Mausoleum of the Nanyue King
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The Museum of the Western Han Dynasty Mausoleum of the Nanyue King ( Cantonese: Sai Hon Nam Yuet Wong Mou Bok Mat Gun) houses the 2,000-year-old tomb of the Nanyue King Zhao Mo in Guangzhou. Zhao Mo ruled from 137 BC to 122 BC, and his tomb was discovered in downtown Guangzhou in 1983. The museum, which opened in 1988, showcases the tomb and its complete trove of artifacts. It was named a Major National Historical Site in 1996 and is renowned for its rare assemblage of funerary artifacts representing the diffusion of cultures throughout the
Lingnan Lingnan (; Vietnamese: Lĩnh Nam) is a geographic area referring to the lands in the south of the Nanling Mountains. The region covers the modern Chinese subdivisions of Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Hong Kong, and Macau, as well as modern northe ...
region during the Han dynasty.


Layout

The mausoleum and museum complex occupies an area of . Hidden 20 meters (65.6 feet) underground, the tomb is made up of 750 huge stones with colorful murals. The over 1,000 pieces of cultural relics, bronzeware and terra cotta ware in particular, feature the Yue Culture of
Lingnan Lingnan (; Vietnamese: Lĩnh Nam) is a geographic area referring to the lands in the south of the Nanling Mountains. The region covers the modern Chinese subdivisions of Guangdong, Guangxi, Hainan, Hong Kong, and Macau, as well as modern northe ...
(Nanyue Culture). Represented also are traces of central Chinese culture, the Chu culture of south China, the Bashu culture of southwest China, the culture from the northern grassland, and even foreign cultures. The mausoleum was discovered in 1983 and excavated by archaeologists
Mai Yinghao Mai Yinghao (; 15 July 1929 – 28 November 2016) was a Chinese archaeologist. He led the excavation of three major archaeological sites in Guangzhou: the Qin dynasty shipyard, the Mausoleum of the Nanyue King, and the Royal Palace and Garden of t ...
and Huang Zhanyue. The museum opened in 1988. It is 20 meters under Xianggang Shan (Elephant Hill) in Guangzhou on a construction site for a hotel, and was excavated. The tomb is nearly 11 meters long and over 12 meters wide. It is divided in seven parts, with a front chamber, east and west wing rooms, the main coffin chamber, east and west side rooms, and a back storage chamber.


Artifacts

The tomb has yielded more than 1,000 burial artifacts, a chariot, gold and silver vessels,
musical instrument A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person who pl ...
s, and human sacrifices were found (15 courtiers were buried alive with him to serve him in death). It is also among the only tombs of the early Western Han dynasty that has murals on its walls. The tomb also excavated a unique imperial seal, belonging to that of "Emperor Wen" (Văn Đế), indicating that he styled himself emperor domestically as opposed to a king externally. The large scale of jade pendants worn by the deceased and his wives also amounts to imperial rank. Alongside Chinese artifacts, pieces from the steppes, and Iranian and
Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
Central Asian regions have been found: a Persian silver box found in the tomb is the earliest imported product found to date in China. There were artifacts that were found in which belonged to the Đông Sơn culture of northern Vietnam. A silk-jade garment made up of 2,291 pieces of jade is the spotlight of the mausoleum. It is acknowledged that jade garments with pieces connected by gold, silver, or copper are not uncommon. But this garment is unique for its jade pieces connected by silk which makes it the only one of its kind in the world. Nor are historical records available to verify other jade garments connected by silk thread. In addition, the style of buttons down the front is unique among unearthed jade garments. This silk-sewn-jade garment shows the early development of jade garments as well as development of the Nanyue culture.


Access

The museum is located at 867 Jiefang Rd. in Yuexiu District in central Guangzhou. It is accessible by bus routes 7, 29, 33, 203, 211, 273, 543, and 552, and by
Metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...
Line 2 Line 2 or 2 Line may refer to: Public transport Americas *2 (New York City Subway service), a rapid transit service in the A Division of the New York City Subway *2 Line (Sound Transit), a light rail line in Seattle, Washington *Line 2 Bloor–Dan ...
to the
Yuexiu Park Yuexiu Hill, also known as Yut Sau Shan , Yut Sau Hill or Mount Yuexiu, is located in Yuexiu District, Guangzhou. It once formed the northern end of the old walled city, though most of the walls have been dismantled and the city has now expanded f ...
(Exit E).


See also

*
List of museums in China , there are 3,589 museums in China, including 3,054 state-owned museums (museums run by national and local government or universities) and 535 private museums. With a total collection of over 20 million items, these museums hold more than 8,000 e ...
* Nanyue * Triệu dynasty * Zhao Mo * Southward expansion of the Han dynasty


References


External links


Museum's official site
{{authority control Archaeological museums in China Museums in Guangzhou Nanyue Mausoleums in China Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Guangdong National first-grade museums of China Yuexiu District