The Museum of the King of Nanyue in the Western Han Dynasty stands at the east foot of Xianggang Mountain and on the west side of Yuexiu Park in Guangzhou City. There are huge reliefs carved on the 400-square-meter red sandstone wall on both sides of its main entrance, which are integrated with the building and very eye-catching. This is the first ancient tomb site museum in southern China.

The overall layout of the museum is centered on the ancient tombs, combined with the steep slopes and hilly terrain, and is built on the mountain. Climbing up the stairs, it consists of three different sequences: the comprehensive exhibition building, the ancient tomb protection zone and the theme exhibition building. The space is connected into a whole that communicates from top to bottom and rises step by step, highlighting the collective atmosphere of the ancient tomb museum.

In the summer of 1983, archaeologists excavated a large stone chamber tomb at the Xianggang Mountain construction site. Based on the gold seal of a dragon button "Emperor Wen's Seal" buried with the owner of the tomb, it was confirmed that this was the second largest tomb in South Vietnam. The royal tomb of Zhao Quan, the acting king. The Nanyue Kingdom was a local government established by Zhao Tuo, the general of the Qin Dynasty, to guard Lingnan after the death of Qin. It has been 2,200 years ago. This large tomb was carved into the mountain and buried secretly 20 meters below the top of Xianggang Mountain. It is the Han Dynasty stone chamber tomb with the largest scale and richest burial relics discovered so far in Lingnan. It is rare that it is well preserved and has not been damaged by robbers. It has important scientific research value. After the excavation, the Guangzhou Municipal People's Government decided to preserve the ancient tomb ruins in situ and establish a museum. More than a thousand pieces (sets) of funerary objects unearthed from the tomb are the most important collection of the museum.

In the tomb of the King of Nanyue, jade is one of the most important cultural connotations. Among the more than 200 pieces unearthed, there are ceremonial jade, burial jade, decorative jade and practical jade, all of which are dazzling. Their large number, variety and good preservation are unprecedented among the Han tombs that have been excavated across the country.

After the death of the King of Nanyue, he was wrapped in beautiful jade and pursued the immortality of the body and the immortality of the soul. This is not only a reflection of the funeral concept of "death is like life", but also the pursuit of the spiritual world. The jade articles unearthed from the tomb of the Nanyue King reflect the splendid jade culture of the Nanyue Kingdom during the Qin and Han Dynasties. Some of the unearthed jade articles are novel in conception, unique in their origin, delicate in processing, ingenious in workmanship, and full of the atmosphere of innovation and change. They are truly exquisite.

Bronze ware in ancient China reached its peak during the Shang and Zhou dynasties. The bronze wares of the Han Dynasty were more suitable for practical life. The cultural connotation reflected by the bronze relics preserved in the tomb of the King of Nanyue is a fusion of Han culture in the Central Plains, Chu culture in the South and local Yue culture. These artifacts are important for exploring the development of the Lingnan region at that time, the integration of ethnic groups and cultures, etc. research value.

Twenty-three various seals were unearthed from the tomb of the Nanyue King. There are three gold seals among them, one is the gold seal of "Emperor Wen's Seal" with dragon button, the other is the gold seal of "Taizi" with turtle button, and the other is the gold seal of "Right Lady's Seal" with turtle button. These three gold seals are the first to be seen in archaeological excavations. The eight apricot-shaped gold ornaments on the face of the tomb owner and the gold-plated bronze medals with dragon and turtle patterns placed on both sides of the jade garment are both unique ornaments of the Xiongnu people in the northwest grasslands. As for the welded gold flower bubble ornaments, the garlic-patterned silver box and the original African ivory, they should be the earliest known imported items from the Maritime Silk Road. There are also stone inkstones and more than 4,000 ink balls, which can be regarded as the second treasure of the study from an earlier period.

The museum also has a special exhibition room, which displays dozens of various ceramic pillows from the Tang Dynasty to the Yuan and Ming Dynasties. This batch of precious pillows was donated free of charge by Mr. and Mrs. Yang Yongde, Hong Kong industrialists and cultural relic collectors. The museum has a large number of porcelain pillows, a complete range of categories, and a large number of kilns, which are unique among the many collection units in the world.

In addition to the above-mentioned permanent exhibitions, the museum also actively organizes various types of temporary exhibitions. It has successively held "Shiqing Ceramics Exhibition", "Yangcheng Cultural Relics Essence Exhibition", "Chinese Hundred Buddhas Exhibition", "Hakka Folk Customs Exhibition", "Guangzhou Protection of Underground Cultural Relics Achievements Exhibition", "Ancient Chinese Science and Technology Exhibition", "Qing Dynasty Exhibition" "Packing Art Exhibition of Ancient Palace Cultural Relics" and other exhibitions. In recent years, in order to support the development of the western region, a series of cultural relics exhibitions "Going to the West" have been held, such as the "Guangxi Ouluo Cultural Relics Exhibition", "A Prodigy of the Generation, Genghis Khan Exhibition" and "Xixia Cultural Relics Exhibition". Recently, we have jointly organized with a number of relevant units the " "Emperor of Qin, Wu of Han, King of Nanyue - Exhibition of the Essence of Qin and Han Cultural Relics" and "Food with Beautiful Utensils - Exhibition of Chinese Food in Past Dynasties" have aroused considerable repercussions.

In addition, the museum also actively contacts foreign cultural relics exhibitions. In 2001, the "Into the Maya - Mexican Ancient Cultural Relics Exhibition" was held, and in just three months, the number of visitors reached 140,000.

In recent years, the museum has focused on using scientific and technological means to strengthen the protection of cultural relics and improve service levels. From March to October 2002, the municipal government allocated more than 10 million yuan to comprehensively renovate some facilities of the South China Museum of Art, bringing all aspects of its facilities to the domestic advanced level. The South Museum has also re-produced excavation videos in 8 languages ??including English, French and Japanese, audio guides in 8 languages, introductions in 6 texts and multimedia guides. At the same time, we are actively committed to the development of souvenirs, making museum souvenirs a new carrier of historical and cultural communication, and opening up a new way for museum communication