A legacy to appreciate

About a 10-minute drive away, Taiyuan Armory also offers a stroll down memory lane with a history stretching back more than 100 years. A birthplace of modern Chinese artillery, the site is a well-preserved military industrial heritage. Local authorities have transformed it into an ordnance-themed cultural park covering 36,000 square meters that offers tourism and patriotic education. Several workshops are scattered there, with mottled brickwalls and towering chimneys. Visitors can see objects dating back to the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) at the exhibition hall, which is an eye-catching building combining Chinese and Western elements.

"The beam above is in traditional Chinese style, and the arches are commonly seen in Western buildings," says Wang Kexin, an employee of the 1898 China Soldiers (Taiyuan) Ordnance Culture Development Co, which runs the park.

"This exhibition hall mainly preserves some of our working equipment during 1912-49, including mimeographs, typewriters, telephones, tables, chairs and benches," Wang says.

One can also learn about factory management from 1898 to 1949 with documents prominently displayed on the wall, including meeting minutes and staff salaries. Behind the exhibition hall lies Jinzao Workshop, where a large number of drawings, knives, measuring instruments, machinery and equipment jump into sight. It restores the production scenes of Shanxi's artillery and other industries.

More than 50 large-scale pieces of equipment there were imported from France, the United States, Sweden, Hungary and Germany. Many of them have become moveable historical relics and are very precious, Wang says.

The most valuable exhibit is a gun barrel drawing bench that was produced by the French company Somab in 1923. "It was used until 2000."

At a short distance from the workshop, more than 20 artillery pieces are displayed in the Modern Artillery Exhibition Hall, such as the first generation of the medium-caliber artillery used after the founding of New China. It was developed in August 1954. Taiyuan Armory was named a national industrial heritage in 2018.

"Industrial heritage is not just about inheritance but also about innovation," says Wang Zubin, chairman of the ordnance culture development company. "We will tap into more stories based on industrial heritage protection."

Digital technology, such as virtual reality, will be introduced to better spread ordnance culture.

Those who want to experience how Fenjiu, one of the country's most well-known liquors, is made, can visit the Fenjiu culture scenic area in Xinghuacun town that is about 90 minutes drive away.

Fenjiu became well-known 1,500 years ago, and this scenic area features an ancient-looking cluster of structures. Imposing black-tiled buildings stand close to each other and were fashioned based on elements of the Tang (618-907), Song (960-1279), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing dynasties. The famed Tang poet Du Mu (803-852) made the town an epithet for good wine in his poem The Mourning Day.