Famen Temple Museum

Famen Temple Museum
法门寺博物馆

Address: Famen Town, Fufeng County, Baoji
Opening hours: 8 am – 6 pm in summer, 9:30 am – 4:30 pm in winter
General admission: 100 yuan ($13.70) per person, discounts for select groups
Tel: +86-09175254465; +86-09175254152

Famen Temple Museum in Baoji, Shaanxi province, is a renowned cultural and historical site with a legacy spanning over 1,700 years. Due to its enshrinement of Buddha's relics, the temple became one of China's four major Buddhist sanctuaries.

During the Tang Dynasty (618-907), eight emperors welcomed the Buddha's relics into the imperial palaces of Chang'an or Luoyang for worship on six occasions. Famen Temple received precious imperial offerings as a royal temple, which were later sealed within its underground chamber along with Buddha's relics.

In 1987, archaeologists uncovered the Tang Dynasty underground palace, which had remained undisturbed for 1,113 years. The excavation yielded four Buddha’s relics and 2,500 Tang Dynasty treasures, stunning the world with this extraordinary discovery.

Shortly after, the Shaanxi government decided to build the Famen Temple Museum on-site. It opened to the public on Nov 9, 1988, and has since become a national first-class museum dedicated to preserving, exhibiting, and studying Tang culture while also serving as a center for patriotic education and cultural exchange.

The museum features Tang-style architecture, has a building area of 13,768 square meters, an exhibition space of over 4,000 sq m, and a total floor area of 48,779 sq m. It houses 9,439 artifacts, including 138 first-grade cultural relics, 25 second-grade relics, and 62 third-grade relics, offering visitors an unparalleled glimpse into the grandeur of the Tang Dynasty.

The museum welcomes over 12 million visitors annually and remains a must-visit destination for history and culture enthusiasts worldwide.