Sanxingdui Travel Guide

Sanxingdui Museum is an archaeological museum located in Guanghan near Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China. The museum is renowned for its extensive collection of artifacts especially the bronze wares. Sanxingdui archaeological findings are considered to be one of the most important ancient discoveries of the 20th century.

Sanxingdui Museum Bronze Masks

Sanxingdui Museum Golden Mask

The Sanxingdui archaeological site was discovered in 1929 by a farmer, but it wasn't until the 1980s that a large-scale excavation began. The site covers an area of approximately 12 square kilometers and consists of two sacrificial pits, numerous workshops, tombs, and residential areas. The excavation uncovered over 1,000 gold, bronze, and jade artifacts, including human and animal figurines, weapons, and ritual vessels.

How to Get to Sanxingdui from Chengdu

Sanxingdui is located by the south bank of Yazi River of Guanghan 50km north to the city of Chengdu. By driving it takes 1 hour to get to. There is direct tourist bus from the city center of Chengdu to Sanxingdui almost everyday that costs only 25 yuan and 1.5 hours (From the panda building by IFS to Sanxingdui Museum). There is also a fast train station near Sanxingdui that one can take fast train from Chengdu (Chengdu East Railway Station to Guanghan North Railway Station) to get to in 30 minutes and then use taxi for 8km to the museum. .

You can always hire a car to Sanxingdui from Chengdu. We (Sichuan Travel Guide) provides transfer service to Sanxingdui from your hotel in Chengdu and then back to your hotel after visit. Please send your inquiry to us.

Travel Season

TSanxingdui Museum is open all year round and does not close by Mondays. During holiday time it is very crowded and hard to secure tickets. These busy season include the following seasons: the 1st week of Jan, the 1st week of May,the last three weeks of June, the whole month of July and August, the 1st week of October. It's still good to visit during the above listed seasons but need to secure tickets before hand. During busy season the tickets can be sold out days before your visit. We recommend visitors to avoid the above seasons to have quieter visiting in Sanxingdui because your visiting experience will be better with less people.

Highlights and Significance of Sanxingdui

The Sanxingdui Museum has gained worldwide recognition for the vast amounts of cultural and historical knowledge it has provided us about the Shu culture and the Bronze Age civilization in ancient China. The excavation site is believed to be the former capital of Ancient Shu Kingdom. The discoveries since 1920s have raised a lot of myths about itself and the possible separated civilization origin from central China.

The famous discoveries include the huge bronze mask, the big bronze tree, bronze figure and some gold masks. It is said Sanxingdui has slept for thousand years before it woke up and amazed the world. Sanxingdui Museum is located about 50km northeast to Chengdu. The items found at Sanxingdui have been exhibited through out the world.

Sanxingdui Museum Bronze Head with Golden Mask

Sanxingdui Museum Giant Bronze Mask

Sanxingdui Museum Bronze Mask

Sanxingdui Museum Bronze Sacrificial Items

Sanxingdui Museum Bronze Tree and Bird

Many of the discoveries correspond with some of the ancient Chinese mythologies including Shan Hai Jing. Excavations from Sanxingdui has also raise hot discussions of Chinese Cuture and Civilization.

The Sanxingdui Museum is not only a treasure trove of historical artifacts but also a valuable cultural and educational institution. The museum's significance lies not only in the knowledge it provides us about the past but also in the role it plays in promoting cultural understanding and appreciation. The Sanxingdui Museum is a must-visit destination for anyone interested in ancient history, art, and culture, and is a testament to the rich cultural heritage of China.

Visiting Guide

Entrance Tickets: CNY72

Open Hour: 09:00-18:00 (08:30-20:00 in Jan, Feb, Jul and Aug)

Recommended Time to Spent: 2-3 Hours

Luggage Store Service: Available

Museum Guide: Human & Digital available on site

We (Sichuan Travel Guide) provide Ticket Booking Service to Sanxingdui, please send your inquiry.

Sanxingdui Museum Map: Total 2 Floors

Navigate Inside the Museum

Sanxingdui Museum is in general easy to navigate inside once you are there. The main exhibition hall is where most(if not all) of the artifacts are displayed. There are total 2 stores of this hall and visitors start from the first floor and then the second floor. The visiting route is well-designed that you won't get lost and visitors basically walk through the exhibits naturally without even needing to navigate.

Do I need a Guide?

Sanxingdui Museum is a well-facilitated mueum and modern museum. It has clear signs within the museum. We think in general you won't need a guide for Sanxingdui Museum if you already got this far for Chinese history. If you think you do need a guide, you may use the professional english-speaking guide provided by the museum or hire someone from outside of the museum from Chengdu. An english-speaking guide provided by the museum costs CNY400. During busy travel season often the guides provided by the Sanxingdui Museum are unavailable when you can only book on site. A guide you hire from Chengdu will cost CNY800 if not more. But you may always use a digital guide device provided by the museum at the cost of CNY50 per person. A digital guide is helpful when you are traveling during busy season since some places it's hard to push through crowds to get close to the exhibited items to read information that are usually hard to read if you are too far away.

Recommended Chengdu Sanxingdui Tour

Explore Sanxingdui Civilization Plus Panda Visit - 1 Day

Departure: Private Tour / Flexible Date
Route: Chengdu / Sanxingdui / Chengdu

This tour's best highlight is to discover the oldest civilization in Sichuan nearly 5,000 years ago - Sanxingdui. The site excavated some of the greatest and mysterious artifacts which has proved Sanxingdui as a super-prosperous civilization. But why it disappeared suddenly without any signs. Now you have chance to find the answer on your own. In the morning, you wll also pay a visit to the Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding to visit the cute panda families.