China National Silk Museum
By admin on 2015-01-16

China National Silk Museum 中国丝绸博物馆 , opened to the public in February 1992, is located at the foot of Lianhua Peak of Yuhuang Mountain in Hangzhou City of Zhejiang Province. It is a museum dedicated to reflect over 5,000 years of silk development history in China.

The museum takes up an area of about 50,000 square meters and consists of eight exhibition halls, namely the Prelude Hall, Relics Hall, Folk Custom Hall, Silkworm Hall, Silk Manufacturing Hall, Weaving Hall, Dying Hall and Achievements Hall.

The Prelude Hall displays Silkworm Twining Map (can zhi tu, which details the whole process from silkworm-raising to silk- weaving) of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), a model of restored jacquard loom, and a chronological table of the emerging of silk around the world, which shows that China is the first country to plant mulberry, raise silkworm, reel silk and finally make silk.

In the Relics Hall, there are some precious excavated silk articles, including a piece of the remains of the earliest silk ever found global wide unearthed in Henan Province -- Luo silk, which is about 5,630 years ago; and another piece unearthed in Huzhou of Zhejiang Province is the earliest by far discovered in the Yangtze basin.

The Folk Custom Hall showcases various creations of local silkworm-raising peasants and katydids. Other halls introduce the making process, weaving machines and operational method of the whole production course.

Vivid demonstrations are given in some halls, demonstrating the production process of the silk products. The museum itself is a good combination of culture, tourism and trade. It is also an educational base for both adults and children.