Dunhuang Museum Overview & Map Weather Transportation Information
The Dunhuang Museum is located in the downtown area of Dunhuang City. It is situated in a three storey building which covers an area of 2,400 square meters (about 25,834 square feet). In front of the museum stand a group of carved figures depicting people leading their camels as they travel along the Silk Road.
What to visit
The Dunhuang Museum is a comprehensive local museum to exhibit the historical relics, folk arts local human and geographic features, and natural resources.
Rich collection
The museum boasts a rich collection of over 4000 pieces of precious cultural and historical relics, mainly including: earthen wares, stone wares, inscriptions, the inscribed bamboo slips in Han Dynasty, silk, brazen and iron wares, ancient money, jewelry, wooden wares, calligraphy and paintings of well-known artists through the ages, etc.
- Dunhuang Posthumous Papers
Among these relics, the most precious piece is the "Dunhuang Posthumous Papers" unearthed in the Library Cave of Mogao Grottoes.
- Tibetan sutra
There also treasured some Tibetan sutra, ancient classics about geography, military, and climate, which are all very precious and rarely seen in the world.
These collections are the important access for the visitors to get a feeling about the history and culture of Dunhuang.
Three sections
The exhibit which covers the period from primitive society to the end of the Qing Dynasty can be divided into three sections.
First section
The documents in the scripture hidden hole (the seventeenth hole) in Mogao Grottoes are the first part. Such as celebrity's writings and pictures, ancient writings about the geography, weather and military affaires. These treasures are really precious.
Second section
The second section mainly shows unearthed cultural relics excavated from the graves in the Han Dynasty (206 B.C. - 220 A.D.), Jin Dynasty (265 A.D. - 420 A.D.), Sui Dynasty (581 A.D. - 618 A.D.), and Tang Dynasty (618 A.D. - 907 A.D.) are displayed.
In this section you will see the stone pagoda, pottery box and stone beast figure which was set in a grave and believed to drive the monsters or evil away. Kylin brick is a special kind of brick carved in high relief (a method of carving in which the design stands out from the flat surface) containing an incised inscription. Kylin is a mythical unicorn in Chinese legends and it was carved on the brick so vividly that it seems to gallop and fly. As an important city on the Silk Road, Dunhuang once was a major trade center in Western China.
Third section
The third section of the display holds a number of exhibits which illustrate Dunhuang's flourishing culture including some exquisite silk floret brocade and bamboo slips used for writing. Additionally, iron and bronze tools and weapons are also displayed.
A rewarding trip
The Dunhuang Museum reflects the flourishing social development and cultural exchange between China and the West during the time when Dunhuang was a major center along the Silk Road. A trip to the Dunhuang Museum will provide you with a greater understanding of the history and culture of the Chinese people and their ancient civilization.
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