Wanshou Si
The Longevity Temple, now home to theBeijing Art Museum (Beijing Yishu Bowuguan), was funded by a eunuch and was originally constructed in 1577. It later became a stopping point for the Qianlong emperor and his successors (particularly the Empress Dowager Cixi) on their way to the Summer Palace by boat, a route now followed by tour boats departing from just north of the zoo. The long sequence of heavily restored but low-key halls now houses an odd set of exhibitions, featuring everything from early ceramics, iron, and copperware, to late and very intricate lacquerware and carved ivory. Puzzlingly, the museums most interesting exhibit, highly decorated and ancient seals(zhuanzhang)wrought from a variety of precious and semiprecious materials are now kept in storage. At the rear of the complex is a rock garden from whose top Cixi is supposed to have admired the surrounding countryside, now long built over. Also visible are the original east and west wings of the complex, now occupied by squatters and staff, although there are plans to renovate the west wing.
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| Hours | 9am-5pm | |
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| Address | Xi San Huan Bei Lu 18 | |
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| Location | Haidian Qu (on north side of Chang He, east side of the West Third Ring Rd.) | |
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| Transportation | Bus: 811 from Gongzhu Fen metro stop (110) to Wanshou Si | |
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| Phone | 010/6841-3380 | |
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| Prices | Admission ¥60 ($7), including guide | |