中國的博物館事業隨著二十世紀以來中國的現代化過程，發展至今已有百年歷程，目前更是進入了快速發展時期。自1949年受種種歷史背景因素影響以來，博物館的功能與角色業經多次改變，並因時代背景之不同而發展出不同的行政體制與風貌。本文以中國的博物館發展沿革為起點，隨之介紹其行政體制和近幾年陸續頒訂的相關法規，並從博物館營運的國家重大政策之推動，包括免費開放與資源融入國民教育體系、從國際交流累積專業資源、奠定專業化與標準化之基礎、大力支持藏品維護修復計畫、新型態博物館的出現以及對博物館經營管理之重視等幾方面，敘述其發展榮景，最後則以當前發展盛況背後有待思考與解決的問題做為總結，期能讓臺灣的博物館界及行政主管機關對中國的博物館發展有較完整的認識。

With the modernization of China in the 20th century, Chinese museums have developed over the past 100 years and are entering an era of prosperity. Since 1949, under the influences of various historical factors and events, museums have changed the way they function to adapt to changes in policies and have formed different administration systems. This paper begins with a brief overview of the history of Chinese museums after 1949, and introduces current administration systems and important regulations. It then describes the present condition of the Chinese museum industry including factors involved in the promotion of museums, such as free-visit policy, bringing museum resources into the educational system, accumulation of professional resources from international exchanges, setting up of criteria for specialization and standardization, increasing support for collection conservation and restoration from the government, emergence of eco-museums and industrial museums, and progressive interest in museum management. Finally, several current issues are discussed to provide a comprehensive view of the development of museums in China.