Nanjing University Museum of Archaeology and Art

Nanjing University Museum of Archaeology and Art

Jiangsu Province’s first university museum — the Nanjing University Museum of Archaeology and Art — has opened.

The Nanjing University Museum of Archaeology and Art was built upon the former archaeology collection room of the Department of History. It houses and exhibits more than 9,000 cultural relics from various periods and types, as well as over 20,000 rubbings of inscriptions and calligraphy, collected, donated, or discovered in archaeological digs by the university over the past century. Many of these are rare and precious cultural artifacts rarely seen in China, possessing high research and collection value. The museum breaks away from the conventional general historical exhibition model and arranges its displays according to the classification and origin of its collections, using strong cultural content and visual appeal to attract visitors.

Nanjing University’s endeavors in cultural relic collection and research have a history of nearly a century. As early as the 1920s, the former Central University’s College of Liberal Arts and Department of History, predecessors of Nanjing University, began collecting oracle bones from the Yinxu site, while the university library acquired a number of valuable rubbings of inscriptions and calligraphy, as well as works by famous calligraphers. At the same time, John Calvin Ferguson, an American collector and founder of the former University of Nanking, donated over a thousand precious cultural relics to the school. Successive generations of Nanjing University staff, whether during wartime or periods of economic hardship, have also made tremendous efforts in the collection and study of cultural relics, leaving behind a valuable cultural heritage for today’s university. It is clear that the tens of thousands of items in this campus museum embody the dedication of many of Nanjing University’s predecessors.

The Nanjing University Treasures of Cultural Relics Catalogue uses a wealth of exquisite images and detailed text to introduce readers to the diverse and invaluable relics housed in the Museum of Archaeology and Art, which possess both historical and artistic significance. The content covers prehistoric jade artifacts, Shang and Zhou dynasty bronze ritual vessels, Yinxu oracle bones, bronze daily-use utensils, ceramics, measuring instruments, coins, ancient paintings and calligraphy, stone rubbings, as well as some bamboo, wood, and lacquerware, ancient inkstones, ink sticks, and brocades among other arts and crafts. Most of the relics recorded have been published for the first time, providing extremely valuable material for relevant researchers.