Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum in Hangzhou

Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum Facts

Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum is located in the western piedmont of Tortoise Hill, the southern margin of Yuhuang Mountain, lying on the south edge of West Lake scenic area in Hangzhou. With the tasteful display, substantial content and comfortable environment, it is the first unique museum themed on ceramics in China.

Chinese Name: 杭州南宋官窑博物馆

Type: Culture & Museums; Guan Kiln

Address: No.60 Nanfu Road, Shangcheng District, Hangzhou 310008, China

Best Seasons: All year round; Spring and autumn best.

Recommended Visiting Hours: about 2-3 hours

Opening Hours: Mon-Sun 8:30-16:00

Ticket: Free of charge

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Why is Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum So Special?

The Official Kiln Museum of the Southern Song Dynasty is a museum dedicated to preserving the rich tradition of pottery and porcelain crafting that was very prominent in China from the past until now.
Southern Song Royal Kiln Museum is the first museum on ceramic constructed above the relic of ancient kiln. Endowed with graceful environment, elegant display and affluent connotation, the museum well represents and spreads the Chinese culture and knowledge of ceramic, and the historical countenance of Hangzhou as the ancient capital of Southern Song Dynasty. What’s more, it was awarded the titles of “Civilized museum in Zhejiang Province” and the first batch of “Educational base of patriotism”.

Brief Introduction of Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum

Situated to the south of the West Lake the Southern Song Dynasty Official Kiln Museum (南宋官窑博物馆) covers a floor area of 15,000 square meters and a building area encompassing 4,364 square meters. Built over the remains of the Jiaotanxia Official Kiln it is the first of its kind to display pottery and porcelain. The Southern Song Dynasty Official Kiln Museum was opened to the public in 1992 and was expanded in 2002 and now the museum displays the products of the official kilns of Southern Song Dynasty, highlighting their charms and delicate beauty. It has been praised as one of the “Outstanding Examples of Contemporary Zhejiang Museums”.

History of Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum

China is a country with a rich tradition of pottery and porcelain. The history of pottery can be traced back through 8,000 years, while porcelain in the country has a history over 2,000 years. During the Song Dynasty (960-1279), this culture came to a climax. A variety of chinaware appeared. Particularly representative of that time are the products of the official kiln (Guan Yao in Chinese). Guan Yao produces high-class chinaware for royalty – either for daily use or decoration. It is recorded that there were two official kilns in the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279): Jiaotanxia Guanyao and Xiuneisi Guanyao.

Main Attractions of Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum

The museum has plenty of displays, most of which are products of the official kilns of the Southern Song Dynasty. Most of the products show off exquisite charm and delicate beauty.

A trip to the museum can be divided into two parts, just like the museum itself, which has an exhibition area and another area dedicated to official kiln relics. The exhibition area consists of three rooms, the first of which feature many delicate chinaware treasures from the past dynasties. Some of these were unearthed in various parts of Hangzhou. In the second room, the history of China ceramics is highlighted; there, visitors can learn more about how this tradition started, and what its social, political, and economic contributions were. The third room, on the other hand, focuses on the research on ancient porcelain. The entire exhibition area now showcases a total of more than 8000 chinaware samples.

Aside from the exhibits, there is also a pottery bar where visitors can actually see how pottery was made in the past. Visitors can even get the chance to make their own pottery to better understand the lives of the people engaged in the art and tradition of ancient pottery-making.

Recommended Tour Packages

Best Seasons to Visit Hangzhou

Many people in China believe that spring and autumn are the two best seasonsto visit Hangzhou, specially late March-May and September-mid November.
In these seasons, temperature is warm but not hot. Daytime temperature ranges from mid 10s to mid 20s centigrade, and night time temperature ranges from low 10s to low 20s.
Spring is the best season to visit the West Lakebecause all kinds of flowers are blossoming that time. In order: plum blossom, peach blossom, and cherry blossom.
Autumn is also very nice and my favorite because of the yellow and red leaves.
However, I suggest avoiding the last week of September and the first 2 weeks of October because that’s when the city becomes packed with tourists from the golden week holidays.

How to get to Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum in Hangzhou

Travel with ChinaDragonTours (top recommended)

If you want to get out of the traffic and hassle of navigation, you can book a private tour package that includes visiting, dining and transfer from us. Our local guide and driver will escort you to Southern Song Dynasty Guan Kiln Museum in Hangzhou in the fastest and most convenient way and take care of all the details. You just have to focus on the visiting.

Independent Traveler

Take No. 809 to Baguatian Station
Take No. 39 and 308 to Shuichengqiao Station, then walk westerly
Take No. 20 to the terminus, i.e. Ceramics market
Take No. 12 to Silk Museum, then transfer to No. 809

Useful Travel Tips

Avoid visiting during school holidays and Golden Week in October as there will be large numbers of local tourists.
Accommodation
There are hotels both inside and outside the scenic area. It’s close to West Lake. You can also choose to book a hotel near West Lake.
Tel: +86 571 8608 3990