[Explanation] No. 101, Shengli Street, Xinghualing District, Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province, there are several workshops scattered, with mottled brick walls and towering chimneys. This is the Taiyuan Armory with a history of more than 100 years, and it is one of the birthplaces of modern Chinese artillery. It is also China's most well-preserved military industrial heritage with the longest history.
Today, the revitalized Taiyuan Arms Factory is telling the public about that industrial history as the 1898 Taiyuan Arms Factory Cultural Industrial Park. Currently, the exhibition hall on the old site of the Taiyuan Arms Factory, the Taiyuan Arms and Industry Transport Memorial Hall, and the Jinzao Workshop are open to the public. Modern artillery exhibition hall.
[Concurrent] Wang Zubin, Chairman of 1898 China Soldiers (Taiyuan) Ordnance Culture Development Co., Ltd.
From 1898 to the present, this park has been a manufacturing enterprise with military attributes. It can be said that it has carried our country, or our nation, and many such options and efforts in the process of national rejuvenation. And struggle, we can also see the evolution history of our country's national civilization and industrial culture.
[Explanation] A unique and eye-catching building combining Chinese and Western in the park is the exhibition hall of the former site of the Taiyuan Arms Factory.
Old objects from the late Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China are displayed in the museum. The factory management system from 1898 to 1949 is also displayed on the wall, including meeting minutes at that time and staff salary standards.
[Contemporary] 1898 Wang Kexin, teacher of the Research Department of China Soldiers (Taiyuan) Ordnance Culture Development Co., Ltd.
Before this building (the People’s Republic of China was established) was the office of the director of our Taiyuan Arms Factory. We can see that it is actually a combination of Chinese and Western architecture. The beam above you can see is traditionally used in Chinese style, and the arches are in Western style buildings. It is also used more.
This museum mainly preserves some of our working equipment during the Republic of China, including mimeographs, typewriters, telephones, tables, chairs and benches.
[Explanation] The rear convenience of the exhibition hall is the Jinzao Workshop. Open the heavy iron door of the factory building, which is filled with a strong smell of oil. A large number of drawings, knives, measuring instruments, machinery and equipment are in sight.
It restores the production scenes of Shanxi's modern industry and Jin-made artillery, and is the epitome of Shanxi's national industry and military industry.
[Contemporary] 1898 Wang Kexin, teacher of the Research Department of China Soldiers (Taiyuan) Ordnance Culture Development Co., Ltd.
There are 57 large-scale equipment in our museum. More than half of them are national movable cultural relics. There are a total of more than 20,000 small parts, all of which have been preserved from the Ming and Qing Dynasties to the Republic of China to the founding of the People’s Republic of China. These large-scale equipment are from France, the United States, Sweden, Hungary, and Germany. They were all imported from us at that time and they are very precious.
The barrel drawing machine is the treasure of our town hall. It can be said to be very distinctive, about 15 meters in length, and a large piece of equipment.
It is mainly used to produce rifling in artillery. It was produced by the French company Soma in 1923, and we did not use it until 2000.
[Explanation] More than 20 artillery and salutes are displayed in the Modern Artillery Exhibition Hall not far from the Jinzao Workshop.
As soon as you enter the hall, you can see an artillery approved in August 1954. This is the first generation of medium-caliber artillery after the founding of the People's Republic of China. The development and production of this artillery ended the history of no standard artillery in China.
[Contemporary] 1898 Wang Kexin, teacher of the Research Department of China Soldiers (Taiyuan) Ordnance Culture Development Co., Ltd.
Our first-generation salute was used at the founding ceremony on October 1, 1949, including the battle to resist US aggression and aid to Korea. The fifth-generation salute was used during the return of Hong Kong and was used in 1997. There is also the sixth-generation salute. It was used during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
[Explanation] Taiyuan Arsenal is a natural "military museum".
In 2018, it was listed as a national industrial heritage.
In recent years, in order to awaken the vitality of industrial heritage, the local area has built an ordnance characteristic cultural industry park that integrates militia cultural display, youth national defense education, and cultural industry gathering to revitalize the local tourism industry.
[Concurrent] Wang Zubin, Chairman of 1898 China Soldiers (Taiyuan) Ordnance Culture Development Co., Ltd.
We are currently conducting research and development. We will first remove these equipment from weaponization and turn them into the same equipment that can be used as teaching aids, and then use our existing VR, various virtual technologies, and digital technologies. Give the equipment a digital upgrade.
We use culture as a guide and industry as a support to form a new cultural park for 100 years and let it pass on.
Zhang Licheng reports from Taiyuan, Shanxi
Editor in charge: 【Luo Pan】