National Museum of China sits to the east of Tiananmen Square and south to East Chang'an Street, opposite to Great Hall of the People. Finished at the same time, National Museum of China and Great Hall of the People were both among the "Ten Great Constructions" completed for the 10th birthday of PRC. With a floor area of 69000 square meters, the structure is 313m long from south to north and 149m wide from east to west. The central part and the core of the two wings have 4 floors while the rest has 3 floors. Before the main entrance, 24 square posts formed a porch with Chinese characteristics. The lintel of the porch is decorated with national emblem of PRC with red flags made out of red and yellow stone clustered around. On the basis of former Museum of Chinese History and former Museum of Chinese Revolution, National Museum of China is an inclusive museum of time-honored Chinese culture and history.

History
Museum of Chinese History developed from National History Museum which was constructed from 1912 at the site of Beijing Guozijian originally. Later it moved to the Meridian Gate (Wumen) and the Upright Gate (Duanmen) of Forbidden City. After the founding of People Republic of China, the Chinese government decided to build a new museum to the east of Tiananmen Square in August, 1958. Thereby, a new structure named Museum of Chinese History was born in the next September.

Museum of Chinese Revolution grew out of the Preparatory Office of Central Revolution Museum that came into existence in March, 1950. The Preparatory Office was set in Circular City (Tuancheng) of Beihai Park at the beginning and moved to the Hall of Martial Valor of Forbidden City before long. In October, 1958, a new building took shape to the east of Tiananmen Square. August, 1959 saw the completion of the building. August of the next year was the time when Museum of Chinese Revolution was given and the Preparatory Office was eliminated. Its official opening was on July 1st, 1961.

In September, 1969, Museum of Chinese History and Museum of Chinese Revolution were combined as the Revolution and History Museum of China. Later they went back to their separate building in early years of 1983. On February, 28, 2003, National Museum of China was inaugurated. It is now an integrated complex of the two museums, north Museum of Chinese Revolution and south Museum of Chinese History with the central hall as the boundary.

Main Exhibits
Museum of Chinese History is an institute for housing ancient and modern cultural materials and for studying history and academic problems concerned. The main exhibition of Chinese History Museum is Exhibition of Chinese History, including more than 9,000 historic materials from Yuanmou Man about 1,700,000 years ago to the abdication of the Qing Emperor in 1912. The museum has received hundreds of thousands of tourists from all over the world. What's more, Museum of Chinese History holds all kinds of short-term exhibits on history, culture and art. Japan, Italy, Greece and Egypt showed their national treasures in this museum.

Museum of Chinese Revolution houses modern and contemporary revolutionary relics since the First Opium War (or the First Anglo-Chinese War) in 1840, mirroring more than 100 years development of China from 1840 to the founding of PRC in 1949. It is the museum with the vastest collection of modern and contemporary historic relics of China at present time. The main exhibitions of the Museum of Chinese Revolution are Modern China and Contemporary China. Additionally, it holds thematic exhibitions for cooperation with memorial events and the need of the society.

Countdown Billboard
Since 1990, Chinese government started to place a countdown billboard in front of the National Museum of China to greet important events and to remind the public. On December 19, 1994, the tenth year after the signing of Sino-British Joint Declaration, the countdown billboard for the resumption of China's sovereignty of Hong Kong was set and stopped on zero hour of July 1, 1997. Later on May 5, 1998, the countdown billboard for the resumption of China's sovereignty of Macau was set and stopped on zero hour of December 20, 1999. On 6 p.m. of September 21, 2004, Beijing Olympic Committee started the countdown billboard for Beijing 2008 Olympics, stopping on August 8, 2008. The recent countdown billboard is for 2010 Shanghai Expo.

Exhibitions
National Museum of China is now closed for rebuilding and estimated to reopen in the second half year of 2010. In celebration of the 60th birthday of PRC, the main display The Road to Rejuvenation was inaugurated in National Museum of China in the morning of September 25 and after12 p.m., tourists were received. To visit The Road to Rejuvenation, tourists should get free tickets at the ticket office on the east side of the north gate. Besides, National Museum of China will hold exhibitions on German cultural relics from the three largest museums of Germany in 2010.

Exhibition on The Road to Rejuvenation

 Other Attractions around Tiananmen Square: 
 Tiananmen Tower       Memorial Hall of Chairman Mao        Monument to the People's Heroes