Liaoning Provincial Museum – The First Museum in PRC

Liaoning Provincial Museum

The Liaoning Provincial Museum (辽宁博物馆), originally known as the Northeast Museum, first opened its doors on July 7, 1949, making it the first museum established in the People’s Republic of China. Construction of the new museum building began in August 2011, and the fully revamped facility officially reopened on August 17, 2018. The museum is internationally renowned for its rich and distinctive collection of cultural artifacts.

The museum houses an impressive collection of over 112,000 items, with particular highlights in Chinese calligraphy and painting from the Jin, Tang, Song, and Yuan dynasties. Notable works include Cao E’s Eulogy, Tang Dynasty Copies of Calligraphy by Wang Xizhi and His Family, Zhang Xu’s Four Ancient Poems in Cursive Script, Court Ladies Adorning Their Hair with Flowers, The Spring Outing of the Lady of Guo State, and The Thousand Character Classic in Cursive Script by Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty. The collection also features Auspicious Cranes, and other exceptional works of art.

In addition to its renowned collection of paintings and calligraphy, the museum showcases intricate silk embroidery from the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties, jade artifacts from the Hongshan Culture, bronzeware from the Shang and Zhou dynasties, Liao Dynasty ceramics, steles and inscriptions from various eras, Ming and Qing dynasty prints, ancient maps, and a collection of coins documented in Li Zuoxian’s Gu Quan Hui. These valuable and diverse collections highlight the museum’s significance as a center for historical and cultural preservation.


Table of Contents


Basic Information

Estimated Length of Tour2 hours
Ticket PriceFree
Opening Hours9.00 – 16.30; Last admission: 16.00
Closed on Mondays
Telephone Number0086-024-22741193
0086-024-23205102

Location and Transportation

The Liaoning Provincial Museum is located at No. 157 Zhihui Third Street, Hunnan District, Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China. To get there, you can choose one of the following ways:

Bus: Take bus 100, 108, 130, 198, 305, or V111 and get off at Zhihui Fourth Street Quanyun Third Road Stop (智慧四街全运三路).

Metro: The closest metro station to the attraction is Provincial Museum (省博物馆) on Line 2. After getting out of the station from Exit D, you will be standing at the west entrance.


Exhibitions in Liaoning Provincial Museum

Exhibition on Liaoning Historical Artifacts

Liaoning Provincial Museum 6

This exhibition highlights Liaoning’s unique local culture within the broader context of Chinese history. It draws from important archaeological finds in the region, featuring a comprehensive collection of artifacts from various time periods. These include the Paleolithic Jinniushan Man from Yingkou, the Neolithic Hongshan Culture, and cultural relics from the Shang, Zhou, Qin, Han, and subsequent dynasties. The exhibit presents the cultural heritage of ethnic groups such as the Xiongnu, Xianbei, Goguryeo, Khitan, and Jurchen, alongside the Han Chinese. This combination of artifacts creates a vivid representation of Liaoning’s ancient and diverse cultural landscape.


Exhibition of Imperial Calligraphy and Paintings from the Qing Palace

Liaoning Provincial Museum 4

This exhibition showcases 20 national treasures from the museum’s collection, which were brought out of the Forbidden City by the last emperor, Puyi, and eventually dispersed throughout northeastern China. These ancient Chinese calligraphy and painting masterpieces allow visitors to appreciate the elegance and depth of traditional Chinese art. Highlights include rare works from the Jin, Tang, Song, Yuan, Liao, Jin, Ming, and Qing dynasties. Notable pieces include Ouyang Xun’s Thousand Character Classic in regular script from the Tang Dynasty, Zhao Ji’s (Emperor Huizong of Song) Thousand Character Classic in cursive script, and Zhou Fang’s Court Ladies Adorning Their Hair with Flowers, a famous masterpiece of Tang realism. Additionally, Xu Yang’s Prosperous Suzhou offers an intricate depiction of the bustling scenes in Suzhou during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty.


Exhibition of Ancient Chinese Steles and Inscriptions

Liaoning Provincial Museum 5

This exhibition features a comprehensive display of 120 steles from the Eastern Han to the Ming and Qing dynasties. Highlights include the Eastern Han steles such as Yuan Chang’s Stele and the Xiping Stone Classics, as well as epitaphs of three Khitan emperors from the Liao Dynasty – Yelü Longxu (Shengzong), Yelü Zongzhen (Xingzong), and Yelü Hongji (Daozong) – along with their empresses. These rare national treasures not only showcase the evolution of Chinese calligraphy but also reflect the historical integration of multiple ethnic groups in the region.


Exhibition of Liao Dynasty Ceramics

Liaoning Provincial Museum 1

The Khitan people, founders of the Liao Dynasty, were a nomadic horse-riding culture in northern China. They developed a distinctive style of ceramics, which holds a significant place in Chinese ceramic history. This exhibition features nearly 200 pieces of Liao ceramics, showcasing a variety of artifacts with strong nomadic characteristics, including the unique chicken-head ewers and vividly colored, simple yet elegant Liao sancai (three-colored ware). These pieces reflect the nomadic lifestyle and artistic sensibilities of the Liao Dynasty.


Exhibition of Qing Dynasty Imperial Porcelain

Liaoning Provincial Museum 2

Focusing on the imperial porcelain from the Qing court, this exhibition is divided into four sections: dining ware, decorative pieces, scholarly objects, and ritual items. The selection includes exquisite examples of blue-and-white, wucai (five-colored ware), fencai (famille-rose), falangcai (enamelware), and the renowned langyao red glazes. Not only does the exhibition allow visitors to appreciate the craftsmanship of these imperial ceramics, but it also offers insight into the methods of assessing and evaluating these official kiln porcelains, making it an engaging learning experience for those interested in antique appraisal.


Exhibition of Ancient Chinese Currency

Liaoning Provincial Museum 3

This exhibit displays nearly 2,000 ancient Chinese coins, starting from spade coins of the Western Zhou period and spanning through to the Honghua Tongbao coins minted by Wu Shifan, grandson of Wu Sangui, during the late Ming and early Qing periods. A particular highlight is the rare horse-hoof gold from the Han Dynasty, unearthed in Liaoning, which is a seldom-seen artifact. The exhibition draws from the renowned Guquan Hui (Collection of Ancient Coins) by Qing dynasty scholar Li Zuoxian, offering an extensive view of China’s numismatic history.


Vlog about Liaoning Provincial Museum


Notable Attractions in Shenyang

Subscribe
Notify of
0 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
0
Feel free to ask any question about this place ^_^x
enjoy the same discount as a Chinese