Located in Luoyang City, Erlitou Site Museum is the site of the Xia Dynasty, also known as Erlitou Site Museum Of the Xia Capital. Erlitou Site Museum has a collection of over 2,000 artifacts, including bronzes, pottery, and jade. There are various exhibitions, reflecting the history and culture of the Xia Dynasty, as well as achievements of the Erlitou archaeological site.
Erlitou Site Museum is an important place for showing the first royal capital of China, promoting the protection and research of the Erlitou sites. As a great place to explore the history and culture of Xia Dynasty, Erlitou Site Museum becomes a new cultural landmark in Luoyang. During your travel to Luoyang, you can visit the museum to learn more about the rich Chinese culture and history.
Quick Facts of Erlitou Site Museum
- Location: Zhenxun Street, Yanshi District, Luoyang City, Henan Province, China
- Opening time: 9:00-17:00 (closed on Mondays)
- Ticket price: Free
- Time Needed: 1 to 2 hours
- Best time to visit:All year round
- Suited to: History and culture lovers
Exhibits and Highlights of the Erlitou Site Museum
Valuable Bronze Wares
The Xia Dynasty was the beginning of the Bronze Age. As the capital city of the Xia Dynasty, the Erlitou site is also a famous Bronze Age Site. Bronzes are important collections of the Erlitou Site Museum, reflecting the achievements in metal smelting of Xia Dynasty.
Bronze Ding with Lattice Pattern is the highlight of bronze wares in Erlitou Site Museum. It is the earliest bronze Ding that has been discovered in China and is the symbol of the royal ritual system.
Exquisite Jade Wares
Jades were usually used as ceremonial and decorative objects in the site of the Erlitou culture. The delicate shapes of these jades reflect the carving skills and aesthetics of the Xia Dynasty.
Seven-hole Jade Knife is the largest jade artifact unearthed at the Erlitou archaeological site. The shape of the knife is unique, with seven holes aligned at the back of the knife. Jade Zhang is one of the typical ceremonial objects of the Erlitou culture, which was only used by the nobility.
Precious Turquoise Wares
Turquoise is one of the most important relics of the Erlitou culture, which is usually used as decorations. Turquoise wares have high artistic value, reflecting the excellent inlay technology of the Xia Dynasty.
Turquoise-inlaid Plate with Bronze Beast-mask Moti is a representative artifact of Erlitou Site Museum. It is a bronze decoration inlaid with hundreds of pieces of turquoise, forming an animal face.
Bone Wares and Potteries
Bone wares are tools made from animal bones, horns, and teeth during the Xia Dynasty. These bone wares include tools, weapons and decorations with vivid shapes. The potteries unearthed at the Erlitou archaeological site are diverse and functional, including cooking, eating and drinking vessels. These bone wares and potteries reflect the social life and cultural customs of the Xia Dynasty.
Things to Do in the Erlitou Site Museum
Erlitou Site Museum has various exhibitions, including permanent and special exhibitions. The permanent exhibitions show the achievements of the Erlitou archaeological site and the history and culture of the Xia Dynasty. The special exhibitions cover cultural heritage from different historical periods.
Permanent Exhibitions
There are five permanent exhibitions in the Erlitou Site Museum, including The First Dynasty, Major Affairs of State, Establisting the Kingdom in the Central Plain, The People on the Land and The Great Huaxia. These exhibitions show the rich Erlitou culture, the daily life of the ancient people, and the development of the Central Plains civilization.
There are many artifacts of various sites closely related to the Xia culture, including the Yanshi Erlitou relic site. You can explore rare artifacts to learn about the historical significance of the Xia Dynasty.
Special Exhibitions
There are many special exhibitions in the Erlitou Site Museum, like Achievements of Erlitou Archaeological Site and Digital Pavilion. Achievements of Erlitou Archaeological Site shows the archaeological process of the Erlitou site and its significance for Chinese archaeology.
The Digital Pavilion reproduces the palace, politics, and rituals of Xia Capital through digital projection technology. You can immerse in the splendid culture of the Xia Dynasty and experience the life of ancient people.
Best Time to Visit Erlitou Site Museum
Erlitou Site Museum can be visited all year round. There are a wide variety of events aimed at presenting the history and culture of the Xia Dynasty in different forms. You can explore different exhibitions and events in different months. If you want to visit other attractions of Luoyang, you can plan your Luoyang tours in spring and fall.
How to Get to Erlitou Site Museum
By Bus
You can take the bus No.103 from Yanshi Railway Station to Erlitou Site Museum, which takes about an hour. Or take the bus No.806 from Luoyang Longmen Railway Station to Erlitou Site Museum, which takes 1 hour and 46min. And it will take 2 hours to reach the museum from Luoyang Bus Station by bus No.807.
By Taxi
From Yanshi Railway Station, you can take a taxi to reach Erlitou Site Museum, which will take 25 minutes and cost 18-29 RMB. And it will take 45min and cost 45-60 RMB from Luoyang downtown to Erlitou Site Museum by a taxi.
Attractions nearby Erlitou Site Museum
Yanshi Shangcheng Museum: Yanshi Shangcheng Museum is a thematic museum of Chinese history, combining the research and display of Xia and Shang Dynasty. It has a collection of over 40,000 cultural relics, showing the splendid Chinese civilization.
Wang Zijin Monument: Located in front of the Erlitou Site Museum, Wang Zijin Monument commemorates the heroic defense of Luoyang by the Ming Dynasty general Wang Zijin.
Luoyang Museum: Luoyang Museum covers an area of 200,000 square meters, with a collection of more than 20,000 cultural relics from different historical periods. The museum shows the glorious history and cultural heritage of Luoyang.
