Suzhou Silk Museum

Suzhou Silk Museum
苏州丝绸博物馆

Address: No 2001 Renmin Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu province
Opening hours: 9 am-5 pm (last entry 4 pm)
Closed Mondays (except for national holidays)
General admission: Free

The Suzhou Silk Museum, founded in 1991, is the first Chinese museum specializing in silk. It is located near the Beisi Pagoda in the old town of Suzhou, Jiangsu province.

Covering an area of 9,500 square meters, it houses six exhibition halls involving in the History Hall, the Modern Silk Exhibition, the Future Silk Exhibition, the Mulberry Yard, the Silk Weaving Machinery Exhibition, and the Silk Cultural Art Gallery named after Master Qian Xiaoping.

The History Hall contains sections such as the Gallery of Ancient Silk, the Sericulture Room, the Weaving and Dyeing Room, the Gallery of Imperial Weaving in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the Gallery of the Republican Period’s (1911-1949) Silk Garment, and the Gallery of Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The museum vividly showcases China's silk history, from the enchanting relics of silk culture to the cultivation of mulberry trees, the rearing of silkworms, and the creation of finished garments. Visitors can also witness the traditional art of silk weaving and see how modern silk technology is woven into everyday life.

Of particular note, the Suzhou Silk Museum, as a research base for two weaving skills recognized as intangible cultural heritages, the songjin brocade and the zhangduan patterned velvet, has made significant strides in restoring and conserving silk cultural relics.

Since 1995, the museum has had a reproduction center authorized by the National Cultural Heritage Administration, further solidifying its reputation in this field.