Welcome to Shaanxi History Museum
Shaanxi History Museum is the first modern national museum in China displaying the nation’s history starting from one million years ago to present day with a collection of 1.7 million objects all found from the land in Shaanxi Province where 14 dynasties had their capitals seated. The highlight collections include bronze-ware from the dawn of Chinese civilization, ceramic figurines showcasing various aspects of people’s lives from different periods, gold and silver-ware from the Han and Tang dynasties during the prime of China’s dynastic past, and stunning murals from the Tang imperial tombs.
The Museum’s main exhibition offers free admission to visitors across the world.
Protection, conservation, scientific research, social education, cultural exchanges, knowledge sharing, and cultural innovation have marked the Museum since its foundation in 1991. The Museum is driven by a fervent desire to safeguard the rich legacy of our past for people’s appreciation today.
Shaanxi History Museum (QinHan Gallery) was launched on December 29, 2023. It is situated next to the National Heritage Park of Xianyang City of the Qin Dynasty in Xixian New Area. The museum covers about 200,000 square meters in total, with a construction area of 39,809 square meters and an exhibition space of 10,362 square meters.
The museum complex is remarkable for its construction design. The seven functional buildings stand on the elevated terraces of rammed earth, their positions corresponding with the Big Dipper in the sky which symbolizes the rule of heaven in Chinese culture. The buildings are connected by double-floor walkways or winding corridors and surrounded by bridges over lakes and towers as guards. This reproduces the magnificent imperial architecture in the Qin and Han dynasties. The ingenious scheme was devised by Zhang Jinqiu, a prestigious visionary architect and academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering.
This museum is dedicated to the in-depth stories of the Qin and Han dynasties, hosting three exhibitions. The feature exhibition “Great Unity under Heaven—Civilization of Qin and Han Dynasties” provides a multifaceted view of the far-reaching governance initiated by the Qin and Han dynasties, including the political administration, economic development, ideological foundation, cultural innovation, technological progress, cross-cultural exchanges, and so on. It consists of 8 sections, displaying 732 pieces (sets) of iconic cultural relics on two floors and covers an area of 3,530 square meters. Two theme exhibitions “City and Mausoleum” and “Technology and Beauty” complement it by demonstrating and interpreting the unique construction concept of the cities and mausoleums as well as the advances in technology and art at that time.
