As one of the major highlights of Beijing, grand museums such as the Palace Museum (the Forbidden City), the National Museum of China, The Chinese History Museum, and the Chinese Military Museum attract numerous domestic and foreign visitors.

But few people know that there are a number of private museums in Beijing. They may be tiny or display limited collections, but they are unique and offer a wide variety. More importantly, visitors can enjoy interesting or exquisite ancient relics or cultural collections at a lower price or even for free in these private museums.

Colorful collections

The Jintai Art Museum, founded by Yuan Xikun, a famous Chinese painter and sculptor, houses portraits done in traditional Chinese wash painting and statues of more than 100 statesmen and other celebrities that Yuan created. Along with these are other Chinese wash paintings of animals such as tigers and lions. Besides his own works, Yuan has also collected some cultural relics that have been found overseas. The museum has a special hall for foreign visitors. But such a museum is known to few Beijing residents.

At the end of East Liulichang Street in Beijing, a flourishing cultural center during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911) and now famous for its antique shops, a two-story building from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), hidden among the other shops, houses the Songtangzhai Folk Carving Museum, owned by Li Songtang, considered the top collector of gate towers.

The 254-square-meter museum exhibits ancient folk brick, stone and wooden carvings. A unique feature of the museum is that some collections are designed to be parts of the building itself, such as some carvings on the windows and walls.