Turpan Regional Museum

　　　　Turpan Museum is situated on the west side of Gaochang Road, the most bustling street in Turpan City, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. Constructed in 1989, it occupies nine mu of land and consists of two parts: the main building and the Giant Rhinoceros Exhibition Hall, with a total floor space of 2,000 square meters. The museum is fully equipped with modern security systems, enclosed transparent display cases, and a well-trained team of guides. It currently houses a collection of 3,287 items, including 135 first-grade national cultural relics, 260 second-grade relics, and 640 third-grade relics, making it the largest museum among all prefecture- and city-level museums in Xinjiang. The museum features a distinctive design that is simple yet solemn, highlighting the regional ethnic characteristics and historical depth of the Western Regions. The entire facility is divided into several sections to meet different needs, including the reception hall, the Turpan Cultural Relics Exhibition Hall, the Ancient Mummy Exhibition Hall, the Giant Rhinoceros Exhibition Hall, various exhibition rooms, and storage areas.

　　　　The Turpan Cultural Relics Exhibition Hall displays nearly 300 artifacts, 28 of which are first-grade national cultural relics. The exhibits mainly consist of early cultural remains with distinct local features, represented by red painted pottery and plain pottery; a large number of silk fabrics—typical Silk Road relics—are also showcased, including various types such as brocades, silks, and gauzes. The Sui-Jin Dynasty “Coexisting Birds” embroidery and Tang Dynasty floral-and-bird-patterned brocades are among the rare treasures. The world-renowned Turpan manuscripts include contracts, household registers, official documents, and personal letters, serving as important resources for studying the history of the Wei, Jin, Northern and Southern Dynasties, Sui, and Tang periods. Ancient texts in minority scripts such as Sogdian, Khotanese, and Sanskrit are valuable materials for researching ancient ethnic minority writing systems.

　　　　The Ancient Mummy Exhibition Hall currently displays five thousand-year-old mummies from the Jin to Tang dynasties, among which the desiccated bodies of Zhang Ning and his wife—who were leaders of the Gaochang Kingdom’s guard unit—are the most eye-catching. The lifelike and vivid reconstructions of Zhang Ning and his wife, created by the Beijing Natural History Museum, are remarkably realistic. The Turpan mummies were formed through natural factors such as climate and geography, fundamentally differing from the artificially preserved mummies of ancient Egypt, thus making them precious specimens. They hold significant scientific value for research in anthropology, archaeology, medicine, and especially the study of Xinjiang’s history.

　　　　The Giant Rhinoceros Exhibition Hall is a large-scale, modern exhibition venue expanded from the main building in 1996. With a total investment of 2 million yuan, it officially opened to the public in August 1997 and is currently the largest natural history museum in northwestern China. The exhibits include fossils of the Tianshan Giant Rhinoceros, discovered in 1993 during the construction of the double-track Lanxin Railway at the Feiyue Railway Station in eastern Turpan. This extinct species was the largest mammal to have ever lived on land, measuring about 9 meters in length and weighing approximately 30 tons. It lived around 24 million years ago during the Oligocene epoch. The establishment and opening of this exhibition hall have enriched the museum's display content, deepened its thematic depth, and created a beautiful landmark attraction in Turpan.

　　　　In addition to these three core exhibitions, Turpan Museum has also successfully hosted various calligraphy, painting, and photography exhibitions, as well as educational events, since its inception—such as "Warm Care—Visits to Turpan by Party and State Leaders" and "Celebrating Hong Kong’s Return." The museum has cumulatively received nearly 500,000 domestic and international visitors. Each year, it organizes school trips for elementary and middle school students and offers free admission to active-duty military personnel, achieving outstanding social impact. The museum has been designated as a regional patriotic education base and national defense education base, among other honors. It has made unique contributions to enriching Xinjiang’s regional cultural identity and enhancing spiritual civilization.