Jiashan County Museum

Jiashan County Museum

On November 21, 1986, with the approval of the Jiashan County People’s Government, it was agreed that the Jiashan County Museum would become an independent institution. In February 1987, the county museum was officially established. Its location was set at Meihua An within No. 45 Huayuan Road. In September 2000, the new building of the Wu Zhen Memorial Hall was completed. On February 19, 2002, the County Organization Establishment Committee agreed to establish a separate staffing structure for the Wu Zhen Memorial Hall. The Wu Zhen Memorial Hall and the county museum shared offices, with one team managing both, and were housed in the Wu Zhen Memorial Hall building. The museum houses a collection of over 2,500 cultural relics, including 1 first-grade relic, 18 second-grade relics, and over 300 third-grade relics.

The Wu Zhen Memorial Hall is located at No. 178 Huayuan Road, Weitang Subdistrict, Jiashan County, covering a land area of 3,601.9㎡ and a building area of 2,078.88㎡. The building, designed in the Ming and Qing architectural styles, harmonizes with the 700-year-old historical site. Within the hall are pavilions, towers, small bridges, flowing water, the fragrance of plum blossoms, and the grace of bamboo, accompanied by birdsong and fish leaping — where historical relics blend seamlessly with new scenery, making it a renowned cultural tourism destination in the Jiangnan region.

Major historic sites and attractions within the hall include: Meihua An, Wu Zhen’s Tomb, Meihua Pavilion, Eight Bamboo Steles, Cursive Script Heart Sutra Stele, Plum Blossom Spring, Ink-Washing Pool, Qianhong Pavilion, Renben Hall Ink-Engraved Steles, ancient stone steles, Fisherman’s Picture Stele Corridor, Bamboo Spectrum Stele Corridor, as well as the Wu Zhen Exhibition Room, Wu Zhen Sculpture, Colorful Brush Pavilion, Cold Green Pavilion, Fan Pavilion, Forest Spring Residence, Dripping Water Rockery, and Stone Bridge Scenery.

In April 1981, with the approval of the Zhejiang Provincial People’s Government, Wu Zhen’s Tomb was re-designated as a Zhejiang Provincial Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit. In February 1998, with the approval of the provincial government, the Wu Zhen Memorial Hall was designated as a Provincial Patriotic Education Base. In May 2013, with the approval of the State Council, Wu Zhen’s Tomb was listed as part of the seventh batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Wu Zhen (1280–1354), also known as Zhonggui, with the art names Meihua Daoren, Mei Daoren, and Meisha Mi, was a native of Weitang, Jiashan, and one of the Four Great Painters of the Yuan Dynasty in China. He was renowned in his time as a master of the “three perfections”: poetry, calligraphy, and painting. Wu Zhen was famous for his lifelong reclusion and his skill in painting themes of seclusion. During the Yuan Dynasty, when literati painting flourished, his works stood out with a unique style, embodying the cultural essence of traditional Chinese literati painting and holding irreplaceable value and significance in the history of Chinese art. Wu Zhen belongs to China, and to the world.

Wu Zhen’s Tomb is located to the west of Meihua An. In front of the tomb is a stele inscribed with the words “Here lies the reclusive master Wu Zhonggu, the high-minded painter,” written in seal script by Xie Yingxiang, the magistrate of Jiashan during the Ming Dynasty’s Wanli era. It is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Wu Zhen Exhibition Room is divided into three main sections: I. A Brief Biography; II. Artistic Achievements; III. The Demeanor of a Noble Scholar. It provides a detailed introduction to Wu Zhen’s life, family background, paintings and calligraphy, the character of a noble scholar, as well as the evaluations of later generations.

Contact Information:

No. 178 Huayuan Road, Weitang Subdistrict, Jiashan County, Zhejiang Province Postal Code: 314100

Tel: 0573—8402380 0573—84033247

Fax: 0573—84033247 Wu Zhen Memorial Hall Website: www.wzjng.com