Shanghai Museum

One museum, two complementary venues

Shanghai Museum grew from collections assembled after 1952. Its landmark People's Square building opened in 1996, and the much larger East Museum later expanded the institution in Pudong. The East Museum now carries the fuller permanent sequence of ancient Chinese art, while the People's Square building increasingly presents world civilisations and major exhibitions. Each venue publishes its own address, hours and admission arrangements.

The People's Square building records an important stage in Shanghai's public architecture; the East Museum provides more space for the permanent collection.

Begin with the bronzes

At the East Museum, the Great Ke Ding is one of the signature works. Cast in the Western Zhou period, it carries a 290-character inscription recording a royal appointment, land and rewards, making the vessel both a work of bronze casting and a historical document. Pan Dayu protected and later donated it to the state. Similar gifts from Shanghai collectors helped build the museum's strength across bronzes, ceramics, painting, calligraphy, jade, seals, coins and furniture.

Moving from bronze ritual vessels to ceramics shows how materials, firing technology and taste changed across dynasties. Painting and calligraphy reward slower looking, while furniture, seals and jade offer more intimate scales. The galleries also tell the story of collectors whose preservation and donations turned private holdings into a public collection.

Continue through People's Square

The People's Square building sits beside People's Park, Shanghai Grand Theatre and the former racecourse that shaped central Shanghai. Its round upper form and square base are commonly read as a modern expression of the ancient idea of round heaven and square earth. The East Museum creates a different cultural route near Century Park and the Shanghai Science and Technology Museum. Selecting the venue by collection or exhibition keeps the visit tied to the correct address.