Xian Museums Exploration Of The Huge History Of The City
Xian China is full of museums where you can explore very ancient history. All of the Xian museums will give you a look at the culture of the area and some of the exhibits are simply mind boggling. During the Zhou Dynasty around the 11th century Xian was a center of politics and culture. It was most certainly settled way before that. An ancient Banpo village from about 6500 years ago was excavated in 1954 and there were humans living in the area even before that.
The founding date of Xian is about 202 BCE when Emperor Liu Bang belonging to the Han Dynasty made his capital in Changan and a few years later he built a palace in Xian. During the Sui Dynasty about 582 a new capitol was built and there were three different sections one being Xian Palace. The city is in central China surrounded by 8 rivers and streams. Qinling Mountains are on the southern border and to the north is Wei River. With all the history of the area one would expect there to be some very excellent museums around and Xian has some brilliant museums.
One of the most well known museums in Xian is the Terracotta Army Museum. Within just 16,300 square meters are more than 7000 terracotta figures that are life size. There are warriors in armor and horses and they were laid out in formations ready for battle. Do not miss this museum because it is purely astounding. The pits were learned in 1974 by villagers who were just drilling wells on some land where nothing ever grew. They found some bronze weapons and chose to call in someone from Cultural Heritage. What they uncovered is one of the largest and most vital archaeological finds of the modern world. They built an arched, steel frame roof over the 3 pits in 1976 to protect the area and columns were raised to hold up the roof. There are warriors, horses, chariots all of which are not really excavated even to this day.
Visit the Shaanxi History museum righ in the south of town. The building is modern but made with Tang dynasty architecture. The main hall holds about 2700 art pieces from all eras. This museum houses permanent exhibitions and also a few temporary ones. In the permanent collection are artifacts from all dynasties including weapons, statues, gold cast objects and you can also view photos from other archaeological digs in China. When purchasing an item from the gift shop be sure to argue about the price. It is really acceptable and expected.
The Hanyang Tomb Museum is relatively new opening just in 2006. It is an underground museum and is really a tomb. Several pits were excavated and a glass floor placed over top allows you merely to look down to see the exhibit. There are other artifacts that are placed in glass cases that you can see very easily. This tomb was undisturbed for over 2000 years and it is still in the process of being excavated today. The site contains about 5000 tombs and includes a human sacrifice grave yard. You can view statues of both people and animals that are delightfully detailed. If you really get to go down into the tomb itself do not be surprised if you are given two plastic bags to place on your feet in order to protect your shoes.
The Banpo Village Museum is a Stone Age settlement that was settled in about 5000 to 4000 BC. The museum is inside a building located about 10 miles east of Xian City and was built in 1958. The village was very organized with a building in the center of the village that had a large room circled by several smaller rooms. All around the village was a ditch that was designed to keep large wild animals out. There were 46 individual dwellings, a ceramic production area and a cemetery. In the museum are tools and weapons used by the people and reproductions of what life would be like in the village.
If you like Chinese writing or the art of calligraphy you will need to go to the Stele Forest Museum near the south Gate in Xian. You will find over 1000 stone tablets with calligraphy carved into them that were done in the time of the Han and Qing dynasties. This museum is in an ancient 11th century temple dedicated to Confucius. Some of the tablets are 4000 years ancient and they progress up to some made during the 20th century. Guides will instruct you on how to make your own calligraphy with paint and brush.
Xian is a very historic place and the history goes back much further than it does in many places. You can visit a Neolithic village or explore the dynasties of China. The terracotta warriors are certainly worth a visit and you might even try to write in Chinese calligraphy. There are also many other museums rich with the culture of China just in this one city.
Museums in Xi’an will give you extensive background info of the local culture and some will amaze you with the exhibits that are there for you to explore. We have got the ultimate inside information on the best Xian Travel and museums.
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