Changzhi Museum

　　Changzhi Museum is located on Taihang West Street in Changzhi City. Construction of the new museum began in September 1990 and was completed in October 1992. It covers an area of 13,340 square meters, with a building area of 8,200 square meters. The name of the museum was inscribed by Mr. Zhao Puchu, then President of the Buddhist Association of China.

　　The museum faces south and consists of an office building, an exhibition building for cultural relics, and an exhibition hall for ancient tombs. The roof of the cultural relics exhibition building is umbrella-shaped, topped with a replica of a bronze chariot and horse from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, measuring 6 meters in length, 2.5 meters in height, and weighing 7.5 tons, which serves as the symbol of the museum. The museum houses over 60,000 cultural relics, including bronzeware, ceramics, jade artifacts, calligraphy and paintings, stone carvings, gold and silverware, among others. There are more than 1,200 pieces of precious cultural relics. Relics from the museum have been selected to participate in exhibitions in Italy, the United States, Japan, and other countries. The collection features regional specialties such as Ming and Qing dynasty colored glaze artifacts unearthed in the Shangdang area, bronzeware from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods excavated at the FenShuiLing site in Changzhi, and Song and Jin dynasty ceramics from the Northern Cizhou Kiln system.

　　The museum has six exhibition halls, covering a total area of 5,200 square meters. The permanent exhibition “Shangdang Has Always Been the Ridge of the World – The Ancient Civilization of Changzhi” is divided into five sections: stoneware, jade artifacts, bronzeware, pottery, and porcelain, displaying 320 relics from the Paleolithic Age to the Qing dynasty. The thematic exhibition “Ancient Tombs of Changzhi Through the Dynasties” features two tomb exhibition halls showcasing 14 ancient tombs and their burial objects from the Eastern Zhou Dynasty to the Qing dynasty, all relocated and restored to their original form. There is also an exhibit of “Warring States Chariot and Horse Pits” displayed as excavated. In addition, the museum has held over 40 large-scale exhibitions, including “Exhibition of Fine Historical Relics of the Changzhi Area” and “Exhibition of Calligraphy and Paintings by Famous Figures of the Shangdang Area.”

　　The museum has 11 departments, including the Office, the Archaeology Department, the Cultural Relics Research Office, the Public Engagement Department, the Exhibition Department, and the Ancient Architecture Department. It oversees three affiliated units: the Chenghuang Temple Cultural Relics Management Office, the Yan Emperor Memorial Hall, and the Guanyin Hall Cultural Relics Management Office. Since its establishment, the museum has published works such as “Historical Figures of the Shangdang Area,” “Chronicles of Changzhi Cultural Relics,” “Comprehensive Catalogue of Stone Carvings in Shanxi • Changzhi Volume,” and “The Light of Shangdang Civilization.” It has published over 80 research papers and artworks in national-level newspapers and journals, and over 50 articles and works in provincial-level publications. In 1995, it was designated as a Provincial Patriotic Education Base by the Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government.