Shaanxi History Museum

Shaanxi held the capital under the Zhou, Qin, Han, Tang and others, so the provincial collection covers the core of early Chinese history: Zhou bronzes, Qin material including terracotta figures, Han seals and jade, and above all the Tang, whose capital Chang'an stood here. The Hejiacun hoard, over a thousand pieces of Tang gold and silver buried in two jars, is the highlight, along with a separate gallery of wall paintings lifted from Tang princely tombs, showing polo, hunting, court women and foreign envoys in a state of preservation and liveliness that is hard to find elsewhere.

History

Building of the museum began in 1983 and it opened on 20 June 1991, in a Tang-style complex with a central hall and towers at the corners, one of China's first large modern state museums. Shaanxi was the seat of more than 13 dynasties, among them the Zhou, Qin, Han and Tang, and the museum gathered over 370,000 relics found in the province, including bronzes, pottery figures and Tang tomb murals; by 2021 its collection numbered 1,725,754 objects or sets (Wikipedia, Shaanxi History Museum).

What to look for

• The Hejiacun hoard - Tang gold and silver buried in two sealed jars.
• The tomb murals - Tang wall paintings lifted from princely burials.
• The Zhou and Qin bronzes - early ritual vessels from the Guanzhong plain.
• The Han material - seals, jade and figurines from the capital period.

When to go

Year-round; the museum closes on Mondays. Free tickets require advance booking and are released in limited daily numbers, going quickly in summer. The mural gallery charges separately.

Before you go

Booking is compulsory and difficult without a Chinese app; queues form even with tickets. The museum is very busy. English labelling is partial for such an important collection.

Nearby

The Big Wild Goose Pagoda lies east; the city wall is north.

Key facts