Collections of Hangzhou Museum

Hangzhou Museum is located south of the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage: West Lake, adjacent to Hefang Street. It is a comprehensive cultural museum showcasing the historical changes and cultural relics of Hangzhou. It is a national first-class museum and a patriotic education base and science popularization education base in Zhejiang Province.

In October 2001, the Hangzhou History Museum was completed and opened to the public. At the end of 2011, it was renamed Hangzhou Museum. In July 2020, the sign of Hangzhou Museum (under preparation) was added. Hangzhou Museum covers an area of 24,000 square meters, with a construction area of 13,000 square meters and an exhibition area of 7,000 square meters. It consists of two museum areas: the North Museum and the South Museum. 

Collections:

Liangzhu Culture Triangular Ornament with Animal Face Patterns

It is grayish-white with dark green spots. The shape is similar to the Chinese character "mountain," with three forked square shapes. It is lower in the middle and higher on the sides, and has a curved arc at the bottom. One side has animal face patterns, with multiple relief circles for eyes, elliptical eyelids, a bridge-shaped forehead, and a wide flat nose. The other side has animal face patterns carved with incised lines. This abstract animal pattern is a typical decoration element of Liangzhu Culture jade artifacts from the Neolithic Age. It may be an image of a deity of a certain tribe, reflecting the religious characteristics of Liangzhu Culture. The triangular animal face ornament is one of the most conspicuous objects representing the social hierarchy in Liangzhu Culture. Only the highest-ranking nobles would use it. The unearthed triangular animal face ornaments are mostly found near the heads of the tomb owners, so this artifact might be a head ornament that was later modified into an accessory.

Warring States Period Bronze Sword with Geometric Patterns and a Flat Ridge 

This bronze sword is black with a blue tint and has a glossy surface. The middle part of the sword body is a flat ridge, and the sword hilt is short and thick, forming an inverted concave shape. Both sides of the sword hilt are cast with simple animal face patterns of Yin and Yang, which were originally used for inlay decoration, but the inlay has fallen off. The sword hilt is round and has two hoops. The pommel is decorated with multiple geometric patterns. It is a typical Wuyue-style bronze sword and a fine work among Warring States Period bronze swords.

Apart from the Wuyue region, the flat ridge swords have also been sporadically discovered in Hubei, Hunan, Guangdong, Henan, Hebei, Inner Mongolia, and Sichuan, mostly in Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Hubei. The flat ridge is a special technique in sword making. The two flat ridges not only reduce the thickness of the sword body but also increase the width of the blade, thereby enhancing its cutting power. However, due to the flat ridge, the rigidity of the sword body is weakened. Although it occupies a place among the various bronze weapons of the Western Zhou and Eastern Zhou dynasties, it never became the mainstream type of bronze sword.

During the Eastern Zhou period, wars occurred frequently. Unlike the Central Plains region, which mainly engaged in chariot warfare, the Wuyue region had a complex terrain with mountains, rivers, and lakes, making infantry close combat and naval warfare more common. Swords served as the main attacking weapons and were extensively equipped. The time between the late Spring and Autumn period to the Warring States period was the heyday of bronze swords. The reputation of "Wu Spears and Yue Swords" reflects the superb smelting and casting techniques of artisans at that time.

Yuan Dynasty Jingdezhen Kiln Blue and White Porcelain Sculptural Pen Stand

This blue and white pen stand resembles five fingers, with the overall shape of mountain peaks carried by a sea turtle. The sea turtle has its head raised slightly and its mouth slightly open. It has an empty belly and a small hole in the back where water can be injected. The upper part of the four mountain peaks is decorated with Ruyi cloud patterns, and the lower part has wave patterns. A round disc is attached behind the cloud on the top of the second mountain peak. Some scholars believe that the round disc symbolizes the sun, representing the meanings of "rising day by day" and "taking the lead." Another study suggests that the sea turtle is actually a toad, and above the cloud is a bright moon, conveying the poetic meaning of "who wants to ride on a toad when enjoying the bright moon tonight" and "the blue mountains reach the eastern edge of the sea, the bright moon rises high in the sky." The pen stand is handcrafted, and the craftsman's fingerprints are still visible on the back. The texture is delicate and white, with blue and white decorations of peaks, clouds, waves, turtle eyes, and reefs. The blue and white color is rich and well-layered. The overall shape is small, exquisite, elegant, and interesting.

This Yuan Dynasty blue and white mountain-shaped pen stand was unearthed from the Yuan Dynasty kiln site on Chaohui Road in Hangzhou. In addition to this pen stand, 53 other porcelain pieces and 4 bronze items were also excavated from this kiln site. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, peasant uprisings broke out everywhere, and wars were frequent. According to the "Annals of Hangzhou Prefecture," during the years from 1275 to 1289, Hangzhou had six peasant uprisings or internal conflicts. Therefore, it is possible that these artifacts were buried in the kiln during the chaotic period at the end of the Yuan Dynasty. As the only stationery item in this kiln site, the blue and white pen stand is also the only known Yuan blue and white pen stand unearthed in China, which has important reference value for the study of Yuan Dynasty blue and white porcelain.