Wuwei Western Xia Museum (Gansu Province)
The Xia State Museum is located in the southeast corner of the urban area, adjacent to the Wuhui Temple of Literature, with an area of 3570 square meters and a construction area of 2900 square meters. It is a two-story building in a traditional style. It mainly displays precious artifacts unearthed from Liangzhou. The most precious exhibit is the Xia State Stele. The Xia State Stele, also known as 'Stele Inscription of Liangzhou's Rebuilt Guanyin Temple,' is the only existing one in China, with the most complete West Xia script and Han script, and the largest number of parallel texts. It was announced as one of the first batch of national key cultural relics protection units by the State Council in 1961.
The Xia State Stele was carved during the Xia State Emperor Chongzong's Fifth Year of Tianyou (1094). In 1804, the famous Chinese scholar, gemologist, and resident Zhang Shuhu discovered the stele in the Da Yun Temple in Wuhui. In 1898, French scholar Devillier confirmed the front of the stele as West Xia script. In modern times, famous Chinese linguist and gemologist Luo Fukong deciphered the inscription.
The Xia State Stele is 2.6 meters high, 1 meter wide, and 0.3 meters thick, with inscriptions on both sides.
The front side is inscribed with West Xia script, which reads 'Inscription of the Guanyin Temple' on the Guanyin Temple, with the text written in West Xia calligraphy, 28 lines, with 65 characters per line. The back side is inscribed in Han Chinese (seal script) '' (Stele Inscription of Liangzhou's Rebuilt Guanyin Temple), with the text written in Han Chinese calligraphy, 26 lines, with 70 characters per line. The inscription broadly describes the construction, spiritual manifestations, and reconstruction of the Guanyin Temple Tower, preserving many historical records and is of great value for studying West Xia language, writing, and economy and society. It is called a 'living dictionary' for studying West Xia by Chinese and foreign scholars. Besides the text, there are also various patterns, such as flowers and figures, with superb carving techniques and beautiful aesthetics, possessing a high level of craftsmanship.
