"dirt market" or "weekend market" for Traditional Articles

Pan Jia Yuan - also called the "dirt market" or the "weekend market" this is China's largest and possibly its most entertaining flea market. It operates from Sunday to Saturday, but most people visit there at Saturdays and Sundays, and it is located near Pan Jia Yuan bridge, on the eastern third ring road. It begins early, around 7am in summer and 8am in winter (4:00 am in weekend). The fleamarket includes antiques (plenty of both genuine and fake varieties) and large sections selling modern porcelain, jade, carved stone and wood, paintings, furnitures, and other decorative items, used books, maps, Cultural Revolution relatives (some are copies made in recent years). There are also sections selling Tibetan goods (mostly of low quality, especially the paintings). Ethnic textiles from Yunnan and Guizhou provinces are amongst the more interesting buys at the moment. Well worth a visit, unless you are allergic to crowds. Remember to haggle, try offer 1/3 to 1/10 of the original price, and don't expect too much to find some genuine antiques there (even they got such stuffs, they will prefer sell them to their familiar customers). It also,provides shipping service for large items to main ports arond the world.
Liulichang (琉璃厂, stove of coloured glaze) - there are no stoves any more, but all antique stores, sell Chinese painting, handicrafts, used books and other stuffs. This place was the most popular and fantastic place in old Peking, but was closed in the 1960s. Though it was re-opend in thr mid 1980s, the original fantastic stores are state-owned, no longer attactive for local people. But people could still find interesting things there. In Chinese new year, there's a 15-day folk fair there. Liulichang is not far from subway's Heping Men Station.
Gu Wan Cheng (Curio City) - on the 3rd ring road, just beyond Pan Jia Yuan, this 4 storey white building houses the more upmarket variety of Chinese antiques, with prices to match. The management have been making determined efforts to stamp out fakes and low quality items in recent years, and to some extent they have succeeded, but the rule that applies to all antique shopping in China still remains in force: let the buyer beware.
Hong Qiao - this is not far from the Temple of Heaven, and worth visiting for the state-run silk market, but more especially for the pearl market in the building opposite. The top two floors of this market are filled with jewelry, and this may be the best place in China to buy pearls, coral, turquoise, amber and other semi-precious stones. The presence of a large number of stalls keeps the prices fairly keen, but shop around, keep a smile on your face and bargain hard.
Hotel shops and Department stores - not the most characterful shopping in China, but worth a look and generally less likely (but not immune from) selling complete duds. The old style of Chinese retailing is gradually being transformed by shops with better design sense and souvenir items are getting better each year. Silk items (clothing, table settings and so on) such as those sold by Emperor (Kempinski Hotel and other spots around town) are worth a look, as are porcelain, specialty tea and other traditional items.
Carpet stores: the carpet business is strong in Beijing and you will find all manner of stores selling silk carpets and other varieties. For Tibetan carpets try Torana Gallery at the Kempinski Hotel, one of the few places selling carpets that are actually made in Tibet.