The new exhibition venue at the Sanxingdui Museum in Guanghan City, Sichuan Province held its trial opening on July 27, displaying over 1,500 exhibits unearthed from the Sanxingdui Ruins archeological site. Nearly 600 relics made their public debut in the 54,000-square-meter hall showcasing the mysterious culture of the ancient Shu Kingdom from over 4,000 years ago.

Among the exquisite works of pottery, bronze and jade wares, gold objects and ivories on display, some representative items were already well-known online, such as the 3.96-meter-tall bronze holy tree and bronze masks featuring almond-shaped bulging eyes. Many other relics were unveiled to the public for the first time, including a bronze bird-footed deity statue, a turtle back-shaped item featuring grid patterns, a statue of a squatting man with his head turned to one side – and many other items unearthed in recent years.

The new venue consists of three exhibition areas. The first area shows different periods of the excavation work lasting for nearly a century, while the second space offers a comprehensive overview of the Shu Kingdom’s natural environment, urban planning, handicraft industry and social classes through the analysis of existing ruins and unearthed relics. The third area displays sacrificial relics which demonstrate the belief systems and sacrificial rituals of the Shu people.

The design of the new exhibition venue also makes full use of archaeological elements from the Sanxingdui Ruins site, such as a glass curtain wall that imitates the almond-shaped eyes of masks and facial statues, and the sun shields on the outside of the building painted the color of bronze.