On September 8th, the Shaanxi History Museum and Shenzhen Yuanxiang Information Technology Co., Ltd. jointly launched the VR immersive digital experience project Beyond the Mural: Echoes of the Tang Dynasty at the Shaanxi History Museum Qin Han Civilization Museum, marking its official debut to the public.

The Tang tomb murals are the Shaanxi History Museum's flagship collection: 675 murals from nearly 30 tombs, totaling about 1,200 square meters, celebrated at home and abroad for their scale, quality, and completeness. Fragile materials and conservation needs, however, make the originals unsuitable for touring.

The Shaanxi History Museum partnered with Yuanxiang Technology to launch Beyond the Mural: Echoes of the Tang Dynasty, a pioneering VR experience that turns Tang tomb murals into enterable, interactive spaces—setting a new model for tech-driven cultural revitalization and outreach.

Scene image of Beyond the Mural: Echoes of the Tang Dynasty

Using leading digital technologies and 12K ultra‑HD sampling, the project captures mineral pigment color and texture—reviving millennium‑bright cinnabar, azurite, and malachite to reproduce the Tang Dynasty's rich yet refined color aesthetic.

Scene image of Beyond the Mural: Echoes of the Tang Dynasty

By utilizing AI high-precision 3D reconstruction, it transforms flat murals into three-dimensional spaces, allowing the murals that have slept for a millennium to shed the label of "cultural relic specimens" and become "living history" that conveys emotions and scenes.

Scene image of Beyond the Mural: Echoes of the Tang Dynasty

The VR will enable visitors to overlook Chang'an's 11-by-14 grid; as they move, the palace, imperial city, wards and East/West markets unfold, immersing them in the Tang capital's former grandeur.

The Shaanxi History Museum enlisted Tang historians, mural specialists, and archaeologists to vet architecture, costume and ritual details, ensuring an accurate, immersive audio‑visual experience.

Image of foreign envoys

Scene image of Beyond the Mural: Echoes of the Tang Dynasty

By letting visitors "touch" objects depicted in the murals and explore Chang'an's grand layout from a first‑person perspective, the experience brings history vividly to life and makes learning feel natural.

The VR experience area is located on the first floor of Area 1 of the Shaanxi History Museum Qin Han Civilization Museum. It is open from September 9, 2025, to December 31, 2026, consistent with the museum's opening hours: 8:30 AM to 7:00 PM (ticket checking ends at 6:00 PM).