A Trip to the National Museum of China, Beijing

The National Museum of China in Beijing is a really nice trip. It is located in Tiananmen square, right on the Tiananmen square stop. It's free, so expect long lines, and you'll need your passport with you to visit. The gigantic line to enter goes by quick, so do not despair, but you will have to tolerate the throngs of budging Chinese who have liberal attitudes towards lines.

One thing is to eat elsewhere. This was the Cheese Croissant and Coffee we had for lunch:

I believe it to be a hotdog bun with synthetic frosting and a squeeze of butter-like something in the centre:

It was the most enjoyable lunch I have ever had.

Basically the museum is divided into 3 different main areas that we visited. One is antiquities, which is the best, then paintings, which is of various nationalistic and communistic photos, and the 3rd section is also interesting, being PRC propaganda about the Chinese economic miracle.

Here are some of the best photos:

Bone with inscription, Shang Dynasty (16-11th centuries BC) King Wu Ding's reign. Reportedly unearthed in Anyang, Henan Province

Lujin, Gold currency sheet, Warring States Period, Chu State. Unearthed at Shouxian, Anhui Province, 1979.

I didn't record what this was...

Bronze Mirror with Slanted T-Shaped Design, Warring States Period (403-221 BC). Or so they say... Perhaps a little Magen David?

Chu Ci (Songs of Chu), Block Printed edition, Ming Dynasty (1368-1644)

Jade Shroud Fastened with Gold Threads, Western Han Dynasty (202 BC - 8 AD). Unearthed from tomb 40 at Bajiaolang, Dingxian, Hebei Province, 1973.
This jade shroud was made for Liu Xiu (d 55 BC), King of the Zhongshan State. Jade shrouds were burial clothing for the Han Dynasty emperors and nobility and denoted the social status of the deceased.

Painted Terra-cotta Infantry and Cavalry
Western Han Dynasty (202-8 AD)
Unearthed from terra-cotta army pits at Yangjiawan, Xianyang, Shaanxi Province, 1965
Over 2500 painted terra-cotta figures unearthed at Yangjiawan were discovered standing in battle formation. The size of the cavalry in proportion to the infantry reflects its increased importance and independence as a combat force. The Yangjiawan terra cotta army is a vivid illustration of enhanced national strength under the Emperors Wendi.

Terra cotta horse and terra cotta figures. Qin dynasty (221-206 BC) unearthed from Qin terra-cotta pits in Lintong, Shaanxi Province, 1974

Pottery Cart. Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 AD) Chengdu, Sichuan Province, 1954. A covered cart like this was usually for women in the Han Dynasty.

Stone Buddha Head with Gold Leaf- Northern Qi Dynasty (550 - 577 AD)

Unearthed from Longxing Temple hoard at Qingzhou, Shandong Province, 1996, Qingzhou Museum

Painted Stone Buddha - Northern Qi Dynasty

Sancai-glazed Pottery Musicians on Camelback. Tang Dynasty, 723 AD.
Unearthed at Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, 1957.
During a period of opening in the Tang Dynasty, foreign tradesmen, diplomatic envoys, students, and religious disciples came to China and lived in the two capitals Chang'an and Luoyang as well as other key trading cities.

Bronze Figure Model for Acupuncture and Moxibustion.
Ming Dynasty, 1443. During the Tiansheng Era (1023-1032) in the Northern Song Dynasty, a medical officer named Wang Weiyi made two bronze figures marked with meridians and acupoints and wrote the Illustrated Manual about Acupoints Indicated on Recently Cast Bronze Figures. In the imperial medical academy's exams, such figures were coated with beeswax and filled with water for students to identify the right acupoints.

Here;s in the hall, where they start to show some main propaganda pieces:

Literally in this section- cell phones. The plaque says: Since reform and opening up, China's mobile phone subscribers ranked first in the world, a testimony to the changes in the lives of the people. This is [sic] dozens of communications equipment since reform and opening up.