe Plaza in the Hexi District of Tianjin and covers an area of about 50,000 sq metres...
- Memorial to Zhou Enlai and Deng Yingchao, TianjinTianjin' is a metropolis in northern China and one of the five national central cities of the People's Republic of China. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is, thus, under direct administration of the central government...
- Tianjin Natural History Museum
YunnanYunnanYunnan is a province of the People's Republic of China, located in the far southwest of the country spanning approximately and with a population of 45.7 million . The capital of the province is Kunming. The province borders Burma, Laos, and Vietnam.Yunnan is situated in a mountainous area, with...
- Lufeng Dinosaur MuseumLufeng Dinosaur MuseumThe Lufeng Dinosaur Museum is located in Jingshan , Lufeng County, Yunnan Province, China. Lufeng is the site of numerous Jurassic dinosaur discoveries, first found there in 1938. Most well known is Lufengosaurus, a Jurassic prosauropod. More recently, teeth and a skull of Ramapithecus, a Miocene...
- Yunnan Provincial MuseumYunnan Provincial MuseumYunnan Provincial Museum is located in Kunming, on Wuyi Lu. It houses an exhibition centered on Yunnan's ethnic minorities, as well as a collection of artifacts from tomb excavations at Jinning on the southern rim of Lake Dian.-External links:...
- Yunnan Nationalities Museum
- Kunming Natural History Museum of ZoologyKunming Natural History Museum of ZoologyThe Kunming Natural History Museum of Zoology is located on the campus of Kunming Institute of Zoology, Jiaochang East Road, Kunming, Yunnan, China...
- Yunnan Railway Museum Kunming.
ZhejiangZhejiangZhejiang is an eastern coastal province of the People's Republic of China. The word Zhejiang was the old name of the Qiantang River, which passes through Hangzhou, the provincial capital...
- Zhejiang Provincial MuseumZhejiang Provincial MuseumThe Zhejiang Provincial Museum is a major museum of Chinese art located near the West Lake in Hangzhou, China. It was first established in 1929, and now houses over 100,000 items in its permanent collection.-External links:*...
, Hangzhou - Zhejiang Museum of Natural History
- Hangzhou Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum
- Hangzhou World Numismatic Museum
- Liangzhu Culture Museum
- China National Tea MuseumChina National Tea MuseumThe China National Tea Museum is located in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China. The exhibitions display tea production, and different kinds of tea. Exhibitions are in Chinese and English.-External links:*...
, Hangzhou - China National Silk Museum, Hangzhou
- Zhoushan Museum
- China Finance and Taxation Museum
- China Shoes Museum, WenzhouWenzhouWenzhou is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Zhejiang province, People's Republic of China. The area under its jurisdiction, which includes two satellite cities and six counties, had a population of 9,122,100 as of 2010....
- China Grand Canal Museum
- The National Sauce Culture Museum of China
- Traditional Chinese Medicine Museum, Hangzhou
- Chinese Seal Museum, Hangzhou
See also
- Universities in China
- Libraries in ChinaLibraries in ChinaEarly in the history of China, scholars had extensive private libraries, and all of the imperial dynasties constructed libraries and archives to house literary treasures and official records. The first modern libraries, however, did not appear in China until the late nineteenth century; even then,...
- List of World Heritage Sites in China
External links
- Museums in China (English, by chinaculture.org)
- Museums in China overview
- China Museums directory
- China Museums Guide
- Beijing's Museums & Galleries - China.org.cn
- Chinese Museums with English language websites
- "China to Have 3,000 Museums by 2015"
- "Another 1,200 museums open for free by 2009"
- Nanjing's Museums & Galleries - NanjingExpat.com
- China Museum Index