Suzhou Museum, Suzhou Shi, China

The Suzhou Museum (Chinese:苏州博物馆) is a museum of ancient Chinese art, ancient Chinese paintings, calligraphy, and handmade crafts, situated in Suzhou, Jiangsu, China. Admission is free. The Suzhou Folk Museum is located in the Bei family ancestral temple near Lion Grove Garden, the Folk Branch of Suzhou Museum is the first professional museum which specializes in displaying urban local traditions.

Founded in 1960 and originally located in the national historic landmark, Zhong Wang Fu palace complex, Suzhou Museum has been a highly-regarded regional museum with a number of significantChinese cultural relics. A new museum designed by world famous architect I.M.Pei was completed in October 2006, covering over10,700 square meter and located at the cross of Dongbei Street and Qimen Road. The design of this new museum visually complements the traditional architecture of Zhong Wang Fu. The new museum houses over 30000 cultural relics — most notably for excavated artifacts, Ming and Qing Dynasty paintings and calligraphy, and ancient arts and crafts.

The current building of Suzhou Museum was designed by Pritzker Prize-winning Chinese-American architect I.M. Pei in association with Pei Partnership Architects. The structural engineer for this project was Leslie E. Robertson Associates. Construction of this building started in 2002. It was inaugurated on October 6, 2006.

The museum has a display area of 2,200 square meters. It has more than 15,000 pieces in its collections. Most are ancient paintings and calligraphy, ceramics, crafts, unearthed relics and revolution relics. It also possesses more than 70,000 books and documents, and over 20,000 rubbings of stone inscriptions. The collection of paintings and calligraphy includes works of masters from Song Dynasty to Ming and Qing dynasties.

Standing exhibition hall
Neolithic and Wu cultural relics of the exhibition hall, video hall, multi-purpose hall are arranged in the basement. Suzhou Museum of the basic exhibition hall is only one layer, the museum exhibition with “Wu Di”, “Wu Taobao”, “Wu Zhongya”, “Wu door painting and calligraphy” four permanent exhibition hall: “Wu tower Guobao” series includes Ruiguang Temple Buddhist cultural relics and Wuqiu Yunyan Temple Buddhist Buddhist cultural relics two themed exhibition hall; “Wu” “The wind and elegance,” the series includes the ancestral materials, the cultivation of Jane, attack jade clever skills, carved magic, Wenwen Ya matter, leisurely sent, ink show cottage (that is, Song painting fasting, outdoor), Fairview floating exhibition hall; Door painting and calligraphy “especially in the Wu school and Wu sent the source of the philosophers, four Wang Wu Yun and its source of the philosophers, Yangzhou painting schools and other works of the majority.

Exhibition hall, modern art exhibition hall
The modern art exhibition hall is located on the first floor of the East Road. The exhibition hall is located on the first floor, the exhibition hall and the modern art exhibition hall. The exhibitions of modern art at home and abroad are held from time to time to enrich the cultural life of the people.

In addition to calligraphy and painting, double tower gem, Ming and Qing porcelain and Suzhou Arts and Crafts exhibition area, will also be furnished with special furniture exhibition area to emphasize Suzhou’s rich artistic and cultural traditions. At the end of the flow route, that is, in its garden garden, arrange a replica of the Song Dynasty, mainly show the year of handicrafts and furniture. The calligraphy and painting exhibition area is located on the second floor of the octagonal hall of natural lighting. The high wall provides the convenience of the exhibition on the background of the exhibition. Modern art works in the museum garden east of a special exhibition, the exhibition area by the combination of 1.35 meters of the module.

The dis play part the Folk Brunch of Suzhou Museum falls into three districts, which is composed of Local Festival Hall, Lucky Traditions Hall and Children Rearing Hall.

Local Festival Hall
It took quite a long time for the forming and development of local festival, while traditional festivals in our country came into being and developed along with agricultural civilization. Suzhou is a land flowing with milk and money with wild climate and distinctive four seasons and it has developed rice agriculture and abundant water resources. Therefore, festivals and cultural traditions in Suzhou are characterized water and unique local flavor. The key displays include: Sightseeing in Shangtang, Roll the immortal, The Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-autumn Day, Appreciating Lotus Festival, Kitchen Models and Dragon and Phoenix lanterns.

Lucky Traditions Hall
Lucky traditions reflect people’s ideas of avoiding bad omen and wishing good luck and longing for longevity and happiness. Traditions in Suzhou are extremely colorful and wonderful and reflect in all aspects such as faith, etiquette and production and living, representing Suzhou people’s good yearning and pursuits. The key displays include: Worship Valiant General, Twelve Months Flowers’Goddess, Marriage God, Burning Incense in Dongyue Temple and good fortune, official pay and longevity.

Children Rearing Hall
Suzhou has different kinds of children rearing traditions since a long time ago. A series of rituals and affairs need to be finished at one’s birth, full-month and first-year, which are important components of local traditions, reflecting expectations on offspring from family and society. This series of displays relatively focus on characteristics of children rearing traditions in Suzhou in past times. Not only did it shoe our country’s tradition of emphasizing on human relations, it also reflected people in Suzhou attached great importance on culture and education. The key displays include: Full Month Birth, Baby Draw Lots, Seeking Godparent, and Uncle Sending to the school and Weighing People in Summer Begins.