China has an ancient civilization with a very long history.
Understanding its olely through the study of documents is clearly
inadequate. A wealth of objects and remains has been preserved on
China's vast territory and underground; much of which has been collected
and is exhibited in various kinds of museums. This raw material of
history can, in a certain sense, be considered more valuable for our
understanding of the past of China than documents and historical
records. Among the sixty-one museums selected for this book, many have
been designated as key protected cultural sites by China. Some have been
included in the UNESCO List of World Cultural Heritage Sites. We hope
that this volume can serve visitors as a guide to understanding these
museums.
Table of Contents
Foreword: Reading the History of Chinese Civilization from Its Museums National Treasures Palace Museum Taipei Palace Museum Capital Museum Shanghai Museum Shaanxi History Museum Henan Museum Nanjing Museum Museum of Liaoning Province Three Gorges Museum Contributions of China's National Minorities Cultural Palace of Nationalities Shenyang Palace Museum Inner Mongolia Museum Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region Museum Tibet Museum Museum of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Ningxia Museum Yunnan Provincial Museum Tracing the Tracks of History National Museum of China Sanxingdui Museum Jinsha Site Museum Zhouyuan Museum Suizhou Zenghouyi Tomb Site Exhibition Hall Museum of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shihuang Changsha Mawangdui Han Tomb Cultural Relics Exhibition Hall Mancheng Han Tomb Site Exhibition Hall Treasures of China's Stone Grottoes Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes Yungang Grottoes Lonzmen Grottoes Dazu Rock Carvings Underground Imperial Palaces Tomb of the Yellow Emperor Maoling Museum Qianling Museum Dingling Museum Qing Dongling and Qing Xiling Tombs Hua-xia Civilization China National Silk Museum China National Tea Museum lingdezhen Ceramics Museum Huqingyutang Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine Quanzhou Maritime Museum Assembly of Talents: Arts and Literature National Art Museum of China National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature Beijing Theater Museum China Sports Museum Hong Kong Museum of History Macao Maritime Museum Gardens and Architectural Monuments Suzhou Garden Museum Summer Palace Great Wall Museum of China Temple of Heaven Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion in Qufu Jinci Museum Homes of Our Forebears: Archaeology Zhoukoudian Peking Man Site Museum Xinle Site Museum Hemudu Site Museum Xi'an Banpo Museum Marvels of Heaven and Earth: Natural History Beijing Ancient Observatory Geological Museum of China Zigong Dinosaur Museum Tonglushan Ancient Metallurgy Museum Zigong Salt History Museum Appendix: Chronological Table of the Chinese Dynasties