Tianjin Museum

The Tianjin Museum, located in Hexi District, is the main comprehensive museum in Tianjin and a must[...]

The Tianjin Museum, located in Hexi District, is the main comprehensive museum in Tianjin and a must-visit destination to understand the city. The museum houses a rich collection of jade, porcelain, and calligraphy and painting, including the Snow Scenery and Cold Forest Painting, Nephrite Pig Dragon, Sui Dynasty White Glazed Double Dragon Handled Flask, and Western Zhou Tai Bao Ding, among other artifacts. The museum spans five floors, with each of the first three floors dedicated to a themed exhibition hall, and the fifth floor as a collection exhibition hall featuring several special thematic exhibitions.

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On the first floor, the ‘Origins of Tianjin’s Humanity’ exhibition showcases Tianjin’s history and culture, while the third floor’s ‘A Century in Tianjin’ exhibition and the ‘Tianjin Folk Art Display’ on the fifth floor present various aspects of Tianjin’s heritage. Additionally, there are the ‘Museum Collection Highlights’ exhibition on the second floor, the ‘Tianjin Collectors’ Donated Cultural Relics Exhibition’ on the fifth floor, and several thematic displays of porcelain, calligraphy, and jade. The museum boasts over 200,000 exhibits, which are incredibly diverse.

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Apart from these permanent exhibitions, the museum frequently hosts temporary exhibitions that can be visited if encountered. Audio guides for the artifacts are available for convenience. For in-depth learning, a guide can be hired by calling 022-83883000, three days in advance. A brief visit to the museum takes approximately 2-3 hours, while a deeper exploration may require half a day or more.

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The ‘Origins of Tianjin’s Humanity’ exhibition on the first floor, located to the right of the lobby, summarizes Tianjin’s history from the Paleolithic Age to the mid-late Qing Dynasty, spanning tens of thousands of years. Artifacts such as pottery, bronze, and iron, unearthed locally in Tianjin, along with images and text explanations, demonstrate Tianjin’s development from a barren land to a canal city and then to a regional hub, making it a place to understand Tianjin’s ancient history.

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The ‘Museum Collection Highlights’ exhibition on the second floor is a key exhibition within the museum, concentrating on dozens of the museum’s finest artifacts, each a treasure. Artifacts like the Western Zhou Tai Bao Ding and the Sui Dynasty White Glazed Double Dragon Handled Flask are particularly worth visiting.

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The ‘A Century in Tianjin’ exhibition on the third floor displays Tianjin’s journey from 1804 until the founding of the People’s Republic of China. As Tianjin was once a northern industrial and commercial city and a window to China’s foreign trade, the phrase ‘A Century in Tianjin’ has come into use. The exhibition hall features life-sized simulations of Tianjin streets, making walking among them quite interesting. There are also displays of ‘Western goods’ like the Coca-Cola sign from within the city of Tianjin at that time, offering a chance to learn and visit.

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Other special exhibitions are housed on the fifth floor, including the Tianjin Collectors’ Donated Cultural Relics Exhibition, Tianjin Folk Art Display, Ancient Chinese Jade Exhibition, Yangzhou School of Painting Exhibition, Ming and Qing Dynasties Blue and White Porcelain Exhibition, and the Shanghai School of Painting Exhibition, among others. The museum is rich in calligraphy, jade, and porcelain, with the ‘Snow Scenery and Cold Forest Painting’ being one of the museum’s treasures, which should not be missed.

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Opening hours: From January 1st to September 30th, open from Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00 – 16:30. From October 8th to December 31st, open from Tuesday to Sunday, 9:00 – 16:30. Closed all day on Mondays from January 1st to September 30th and from October 8th to December 31st. Open from 9:00 – 16:30 on New Year’s Day, Spring Festival, Tomb-Sweeping Day, Labor Day, Dragon Boat Festival and Mid-Autumn Festival.

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Open from 9:00 – 19:00 from October 1st to October 5th. Open from 9:00 – 16:30 from October 6th to October 7th.

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Wheelchair rental service: Reference price: When borrowing a wheelchair, the borrower should pay a deposit of 200 yuan per wheelchair. After use, the borrower can go to the front desk service point with the deposit receipt to handle the return procedures and get back the deposit. Location: Rental service point set up at the front desk of Tianjin Museum. 1. Disabled people or elderly people with limited mobility can borrow wheelchairs for free at the rental service point set up at the front desk of Tianjin Museum.

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2. The wheelchair borrowing service is provided from 9:00 to 16:00 every day. The borrower must handle the return procedures before leaving the museum on the borrowing day. 3. Eligible borrowers must handle the wheelchair borrowing procedures accompanied by caregivers. 4. When handling the borrowing procedures, the borrower must show and mortgage his/her valid identity document (such as ID card, military officer’s card, driver’s license, passport, etc.

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, except senior citizen card). Disabled people must also show valid disability certificate. 5. When borrowing a wheelchair, the borrower should pay a deposit of 200 yuan per wheelchair. After use, the borrower can go to the front desk service point with the deposit receipt to handle the return procedures and get back the deposit. In case of damage or loss during the borrowing process, except for force majeure, the borrower should compensate Tianjin Museum for the actual loss.

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Tianjin Museum has the right to deduct the compensation from the borrowing deposit.

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Must-see tips: 1. Lighters, water and other items are not allowed to be brought into the museum. However, they can be deposited at the entrance. There are vending machines in the museum selling drinking water. 2. You can take pictures of cultural relics in the museum, but flash is not allowed.

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