Turpan Museum
吐鲁番博物馆
Xinjiang's second-largest museum, with a focus on the documents, mummies and giant rhinoceros fossil excavated at Astana. Admission is free, and it is the essential introduction before visiting Turpan's ruins.
The Turpan Museum is on Munar Road in Gaochang District. It is the second-largest museum in Xinjiang and is free to enter, though visitors must collect a ticket by showing their ID card. The museum displays artifacts from the Turpan Basin in historical order, from prehistoric times through the Qing dynasty. Highlights include Han Chinese and other ancient-script documents, silk textiles and Tang-dynasty pastries excavated from sites such as Astana and Jiaohe, a special exhibition on mummies, and, in the paleontology hall, a giant rhinoceros fossil said to be one of the largest land mammal fossils in the world. It is best to visit before heading to Jiaohe, Gaochang and other ruins, because seeing the collection first makes the sites easier to understand. The museum is usually closed on Mondays, and it gets crowded on public holidays, so check the official announcements. It is very close to the city centre, just a few minutes by taxi.
Opening hours
Tue–Sun 10:00–19:00 (Beijing time; check official notices), closed Mon
Nearby sights
- Emin Minaret
- Karez Wells (Karez Paradise)
- Jiaohe Ruins
- Aydingkol Lake
- Flaming Mountains
- Gaochang Ruins
- Astana Cemetery
- Bezeklik Thousand Buddha Caves