Hubei Provincial Museum
Hubei Provincial Museum
4.5
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
This museum contains more than 140,000 artifacts, mainly excavated from a large tomb more than 2,400 years old.
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Detailed Reviews: Reviews order informed by descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as cleanliness, atmosphere, general tips and location information.
4.5
473 reviews
Excellent
284
Very good
157
Average
28
Poor
4
Terrible
0
Alex W
Singapore, Singapore1,451 contributions
Dec 2017 • Solo
To get to the Hubei Provincial Museum, take the metro line 4 (light green line) to Dongting station. Go up to street level using Exit A or B, both of which delivers you to Huangli Road. Walk southeast along Huangli Road for about 1 km, and you will come to a major expressway. The museum is on the opposite side of the expressway. To cross over, use the underground passageway that is on your left (the passageway is directly facing the Hubei Museum of Art, which is almost next door to the Hubei Provincial Museum).
Entry to the museum (except the concert) is free. It closes at 5pm.
This is a very good regional museum of manageable size. Best to allow 3 hours (including the concert).
The middle plains of the Yangzi valley have been peopled for a very long time -- thousands of years. This region, which includes the province of Hubei, has a rich material history, from the prehistoric to the modern.
Its exhibits are largely built around archaeological finds in Hubei province, of which there are a two significant ones. The first is from about 430 BCE, providing a wonderful collection of bronzes from a certain local king’s (Marquis Yi of Zeng) tomb.
The second is another tomb (a Ming dynasty prince) almost 2,000 years later, from the 15th century, with exquisitely beautiful works.
Another gallery displays some Homo erectus remains from about a million years ago, and stone tools from the Paleolithic to Neolithic. There is an attempt to put these finds into some sort of evolutionary story of humans, but since there is no expert consensus among evolutionary biologists, it is left unresolved.
A particularly well-curated gallery tells the story of porcelain in China, with emphasis on the Yangzi valley region. Clearly-presented sections, supported by beautiful examples of work, tell the story chronologically, of how unpainted celadons got better and better through the centuries – with some bowls looking positively modern in their aesthestic style, and then from around 1200 CE, came a burst of painted porcelain. At first monochromatic, by the Qing dynasty (17th century onwards) they were positively technicolour. Even then, some works remained single-coloured, but the glaze and thinness of the porcelain mark them as superb examples of craftsmanship.
Not to be missed is the bells concert, based on a set of bells and other musical instruments unearthed from Marquis Yi’s tomb. Tickets for the concert (only 25 minutes) can be bought about one hour before concert time. The auditorium is in a separate building from the main building. It is to your right as you face the main building while standing in the forecourt.
Concert time in the winter season is 11am and 3pm everyday (except Mondays when the museum is closed) with an extra 2pm concert on Saturdays and Sundays. One of my photos gives the full schedule.
Entry to the museum (except the concert) is free. It closes at 5pm.
This is a very good regional museum of manageable size. Best to allow 3 hours (including the concert).
The middle plains of the Yangzi valley have been peopled for a very long time -- thousands of years. This region, which includes the province of Hubei, has a rich material history, from the prehistoric to the modern.
Its exhibits are largely built around archaeological finds in Hubei province, of which there are a two significant ones. The first is from about 430 BCE, providing a wonderful collection of bronzes from a certain local king’s (Marquis Yi of Zeng) tomb.
The second is another tomb (a Ming dynasty prince) almost 2,000 years later, from the 15th century, with exquisitely beautiful works.
Another gallery displays some Homo erectus remains from about a million years ago, and stone tools from the Paleolithic to Neolithic. There is an attempt to put these finds into some sort of evolutionary story of humans, but since there is no expert consensus among evolutionary biologists, it is left unresolved.
A particularly well-curated gallery tells the story of porcelain in China, with emphasis on the Yangzi valley region. Clearly-presented sections, supported by beautiful examples of work, tell the story chronologically, of how unpainted celadons got better and better through the centuries – with some bowls looking positively modern in their aesthestic style, and then from around 1200 CE, came a burst of painted porcelain. At first monochromatic, by the Qing dynasty (17th century onwards) they were positively technicolour. Even then, some works remained single-coloured, but the glaze and thinness of the porcelain mark them as superb examples of craftsmanship.
Not to be missed is the bells concert, based on a set of bells and other musical instruments unearthed from Marquis Yi’s tomb. Tickets for the concert (only 25 minutes) can be bought about one hour before concert time. The auditorium is in a separate building from the main building. It is to your right as you face the main building while standing in the forecourt.
Concert time in the winter season is 11am and 3pm everyday (except Mondays when the museum is closed) with an extra 2pm concert on Saturdays and Sundays. One of my photos gives the full schedule.
Written December 22, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
SFBayAreaTrekker
San Francisco Bay Area (CA)565 contributions
Jun 2013 • Friends
Second museum of the tour. Thought seen one, seen them all. Wrong.
The Hubei Provincial Museum provides provincial history that many other museums and history books overlook. It has well explained narratives in both English and Chinese.
Artifacts in suitably lit displays that provide enough light to see (and photograph) the object, but not harm the artifact. They make good use of replicas (fully disclosed), when the original is damaged or in critical danger of further damage being on display.
Their art collection is pleasing to all ages.
The Hubei Provincial Museum provides provincial history that many other museums and history books overlook. It has well explained narratives in both English and Chinese.
Artifacts in suitably lit displays that provide enough light to see (and photograph) the object, but not harm the artifact. They make good use of replicas (fully disclosed), when the original is damaged or in critical danger of further damage being on display.
Their art collection is pleasing to all ages.
Written July 2, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Cathryn A
Vancouver, Canada11 contributions
Jun 2012 • Friends
The Taoist and Buddhist exhibits were excellent as was the ceramics. I didn't get to the lacquerware in four hours!! The top floor was all 20th C., political heroes, okay. the photography with landscapes (i forgot the correct name) was beautiful. Definitely go to the antique music concert in the adjacent building, 10 Yuan.
Written June 30, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
FamilySpringBreak
Winnipeg, Canada286 contributions
Aug 2012 • Family
One of the better museums to view bronze age relics. The intact bell chimes are incredible.
Also a collection of gold and jewlery from a Prince's tomb is terrific. The Chime Bells Ochrestra was worth seeing as it gives you an idea how these old musical instruments work toegther. They're presently building a new auditorium for them to perform in.
Also a collection of gold and jewlery from a Prince's tomb is terrific. The Chime Bells Ochrestra was worth seeing as it gives you an idea how these old musical instruments work toegther. They're presently building a new auditorium for them to perform in.
Written September 6, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dan T
Cambridge, UK46 contributions
Oct 2011 • Business
Excellent, well labelled exhibits. But very crowded and a lot of excited happy children.
Written July 12, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
robertckelly
McLean Virginia87 contributions
Jun 2012 • Friends
We were on a Viking River cruise that included this stop. The display is the contents of a 2500 year old burial mound. The grave was trapped in the water table and is beautifully preserved.
Brass, gold, sarcophagi, musical instruments and a magnificent set of bells.
The museum is entirely Western in presentation, properly lit with treasures clearly explained and displayed. By contrast, the Forbidden City, while large in scale, is much less properly displayed in all the interior presentations.
There is a performance on the Bells that is very nice. The musicians are in Chinese dress and they play songs that reflect the local music of that era. A fine place to visit.
Brass, gold, sarcophagi, musical instruments and a magnificent set of bells.
The museum is entirely Western in presentation, properly lit with treasures clearly explained and displayed. By contrast, the Forbidden City, while large in scale, is much less properly displayed in all the interior presentations.
There is a performance on the Bells that is very nice. The musicians are in Chinese dress and they play songs that reflect the local music of that era. A fine place to visit.
Written June 9, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
wuyi
3 contributions
Feb 2020 • Family
The style of the architecture is a non-typical Hubei(Chu state) style. The architectural design enlightens the hubei's culture. A must go.
Written January 15, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
DuGang
Saudi Arabia60 contributions
Nov 2018 • Friends
You can see the old things at there. Free entry. Have some performance but need tickets. i like it so much.
Written October 9, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LG964
San Francisco, CA104 contributions
Sep 2019
This single tomb belonging to a Marquis was unearthed in 1978. In addition to a vast collection of bronzes and lacquerware, a set of chimes and bells weighing 5,525 pounds (65 bells suspended on three frames and divided into eight groups) were uncovered. A group of musicians demonstrated that each bell can produce two different clear tones of melody, playing traditional Chinese music and even Bach's Ode to Joy!
Written October 5, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
newzealnder1
picton87 contributions
Sep 2019
This museum has some excellent exhibits and is well worth a visit. We did enjoy the bell concert, very talented young performers.
Written September 24, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
boshim
toronto114 contributions
Thinking of visiting the Hubei Provincial Museum in Sept. '17. I am curious as to how many permanent exhibitions are open? The museum website says there are 11, but I noticed the museum is going through renovations/expansions. Thank you
Schrat
Aachen, Germany110 contributions
I'm sorry, but don't know how many will be open during renovations, but by my point of view museum is always good to visit even if some are closed
Hubei Provincial Museum (Wuhan) - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go
Hubei Provincial Museum Information
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