要了解中国，仅靠看文献是不够的。中华大地的地上和地下存留着丰富而珍贵的历史文物和遗迹，大多收藏和陈列在各类博物馆里。从某种意义上说，这些原始的实物资料，比文献资料具有更高的的认识价值和历史意义。中国有2500座博物馆。本书精挑细选并加以介绍的这些博物馆，很多是国家重点文物保护单位，有些已被联合国教科文组织列入世界文化遗产名录。希望他们能成为您按图索骥的人文导游指南。

China has an ancient civilization with a very long history. Understanding its olely through the study of documents is clearly inadequate. A wealth of objects and remains has been preserved on China's vast territory and underground; much of which has been collected and is exhibited in various kinds of museums. This raw material of history can, in a certain sense, be considered more valuable for our understanding of the past of China than documents and historical records.

Among the sixty-one museums selected for this book, many have been designated as key protected cultural sites by China. Some have been included in the UNESCO List of World Cultural Heritage Sites. We hope that this volume can serve visitors as a guide to understanding these museums.

Foreword: Reading the History of Chinese Civilization from Its Museums

National Treasures

 Palace Museum

 Taipei Palace Museum

 Capital Museum

 Shanghai Museum

 Shaanxi History Museum

 Henan Museum

 Nanjing Museum

 Museum of Liaoning Province

 Three Gorges Museum

Contributions of China's National Minorities

 Cultural Palace of Nationalities

 Shenyang Palace Museum

 Inner Mongolia Museum

 Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region Museum

 Tibet Museum

 Museum of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region

 Ningxia Museum

 Yunnan Provincial Museum

Tracing the Tracks of History

 National Museum of China

 Sanxingdui Museum

 Jinsha Site Museum

 Zhouyuan Museum

 Suizhou Zenghouyi Tomb Site Exhibition Hall

 Museum of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shihuang

 Changsha Mawangdui Han Tomb Cultural Relics Exhibition Hall

 Mancheng Han Tomb Site Exhibition Hall

Treasures of China's Stone Grottoes

 Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes

 Yungang Grottoes

 Lonzmen Grottoes

 Dazu Rock Carvings

Underground Imperial Palaces

 Tomb of the Yellow Emperor

 Maoling Museum

 Qianling Museum

 Dingling Museum

 Qing Dongling and Qing Xiling Tombs

Hua-xia Civilization

 China National Silk Museum

 China National Tea Museum

 lingdezhen Ceramics Museum

 Huqingyutang Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine

 Quanzhou Maritime Museum

Assembly of Talents: Arts and Literature

 National Art Museum of China

 National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature

 Beijing Theater Museum

 China Sports Museum

 Hong Kong Museum of History

 Macao Maritime Museum

Gardens and Architectural Monuments

 Suzhou Garden Museum

 Summer Palace

 Great Wall Museum of China

 Temple of Heaven

 Temple and Cemetery of Confucius and the Kong Family Mansion in Qufu

 Jinci Museum

Homes of Our Forebears: Archaeology

 Zhoukoudian Peking Man Site Museum

 Xinle Site Museum

 Hemudu Site Museum

 Xi'an Banpo Museum

Marvels of Heaven and Earth: Natural History

 Beijing Ancient Observatory

 Geological Museum of China

 Zigong Dinosaur Museum

 Tonglushan Ancient Metallurgy Museum

 Zigong Salt History Museum

Appendix: Chronological Table of the Chinese Dynasties