An aerial photo of the Nantong Museum in Nantong, Jiangsu province [Photo/VCG]

If asked where China's oldest museum is, few would answer that it is in fact located in Nantong, East China's Jiangsu province.

Set on the banks of Nantong's Haohe River, Nantong museum was founded in 1905 by Zhang Jian (1853-1926), nicknamed the "King of Nantong", a late Chinese industrialist, and served as a model for later Chinese entrepreneurs. Zhang was also an educator in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Originally, the museum comprised three main buildings – a central building, southern building, and northern building, which displayed a variety of specimens, historical relics and works of fine art. A botanical garden complemented the galleries with plants and other large exhibits.

In 1938, the museum was turned into a horse stable by Japanese invaders, and the collections and architecture were largely destroyed. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Nantong Museum was restored to its former glory, with the collections replenished and the architecture rebuilt. The museum's collection currently exceeds 50,000 items and includes historical relics, folk art and fossils. On show are a large number of Nantong cultural relics from ancient times to the present day, as well as natural objects derived from plants and animals not only in Nantong, but across the world. The museum has continually expanded its collections. In 1979, it acquired the skeleton of a 10-meter-long whale which had been stranded in shallow waters near Nantong, and a few years later, in 1982, acquired a portion of a meteorite that fell on Lvsi, Nantong.

Permanent exhibitions explore history spanning more than a century and focus on art masterpieces, civilization, urbanization, and modernization in Nantong, as well as whale species found around the coasts of China. The former Nantong residence of the museum founder, Zhang Jian, was converted to a gallery showcasing his contribution to the development of the local textile industry and public education.

The museum was recognized as a major historical and cultural site protected at the national level by the State Council in 1988. It is also a 5A-level scenic area and national education base for the popularization of science.

Opening Hours

Exhibition area: 9:00-17:00 from Tuesdays to Sundays, closed on Mondays

Address

No 19 Haonan Road, Nantong, Jiangsu province

General admission

Free

Official website (CN)

http://www.ntmuseum.com/