Jincheng Museum, telling the story of the ancient city of a thousand years

Jincheng in Shanxi was the last stop of our self-driving tour and also the last day of the holiday. In order to understand the past and present of this small city located at the southeastern gateway of Shanxi in the shortest time, we chose to go to Jincheng Museum. Jincheng is an ancient city with a profound history. The 'Ancient Civilization of Jincheng' exhibition on the third floor of the museum and the 'Ancient Architectural Art of Jincheng' exhibition on the fourth floor, with a large number of prehistoric relics and existing famous castles, tell the story of the city's origin. The ancient city is located in the southeastern part of Shanxi Province, in a basin surrounded by mountains. In ancient times, it was successively known as Jianxing, Zezhou, and Zezhou Prefecture. The later name of Jincheng was derived from the relocation of Duke Jing of Jin to this place at the end of the Spring and Autumn period. Historical research shows that as early as 20,000 years ago, there were traces of human reproduction in the Dan River and Qin River basins flowing through the city. The unique geographical environment has preserved the historical relics left or unearthed in this region very intact, allowing later generations to understand the city's most commendable 'ancient architectural art'. The 'Ancient Civilization of Jincheng' exhibition starts from the late Paleolithic period 20,000 years ago, talking about the relics and sites distributed in the city such as Guoyu Fort, Xiangyu Fort, Ningyuanzhai, Xiwenxing Village, Lianghucun, etc.; it tells the story of the 'filial piety' culture in the golden tombs; it discusses the unique cultural phenomenon of colored glass figurines buried with the dead in ancient Chinese burial systems, as well as the culture of ancient temples, giving us a deep understanding of this ancient city. In the Ancient Architectural Art of Jincheng exhibition hall, the surviving wood and stone carvings are exquisite and grand, making us deeply feel the profound historical heritage of the city's ancient architectural art. The thematic exhibition 'Hometown of Coal and Iron' in the east and west exhibition halls on the second floor of the museum made us understand the city's rich coal and iron resources, thus filling us with confidence and expectation for its economic strength and development prospects.