Beijing, a city with a rich history and profound cultural heritage, is a place where every brick and every tree exudes a strong cultural atmosphere. Beyond the famous scenic spots like the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and the Summer Palace, there are also some lesser-known attractions that showcase the unique charm of Beijing. Let's take a look!

Jinzhongdu Park

Beijing has a 3,000-year history of city construction and an 800-year history of being the capital. The starting point of the 800-year history is Jinzhongdu. 870 years ago, the Jin Dynasty moved its capital from Shangjing (now Acheng, Heilongjiang Province) to Yanjing and named it "Zhongdu". Since then, Beijing's identity changed from a "city" to a "capital", marking the beginning of a new era in the city's development as an imperial capital.

Jinzhongdu was built on the basis of the Southern Capital of Liao, with the east, west, and south city walls expanded outward, and the imperial city and palace city constructed according to the layout of the Northern Song Dynasty's Bianjing. The four city gates, each with three gates, were built, with an additional gate added to the east side of the north city wall. The four corners of the city are roughly located at: the southwest corner at Fenghuangzui Village in Fengtai District, the northwest corner at the Military Museum in Nanhuangtingzi, the northeast corner at Nancaihua Street inside Xuanwumen, and the southeast corner at the Beijing South Railway Station. The imperial city and palace city of Jinzhongdu are located within the boundaries of Xicheng District. In 2013, Jinzhongdu Park was built within the Jin Dynasty imperial city site between the south gate of the Jin Dynasty imperial city and the ruins of Xuanyang Gate.

The park features five scenic spots, including the city wall, the campsite, the nomadic tribe, the main entrance square, and the Xuanyang Post Station, as well as a waterfront greenway, surrounded by lush greenery, pavilions, and walking paths. The scenery is reminiscent of a beautiful Southern Chinese landscape, with the spring water rippling in the river, and the peach blossoms and willows lining the banks. Here, you can not only appreciate the beauty of the scenery but also learn about Beijing's history of being the capital and experience the city's profound historical and cultural heritage up close.

Address: No. 64 Guang'an Nanjie (St), Xicheng, Beijing

Beijing Gold Lacquer Inlay Art Museum

The Beijing Gold Lacquer Inlay Art Museum officially opened in August 2022, with the national intangible cultural heritage project "Gold Lacquer Inlay Lacquering Techniques" as its theme. The museum integrates tourism, education, and experience, showcasing traditional Chinese cultural craftsmanship.

The museum has a collection of over 300 pieces (sets) of gold lacquer inlay tools, diagrams, and artwork, including ancient masterpieces, contemporary art pieces by renowned masters, ethnic lacquerware, and national gift works. These exhibits represent various categories of craftsmanship, such as inlay, carving, painting, and engraving.

Beijing gold lacquer inlay is an important category of traditional Chinese lacquerware, known as a "national treasure" and praised by Beijing's artisan community as one of the "Eight Unique Skills of Yanjing". From the master-apprentice system to artistic techniques and styles, Beijing gold lacquer inlay directly inherits and develops the artistic traditions of the Ming and Qing dynasties, forming a unique Beijing style that is ancient, elegant, refined, luxurious, and diverse.

The museum is suitable for visitors of all ages, offering hands-on experiences such as making lacquer fans, seal carving, and handmade package production. The handmade packages were designed and developed by Master Hu Xin, a renowned gold lacquer inlay artist, perfectly reproducing the craftsmanship of gold lacquer inlay.

Address: No. 40, Hongsi Village, Xiaohongmen Town, Chaoyang, Beijing.

Beijing Art Museum

Located within the ancient Wan Shou Temple, the Beijing Art Museum is a comprehensive art museum. The museum boasts a collection of over 120,000 cultural relics, primarily featuring palace embroidery, calligraphy, ceramics, jade, bamboo and wood carvings, coins, and furniture, spanning from primitive society to the early 20th century, with a focus on the Ming and Qing dynasties.

The museum currently has several permanent exhibitions, including "The History of Wan Shou Temple", "Buddhist Sculpture Art", "Ji Shou's Cultural Relics Exhibition", and "Traditional Chinese Furniture Exhibition".

The special exhibition "Elegant Vessels and Refined Brushstrokes: A Showcase of Ming and Qing Dynasty Writing Utensils" features over 200 exquisite writing utensils from the Ming and Qing dynasties, showcasing their beauty in terms of materials, craftsmanship, and decoration, allowing visitors to appreciate the refined and elegant lifestyle of ancient literati. The exhibition will run until May 10, 2024.

Another special exhibition, "Gathering Civilization: A Showcase of Coins from the Museum's Collection", features over 250 coins from the museum's collection, including over 20 rare and precious items. This is the Beijing Art Museum's first-ever exhibition dedicated to ancient coins, and it will run until March 30, 2025. The exhibition explores the history and art of ancient Chinese coins from different perspectives, telling the story of the development of Chinese coins across different eras and cultures. At the same time, it introduces the beauty of coin art, including calligraphy, coin patterns, and shapes, reflecting the ancient Chinese people's pursuit of a peaceful, prosperous, and beautiful life.

Address: Wan Shou Temple, Xi 3 Huan Beilu (W. 3rd Ring Rd North), Haidian, Beijing.

Beijing Stone Carving Art Museum

The Beijing Stone Carving Art Museum is built on the site of the Zhenjue Temple, which was constructed during the Yongle era of the Ming Dynasty. The temple was renamed Dazhengjue Temple to avoid the taboo of the Qing Dynasty's Yongzheng Emperor, and it is also known as the "Five Pagoda Temple" due to the five Buddhist pagodas on the top platform of the temple's main hall.

The Beijing Stone Carving Art Museum was established in October 1987 and has a collection of over 2,600 stone carvings and artifacts, primarily featuring stone carvings and sculptures from the Beijing region. The collection includes stele, tombstones, Buddhist statues, pagodas, stone carvings, and stone architectural components. The numerous temple stele, imperial decrees, tombstones, and guild hall stele, as well as tomb inscriptions from the Tang to Qing dynasties, are important physical materials for the study of Beijing's local history.

Upon entering the museum through the main gate, visitors are immediately struck by the two dense silver pagoda trees and the Golden Pagoda of the Zhenjue Temple. The Golden Pagoda is one of the earliest and most well-preserved stone pagodas of its kind in China, with the highest historical and artistic value. The pagoda has an inner brick and outer stone structure, with a circular, interconnected design that maximizes its weight-bearing capacity. The entire pagoda is adorned with intricate carvings, showcasing exceptional craftsmanship.

The "From Stone to Carvings" exhibition hall in the museum's rear building features a collection of the earliest stone carvings from the Beijing region, including the "Han Dynasty Stone Pillar of Qin Jun, the Governor of Youzhou," which dates back over 1,900 years. The inscription is one of the earliest examples of intaglio carving and is considered a masterpiece of Han Dynasty calligraphy.

Address: No. 24, Wuta Temple Village, Haidian, Beijing.

Moshikou Historical and Cultural Block

Moshikou was once a strategic location in the west of Beijing, a place of great importance for military defense, and its name has been known since the Ming and Qing dynasties. In the 8th year of the Xuande reign (1433), it was already called "Moshikou", serving as an ancient camel trail that connected Beijing to the outside world, and was famous for its bustling commercial activities, as described in Lao She's novel "Rickshaw Boy". The main street of Moshikou, which stretches for 1,500 meters, is shaped like a dragon and runs east-west through the district. Due to its thousand-year history of connecting Beijing to the outside world, it is aptly named the "Thousand-Year-Old Ancient Road and Hundred-Year-Old Old Street".

Today, after careful planning and renovation, the street district has introduced various businesses, including themed bookstores, boutique coffee shops, specialty restaurants, exquisite courtyards, and cultural and creative shops, along with themed decorations and street art, injecting new vitality into the area.

Moshikou Historical and Cultural Block has a rich historical and cultural heritage, with attractions such as the Fahai Temple, the Chinese Fourth Glacier Relic Museum, the Cheng'en Temple and the Beijing Yanjing Eight Unique Skills Museum, as well as 15 scenic spots and 29 boutique courtyards scattered throughout the district. The street is a fusion of old and new, with ancient temples and historic buildings standing alongside modern amenities. Visitors can explore the historical and cultural heritage of the area, stroll through the streets and alleys, and enjoy the themed bookstores, boutique coffee shops, specialty restaurants, ancient courtyards, and cultural and creative shops, surrounded by the vibrant atmosphere of the district.

Address: No. 80, Moshikou Dajie(St), Shijingshan, Beijing.

Translator: Pan Wenrui

Reviewer: JIANG Wenyi