New Barag Right Banner Museum

New Barag Right Banner Museum

The New Barag Right Banner Museum is a national AA-level tourist attraction.

Barag Museum — a national AA-level tourist attraction, located on Urson Street in Altan Emel Town. Covering a land area of 1,700 square meters and a building area of 3,396 square meters, it was officially opened on August 15, 2004.

The Barag are one of the oldest tribes in Mongolian history. Throughout the millennia of historical change, numerous northern nomadic peoples have stepped onto the world stage from this region, witnessing the rise and fall of countless nations and ethnic groups. Yet, the Barag people have consistently lived and thrived across the Mongolian Plateau and the Hulunbuir region. It can be said that Barag Mongolian culture is a microcosm of world culture and a treasured piece of history among the world’s ethnicities.

Standing prominently in front of the museum is a 5-meter-tall bronze equestrian statue of Genghis Khan, the legendary "One Who Conquered the World." The base is made of white marble, inscribed with the name "Genghis Khan" and his birth and death years in both Mongolian and Chinese.

The Barag Museum is the only comprehensive museum in China — and indeed the world — dedicated to the Barag theme. Its uniqueness, advancement, and elegance have established it as a cultural hub for Barag Mongolian heritage and a renowned cultural brand within the autonomous region. With a vast and diverse collection, the museum reflects the centuries-long historical accumulation of the Barag Mongolian people.

The overall architecture of the Barag Museum features a grand base supporting a dignified and elegant main structure. The exterior is painted in a matte coffee-red hue that conveys solemnity and historical significance. The building is predominantly square-shaped, topped with a circular glass dome, aligning with traditional Chinese architectural principles — representing stability (“four flat and eight steady”) and the concept of “the round sky and square earth.” The visual centerpiece of the museum is a glass curtain wall shaped like a Mongolian yurt, symbolizing the ever-thriving Barag Mongolian people rising, flourishing, and ascending on the global stage.

On either side of the central glass curtain wall are two sets of exterior relief sculptures that showcase strong artistic value and striking visual effects, depicting the story of the Barag people’s migration to Hulunbuir. Historically, the Barag tribe migrated frequently. During the Qing Dynasty’s Kangxi era, a portion of the tribe moved to Khalkha Mongolia, now part of modern-day Mongolia, where they became a subordinate group. By then, the Khalkha Mongolians had embraced Tibetan Buddhism, while the Barag Mongols still followed the indigenous Shamanism, leading them to be viewed as heretics and persecuted. In response, the Barag tribal leader selected six brave warriors, led by Damding, and sent them eastward toward the rising sun in search of habitable land. Due to the long and arduous journey, each warrior was given two horses. After tremendous hardship, they arrived at the foot of Mount Bogd Uul, where they found vast open land, sparse population, abundant water and grass, and plentiful resources — an ideal place to settle. Overjoyed, they immediately forgot their fatigue and traveled day and night back to Khalkha Mongolia to report to their leader. Later, with approval from the Qing government, over 2,000 Barag people from the Chesend tribe of Khalkha Mongolia were organized to migrate to Hulunbuir, settling along both sides of the Urson River at the foot of Mount Bogd Uul.

The bold yet graceful six-character inscription “Barag Museum” was penned by Mr. Chen Kuiyuan, former Party Committee Secretary of Altan Emel Town in the New Barag Right Banner, and current Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and President of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Below the main wall, connecting the wall to the base, are 14 decorative and supportive auspicious pillars. The tops of the pillars feature bronze reliefs of the “sun, moon, wind, and rain,” symbolizing favorable weather, prosperous livestock, and thriving industries throughout the year. Each pillar is tall and majestic, blending in color with the main building. The decorative pillar capitals on the side corridors depict the “five domestic animals” — cow, horse, sheep, goat, and camel — also representing the two sums (sub-districts) and three towns of the New Barag Right Banner.

The museum features 27 steps, with each step representing 10 years — thus, the 27 steps signify the 270-year journey of the New Barag region from its establishment to its current prosperity. At both ends of the staircase are smooth wheelchair-accessible ramps for visitors using wheelchairs or pushing strollers. Facing visitors is the grand Barag bronze relief welcome gate, which depicts distinctive folk activities such as auspicious floral patterns, offering hada (prayer scarves), wrestling (Bökh), bowl-balancing dance, and morin khuur (horsehead fiddle) performances. These elements represent the warm welcome and heartfelt blessings of the grassland people to all guests.

The museum exhibition halls are divided into the Natural Ecology Hall and Achievement Hall on the first floor, the History Hall and Folklore Hall on the second floor, and the Comprehensive Hall underground. The Barag Museum boasts distinct local and ethnic characteristics, comprehensively and systematically rescuing, preserving, showcasing, researching, and passing down Barag culture. It serves as a vital Mongolian cultural base integrating historical archaeology, information networks, tourism, and cultural industry.

Source: Hulunbuir Tourism Bureau