The Chinese Wushu Museum offers a fascinating glimpse at an extraordinary period of China's military history. It is located on the Changhai Road campus of the Shanghai University of Sports, and has recently begun a third phase of construction.

Upon completion later this year, the museum will cover 1,500 square meters divided into three halls that will feature the history and development of Chinese martial arts, weapons and a multi-media display room.

Professors from the Shanghai University of Sports and experts from Shanghai visited almost every province of China in search of these fascinating military artifacts.

"We visited many places in China to recover these precious items over the past three years," said Wang Zhen, the museum's vice director. "It's not only a procedure of searching, but also of learning and researching. And this continues."

So far, they have collected 2,500 items from 18 provinces in China, and 500 items are on display showing the drama and beauty of China's mysterious wushu culture.

A 1.5-meter-high, 1.4-meter-wide stone carving dating back to the Han Dynasty (206-220BC) is one of the most precious pieces among the items displayed. According to museum Director Wang Zhen, the stone was discovered in an emperor's tomb.

In the Han Dynasty, people used stone carvings to record historical and cultural events of that period. They carved pictures and elements of daily military life on the stone, painted it black, and then printed it on rice paper.

The stone carving gives visitors a better understanding of the military tactics, culture, art and life from the Han Dynasty through to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Another collection of bronze weapons from the Qing Dynasty includes bronze spear heads, knives and swords.

Chinese bronze pieces first appeared about 6,000 years ago toward the end of the Stone Period. For 4,000 years in China, bronze weapons were the most predominant weapons.