Hebei Museum: So close, so beautiful
Unlike other provincial museums I have visited, the Hebei Museum focuses on major tombs or historical periods and specific types of artifacts in Hebei Province as its basic exhibits, rather than the common timeline format that showcases Hebei's history from ancient times to the present.
The artifact exhibition halls are mainly located in the South Hall, and the ten treasures of the museum are displayed in various halls:
1F Famous Kiln and Famous Porcelain Yuan Dynasty Blue and White Underglaze Red Openwork Covered Jar
21F Quyang Stone Carving Painted Musician Relief, which went viral online and is known as the historical prototype of the song 'Human Music,' currently on display at the National Museum.
1F Northern Dynasties Mural - Mural of the Tomb Path of Emperor Wenxuan of Northern Qi
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4 2F Warring States Period - Iron-footed Bronze Ding of King Zhongshan, one of the 64 first batch of cultural relics prohibited from being exhibited abroad.
52F Warring States Period - Bronze Screen Base with Gold and Silver Inlay of a Tiger Devouring a Deer
6 2F Warring States Period - Bronze Plan Base with Gold and Silver Inlay of Four Dragons and Four Phoenixes, one of the 64 first batch of cultural relics prohibited from being exhibited abroad.
72F Han Dynasty - Gold-threaded Jade Garment of Liu Sheng (and Dou Wan), one of the 64 first batch of cultural relics prohibited from being exhibited abroad.
2F Han Dynasty - Changxin Palace Lamp, known as the 'First Lamp of China,' is the top treasure of the museum, one of the 64 first batch of cultural relics prohibited from being exhibited abroad, currently on a business trip in Shanghai.
2F Han Dynasty - Bronze Boshan Censer with Gold Inlay
10 3F Generous and Tragic - Bronze Door Knocker with Openwork Dragon and Phoenix Pattern
At the entrance of the Quyang Stone Carving on the first floor of the South Hall, you can buy refrigerator magnets of the museum's treasures, priced at around 30-40 yuan each. You can ask the staff to help you get the one you want, but you can't choose it yourself, which is not very good as you might get a defective one. It is recommended to check it before leaving the counter. There is a larger cultural and creative store on the basement floor, but the refrigerator magnets there are different in style from those here. Personally, I think the styles at the Quyang Stone Carving are better.
Cultural and Creative Ice Cream: Various cultural and creative foods are sold at the Hebei Tea Cafe on the first floor of the North Hall, and the Changxin Palace Lamp ice cream is 18 yuan each.
Stamp Collection:
Cultural and Creative Store on the first floor of the South Hall (in front of the Quyang Stone Carving Exhibition Hall) Hebei Post Office on the first floor of the South Hall (in front of the Famous Kiln and Famous Porcelain Exhibition Hall) VR Glasses Rental at the entrance of the North Hall Hebei Tea Cafe in the North Hall
Cultural and Creative Store on the basement floor at the connection between the North and South Halls
You can get free stamps at the above locations. Due to the summer vacation, the overall condition of the stamps is not very good, and even the edges of the old-fashioned 'carrot stamps' are chipped, not as rich and beautiful as those seen online last year.
Overall, the museum may be slightly old, as it was expanded from an old museum built in the last century. There are many important artifacts, but the exhibition layout really can't keep up, and the glass of the display cases reflects light seriously, with many fingerprints on it. In a word, it can be summarized as 'first-class artifacts, second-class exhibition,' which is somewhat below my expectations.
What I appreciate more is that the cultural and creative refrigerator magnets are very rich, with many important artifacts designed as refrigerator magnets. The prices of cultural and creative products are not expensive, and you can also get a free commemorative ticket at the service desk~