A Ming Dynasty wine vessel decorated with a beast’s head. Photo taken April 7, 2015. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com/William Wang]

Just by merit of being old, things gain value. But frankly, not everyone bubbles with enthusiasm to examine fragments of pottery and arrowheads. Likewise, a museum dedicated to stuff made out of bronze hardly sounds exhilarating. But in the city of Baoji (Shaanxi Province), the bronze works on display don’t fail to impress.

Of course the pieces on display teach a great deal about the ways that people once lived, but primarily they dazzle as pieces of sheer art, art that just happened to be created as far back as 200 BC. The bold yet elegant designs juxtapose simplicity with jarring angles, giving the pieces a timeless almost modern aesthetic.

Representations of fish, elephants and beasts are fascinating geometric takes on said animals. Zhou Dynasty wine urns scream decadence so loudly that it’s doubtful that the wine held within could keep up. Dragons curl up like

The collection of Zhou and Ming Dynasty bronze wares are well displayed in a flowing series of rooms. Everything would be world class except that much of the signage is exclusively in Chinese.

Though the bronze works are the key draw at the museum, throughout the year other exhibits rotate through the museum’s lower levels.