Established in 1929, Zhejiang Provincial Museum (formerly known as the West Lake Museum of Zhejiang Province) is a comprehensive museum devoted to humanity studies integrating collection, exhibition and research with its over 100,000 collected cultural relics. Among them, there are many world-famous ones, including pottery wares, lacquer wares, wooden pieces, bone tools and ivory objects of pre-historic Hemudu Culture, jade and silk fabrics of pre-historic Liangzhu Culture, bronze wares of the ancient Yue State, celadon wares of the Yue Kiln, Longquan Kiln and the Southern Song Imperial Kiln, copper mirrors of ancient Guiji and Huzhou, works of calligraphers and painters of Zhejiang Province in the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

    At present, the Museum features some principal exhibitions, e.g. "Seven Thousand Years of Zhejiang ,Exhibition on Zhejiang's Historic and Cultural Relics", "The Best of Celadon" and "Exhibition on Folk Customs of Ancient Yue Families". With rich and colorful cultural relics throughout history and unique display methods, these exhibitons reflect the long and enduring history of Zhejiang Province in various layers and from diversified angles. Meanwhile, Zhejiang Provincial Museum irregularly holds about 40 exhibitions from home and abroad every year.

    Besides, Zhejiang Provincial Museum includes a rich and colorful series of museums and halls of notables with the Memorial Hall of Huang Binhong in Xixia Ridge, Former Residence of Sha Menghai in Longyou Road, Chang Shuhong Gallery and Lv Xiaguang Art Gallery in Gushan Branch. At the end of 1999, Zhejiang West Lake Gallery adjacent to Zhejiang Provincial Museum was open to the public, serving as an excellent platform to display abundant resources of fine arts in Zhejiang Province. In addition, Wulin Branch of ZPM and Zhejiang Memorial Hall of Revolutionary History located in Hangzhou West Lake Cultural Square integrate the display, publicity, education and leisure services, opening a new horizon for the all-round development of Zhejiang Provincial Museum.

    Since January 1, 2004, ZPM exerted a great impact in the society by being the first among the state-level museums to open free to the public, which not only embodied the spirit of "Three Closeness" of the cultural relics protection, but reflected the policy of "administering the state for the people" of the government. Since its free opening to the public, it has attracted visitors more than a million person-times with its annual reception having broken a record in history.