Tang'an Dong Ethnic Eco-museum

Lying on a mountainside and surrounded by paddy fields and lush greens, Tang'an village with a history of over 700 years is renowned as the "most primitive Dong village" in China. The village is close to Zhaoxing village and now home to 170 households and more than 800 people.

China's first ecological museum--Tang'an Dong Ethnic Eco-museum is just located here. Tang 'an eco-museum was founded in 1995 by China and Norway and is not an ordinary one. It has no particular building but extends focus to the Tang 'an village and the surrounding environment, where the inhabitants share common language, common customs in dressing and building, common culture and mentality etc. The communities are still living in a natural economy where the men plough and the women weave. They also maintain unique customs in wedding, burial, sacrificing ceremonies, music and dances.

It is truly a people-centered living museum, person and event being part of the collection. The villagers' articles for daily use, production tools and clothing and ornament are themselves exhibits. There is an information center at the top of the village, where the past of the villagers is displayed through a comprehensive collection of Dong cultural data in the region.

For visitors to get a deep understanding of the Dong people, the eco-museum is the right spot. The village gate, local wooden houses, drum tower, roofed bridge, theatre stage, ancient graveyard, water-powered roller for grinding grain, barns and the pit to worship the female ancestors of Dong people. You will get excited at seeing how their daily life is going and discovering their distinctive lifestyle. Moreover, the spectacular terraced paddy fields around Tang'an village are worthy of your time as well.

Since Tang'an village is believed to be the epitome of all Dong villages around the south dialect region, this ecological museum is of great significance to protect a culture at its originating place.