GANSU- Dunhuang Museum, located in Danhuang city in China’s northwestern Gansu province, is a perfect place to gain some knowledge about Dunhuang and the ancient Silk Road. 

However, the Dunhuang Museum keeps not only archaeological and historical findings but also a lot of items depicting the culture of China and its development over several millennia. You can even find unique pieces belonging to the epoch of the Great Silk Road.

There are more than 10000 items for you to appreciate, including some exquisite and vivid replications of the murals and sculptures in Mogao Grottoes.

As a part of their journey to Gansu province, arranged by the China International Press Communication Center (CIPCC), a number of foreign journalists from different countries visited this museum on Friday.

There are three exhibition parts in the Dunhuang Museum.

The first part displays the documents and sutras found in the 18th cave (the Sutra Cave) of Mogao Grottoes of Dunhuang.

The second part focuses on unearthed cultural relics from tombs of past dynasties, such as the Han Dynasty (202BC-220AD), Three Kingdoms (220-280), Jin Dynasty (266-420), Sui Dynasty (581-618), and Tang Dynasty (618-907). These relics include stone tablets, stone towers, pottery wares, lacquer beasts made for tombs, kylin sculptures, etc. The kylin is rarely seen, which is a high relief with four hoofs soaring aloft.

The third part is the exhibit of kinds of silk, brocade, grosgrain, and the like, which provide sufficient material objects for the ancient Silk Road. In addition, Han Jian (a kind of book composed by bamboo slips for writing on during Han Dynasty), ancient iron tools, bronze tools and various ancient weapons are also found in this part, which is beneficial for the researches of ancient communication between China and western countries in the fields of politics, economy and culture.

In the two exhibition halls for historical relics of Dunhuang Museum, there are over 2000 pieces of treasured cultural relics collected locally, which span from primitive society to the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Exhibits are types of pottery, sutras, ancient coins, tiles, bronze, silk, pearls, jades, etc. In the hall for the Great Wall of the Han Dynasty, it is the instruction about the ruins of the Great Wall of Dunhuang with exhibits of Han Jian, hemppaper, barley, millet, torches used in beacon tower as well as a model of the Great Wall ruins. An additional exhibition hall of calligraphy and painting in the Dunhuang Museum contains the works created by celebrated painters and calligraphers of Dunhuang.

Photo By Mahnaz Abdi