Jinsha Site Museum

I visited before the major renovation, and it was less crowded and beautiful. However, there were very few staff members offering guided tours; only audio guides were available, which was a slight disappointment. The exhibits were able to be viewed and appreciated up close, making the experience much better than the crowded Sanxingdui site. Looking forward to seeing the amazing new look after the renovation! 😀

The Jinsha Site Museum is a national key cultural relics protection unit, one of the first batch of national archaeological site parks, a national first-class museum, and a 4A-level tourist attraction. It features a "Relics Hall" showcasing the archaeological excavation site, and an "Exhibition Hall" displaying items such as the Sun Bird gold ornament and a gold mask, as well as precious ebony unearthed from the surrounding area. Besides these ancient sites, there is also the "Golden Deer Garden," where sika deer inhabit, recreating the natural charm of "deer calling out and eating wild apples." There are even golden ginkgo trees and other plants, forming a truly beautiful scene.

The teacher arrived very early and waited for us. The explanation was incredibly detailed and thorough. The teacher was extremely knowledgeable, explaining the origins of Jinsha through the lens of Sanxingdui. The explanation lasted a full three hours without stopping, making us feel as if we had stepped back into the Chengdu Plain during the Shang and Zhou dynasties, experiencing that beautiful time. Jinsha will be closing tomorrow; we look forward to seeing even more magnificent exhibits open to the public in a year and a half.

The architectural beauty of Jinsha Ruins in Chengdu Last time, I shared with you the appreciation value of Jinsha Ruins Museum from the perspective of the cultural relics in the Jinsha Ruins Museum. Today, I will share its appreciation value from the perspective of the Jinsha Ruins Museum. Chengdu Jinsha Ruins Museum consists of the Ruins Museum, Exhibition Hall, Cultural Relics Protection and Restoration Center, Garden Area and Jinsha Theater. The design plan was implemented by the Architectural Design Institute of Tsinghua University. The two main buildings, the Ruins Museum and the Exhibition Hall, both use a sloped shape, which symbolizes the rise of the Jinsha Ruins. The Ruins Museum is circular and the Exhibition Hall is square. One circle and one square symbolize the ancient Chinese cosmology of the round sky and square earth. One square and one circle, hard and soft, complement each other. The design of the roof of the Exhibition Hall incorporates the elements of Jinsha and archaeology. The circular logo is the pattern of the "Sun Bird Gold Ornament", the treasure of the Jinsha Ruins Museum. In January 2009, the Jinsha Ruins Museum was rated as a national AAAA-level tourist attraction. In October 2010, the Jinsha Site Museum was named one of the first national archaeological sites in China. On November 15, 2012, it was listed as a national first-class museum by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage. On May 18, 2020, the Chengdu Jinsha Site Museum was awarded the title of "The Most Innovative Museum in China in 2020" by the China Museums Association. On November 18, 2020, it was selected as the "New Landmark of the Bashu Cultural Tourism Corridor".

Second lesson, Jinsha Ruins Museum Located on the main traffic artery in the urban area of ​​Chengdu, it is one of the few hidden museums. Looking from the street gate, there are open lawns, handsome and tall bamboo forests and lush trees in the depths. The road is a ramp, with uneven terrain, forks and paths, and is scattered with different sculptures and themed cultural totems. At first glance, the museum is not visible, and there is a mysterious atmosphere. It takes more than ten minutes of walking before you can enter the museum for a visit. The Jinsha Site Museum still serves as the historical background of the ancient Shu culture. Together with the Sanxingdui Museum, it has been included in the World Intangible Cultural Heritage List. The treasure of the museum is a gold totem with the pattern of the Sun Bird. There are not many exhibition halls and it is very quiet, with dim light, vermilion walls and round exhibition stands. It feels like you need to hold your breath to visit and tour them. The exhibition hall is designed like a high-end jewelry exhibition area. Indeed, most of the items inside are gold and jade artifacts, which clearly demonstrate the aesthetic taste and luxury of humans in the ancient Shu period. The workmanship is exquisite and everyone who sees it will be impressed. It is a feast for the eyes. It is also worth mentioning here that there are a large number of hard currency and ivory unearthed in the museum. Soaked in the liquid of volmorpholine are its historical origins and journeys. Reviving life and bringing vitality. To put it simply, everything here is like a perfect combination of gold and jade, and the atmosphere is filled with jewels and gems. The glass of the display cabinet is not bulletproof, so you must have a calm attitude and treat money as dirt. Ask yourself, are you bulletproof? hehe. What impressed me most was that the museum listed historical relics from all over the world in the ancient times and the distant ages of ancient civilizations, all of which had the same beliefs, the sun, the sacred bird, or a combination of the sun and the sacred bird, and the veneration of such theme totems. Human beings have created civilization. In an age when both spiritual and material civilizations are in decline, belief in the divine beasts of heaven and earth is the only spiritual food. It is the backbone and compass for the construction and inheritance of human spiritual civilization, and it drives the development of human civilization. It is the Noah's Ark that ferries mankind through the history of the ancient Shu period, and it enlightens the souls and preaches the gospel to the world. I lowered my head and thought about the religious concepts that my father had popularized to me when he was alive. Christianity, Islam, and Judaism all believe in different gods, but they all symbolize truth, goodness, and beauty. What caught my eye at this moment was the sun bird worshipped by our ancient Shu ancestors. Does it mean that the sun shines on all living things, nourishing the growth of all things? The divine bird has become the hope of all living things in the universe, flying higher and farther. There is a written introduction on this aspect in the museum. It’s not that I didn’t have time to read it, but the history and culture here are similar to those of the Sanxingdui Museum. So, I am doing my homework for the self-study class based on my own interpretation, alas! I don’t know which class teacher I should show this homework to, but I still have to be a thoughtful person and show it to myself and my descendants. The Jinsha Ruins Museum is an important popular science education base for history and archaeology classes for students from all over the country.

I just finished reading the book Sanxingdui: Awakening to a Thousand Years. There is a small section at the back of the book that also explains the Jinsha Ruins, with some pictures attached. I suddenly remembered that I had seen these treasures with my own eyes. I went there last year. There were very few people on weekdays. At that time, I didn’t have a deep understanding of the ancient Shu civilization. I went there on a whim without doing any homework. Now looking at the pictures on my phone, I feel a kind of shock after the shock. Haha. In Jinsha, you can walk into the excavation pit to see the excavation traces up close, which is very immersive. Jinsha and Sanxingdui are of the same lineage, and the common points are similar bronze objects and gold masks and other accessories. Each artifact is extremely delicate, and the thin paper-like gold crown belt has delicate patterns. I can’t imagine how they discovered and skillfully used metal smelting and hammering processing technology in that era. The wisdom of the ancient Shu people may be far beyond what we have discovered and speculated now. Another feature of the Jinsha Ruins is the buried ivory, which is larger in number than Sanxingdui. The book speculates that the source may be elephant teams or tribute from foreign countries. For better protection, the excavated ivory was restored on site, but the specific location was marked and can be viewed on site. Can't wait to see Sanxingdui!

A cross-border art event that interweaves traditional culture and modern art will create a new scene of Chengdu cultural tourism with multiple scattered points, strong experience and new integration through multiple forms such as situational interpretation, in-depth explanation, art performances, light and shadow atmosphere, etc. During the event, senior guides will transform into "ancient Shu ancestors" and lead the audience through time and space to meet the characters such as the divine bird "Golden Crow" and ebony elves in costumes, and travel through the three theme chapters of "ancient Shu rituals and music, integration of ancient and modern times, and voice of hope" to the ancient Shu Jinsha Kingdom.

The temporary exhibition hall of Jinsha Ruins Museum City will hold the "Splendid Western Regions, Thousands of Miles of Wind - Xinjiang Silk Road Civilization Special Exhibition" from now until October 27. Xinjiang, located in the northwest border of China and the hinterland of the Eurasian continent, is the hub of the ancient Silk Road and the gateway and intermediary for the opening of Chinese civilization to the west. Here, snow-capped mountains and oases complement each other, deserts and rivers coexist and dance, giving birth to the mysterious and romantic legend of the Western Regions. As early as the Pre-Qin period, Xinjiang maintained close ties with the Central Plains. In 60 BC, the Western Han Dynasty established the Western Regions Protectorate in Xinjiang, opening the historical curtain of the central government's jurisdiction over the Western Regions. Under the unified political situation, the implementation of the frontier settlement and the smooth flow of the Silk Road not only greatly promoted the development and prosperity of the local social economy, but also made Xinjiang a place where diverse cultures converge. After Buddhism was introduced into Xinjiang, it merged with traditional Chinese culture and developed into a unique Western Buddhism, and formed several important Buddhist cultural centers. The world-famous Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes and the early caves of Yungang Grottoes were also influenced by it. Farming and nomadism, the East and the West, collided, communicated and merged on this fertile land of Xinjiang, leaving behind many well-known historical and cultural treasures. This exhibition brings together 134 pieces (sets) of gold, bronze, painted pottery, textiles, bamboo slips, murals and other cultural relics, presenting us with a unique and colorful historical picture of Xinjiang. Next, please follow the camel bells and walk into the splendid Western Regions to experience the prosperity of the ancient Silk Road.