Located in the hinterland of northwest China, Ningxia, with an area of only over 60,000 square kilometers, is sandwiched between Inner Mongolia, Gansu and Shaanxi provinces, which is really inconspicuous.
This is my second visit to Ningxia, and I am still as happy as I first met. The first stop is Yinchuan, which is the capital city of Ningxia and the northwest city that won my favor.
Yinchuan is a famous city with a long history. As early as 30,000 to 40,000 years ago, Shuidonggou site had traces of human reproduction.
I have to feel the tenacity of being born. No matter what era or environment I am in, I am trying to create a world that belongs to them.
For me, who was obsessed with the history of Xixia Kingdom, Yinchuan, the Xingqing mansion at that time, was quite mysterious as the capital of Xixia Dynasty.
To get to know a place quickly, it is good to measure it with your feet, but it takes too much time after all. And spend most of the time, go to the local museum to find out, but you can see more results.
As one of the two national first-class museums in Ningxia, Ningxia Museum is worth spending some time and energy to visit, whether it is a local citizen or a foreign tourist.
The present provincial museum is newly built in jinfeng district. As a gift for the 50th anniversary of the founding of the autonomous region, Ningxia Museum carries forward the past and writes a new history with a brand-new look.
Since the official opening of the new museum in 2008, it has become a must-see attraction in Yinchuan.
There are more than 50,000 pieces of cultural relics in Ningxia Museum, including more than 50 pieces of national first-class cultural relics/kloc-0, which are of great value.
Before I entered the museum, the magnificent shape of Ningxia Museum attracted me at once. The square structure and exquisite "Hui" shape design all reveal the sincerity and intention of the builders.
Remember to make an appointment online before visiting the museum. After a simple registration process and temperature measurement, you can enter.
The museum has three floors, each with a different theme exhibition.
Visiting a museum is an extremely subjective activity. You can choose which exhibition halls or exhibits to visit according to your preferences.
After all, it is unrealistic to do everything.
In addition, you can also pay attention to a unique local attribute. For example, when I talk about Ningxia, I first think of Xixia, and then I think of the ancient Silk Road, which carries the exchanges between China and the West.
As an important town of the Silk Road from the Northern Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Sino-Western trade can not be ignored.
There is also an independent exhibition hall in the museum to display some archaeological relics about the Silk Road.
It can also be seen from some unearthed figures such as pottery figurines that there were frequent personnel exchanges at that time because of different races, different shapes and lifelike.
While pondering the elaborate production of the ancients, I also lament that these small objects have crossed history and broken time and space to reappear in front of the world.
Warriors, heavenly kings and other statues are also very vivid, with different expressions. I remember when I visited a similar pottery figurine in a museum, I simply watched a unique expression pack competition, which was very interesting.
Remember to pay attention to the expression of the pottery figurines you have seen. There are bound to be unexpected surprises.
In the early years, the famous director Jin Tiemu directed a documentary about Xixia, which was called Mysterious Xixia. There are not many episodes, only ten episodes, but the content is all-inclusive and extremely wonderful.
Here, I would also like to introduce this documentary to Amway. I suggest that before you go to Ningxia, you can learn about a mysterious kingdom born in this land, and you will certainly gain a lot.
There is also a special exhibition hall about Xixia in the museum, which is part of my interest.
There is a statue of Li Yuanhao, the first emperor of Xixia, riding a horse to kill the enemy at the gate, which has opened a history of 189 years, but it is not known to many people.
The museum has a treasure of the town hall, unearthed in the tomb of Xixia, and also has the reputation of "the first cow in Xixia", which is a gold-plated bronze cow with national treasure status.
Gold plating technology is an extremely ancient process, which mixes gold and mercury and evenly coats the surface of metal products, such as copper. Then the mercury is evaporated by heating, and the remaining gold will adhere tightly to the metal surface.
At first glance, this gold plating process is very similar to the much simpler modern gold plating process.
Actually, it's similar, except that electroplating technology is only a hundred years old. In the eyes of the ancients, it was great to think of such a circuitous but practical method without mastering this technology.
The history of bronzing can be traced back to the Warring States Period. The gold-plated bronze ox in the museum, although the surface gold has already fallen off, can also get a glimpse of the superb skills of craftsmen in those days. After all, it is inevitable that mercury will be harmed by toxic elements.
In addition to superb bronze casting technology, Xixia has quite mature cast iron technology from the unearthed iron swords and other ironware.
From several records, I can imagine what kind of country this is.
Besides some exhibits about Xixia, the writing of Xixia is also very interesting.
Xixia characters, like Chinese characters, are square characters, but they are all recreated on the basis of Chinese characters. In the exhibition hall, there is an example about the structure of Xixia, which can make people realize it.
However, ordinary people can't tell why. After all, just looking at a museum, it is impossible for so many people to study this font and understand its mystery.
However, there is a little sex that I can share with you.
Looking closely, it is not difficult to find that the most obvious difference between Xixia characters and Chinese characters lies in the uneven strokes of Chinese characters, while Xixia characters are more neat and unified as a whole, which is more full and magnificent.
Chinese characters and Xixia characters are precious wealth of Chinese culture.
Let me tell you a little secret. Xixia has its own dictionary. I believe some readers will be very interested in this aspect. Go and check it yourself.
The buildings left over from Xixia Kingdom have basically turned into dust or mound sites. The imagination of that era can only be inferred from some ruins.
Chρkiss was originally an ornament on the two sections of the main roof of the house. It was taken down separately and put in a showcase so that it could be watched at close range. I have to say that the body shape of the dragon head fish is really cool.
Even the decorations are so big, you can imagine how magnificent the palace was.
I stumbled across a sightseeing corridor displaying ancient murals, as if I were in just visiting, having a dialogue between ancient and modern times. It's always been like this, in return for beauty.
If you happen to have a rest in Yinchuan, don't worry so much. Arrange a museum tour for yourself for at least half a day. If nothing else, antiquities have been silent for thousands of years.
Trivia: There are two highly recognizable buildings next to the museum, namely Ningxia Library and Ningxia Grand Theatre.