3,000-year-old Bronze Cymbal Found in Hunan
A large bronze cymbal dating back to the late Shang Dynasty (about 1600 B.C.-1046 B.C.) has been unearthed in central China's Hunan Province, according to local cultural relics authorities.
The ancient percussion instrument, 52 cm in height and 33 kg in weight, was found by workers at a construction site in Miluo City's Changle Town on Oct. 8. Its surface is partially corroded but its shape has remained intact.
"The cymbal is well-preserved, with bold animal carvings on the body as well as decorative cloud and lightning patterns on and around the handle," said Gao Zhixi, a member of China's national committee of cultural relics identification and a researcher at Hunan Museum.
Cultural relics experts believe the bronze cymbal was used in ritual activities to worship natural gods in the late Shang Dynasty.
Miluo City is located along the famous Miluo River, in which Qu Yuan, a well-known poet and minister of the State of Chu during the Warring States Period (475 B.C.-221 B.C.), drowned himself after he was accused of treason for his well-intended advice to the king and banished.
The discovery is of great value to the study of human activity in the Miluo River Basin during the Shang Dynasty and the following Zhou Dynasty (1046 B.C.-256 B.C.), according to Zhao Pan, the head of Miluo's cultural relics department.
The department will invite experts to restore the cymbal, carry out on-site salvage excavations and source tracing, and further investigate historical relics in the surrounding areas, Zhao added.
Source: Xinhua
The ancient percussion instrument, 52 cm in height and 33 kg in weight, was found by workers at a construction site in Miluo City's Changle Town on Oct. 8. Its surface is partially corroded but its shape has remained intact.
"The cymbal is well-preserved, with bold animal carvings on the body as well as decorative cloud and lightning patterns on and around the handle," said Gao Zhixi, a member of China's national committee of cultural relics identification and a researcher at Hunan Museum.
Cultural relics experts believe the bronze cymbal was used in ritual activities to worship natural gods in the late Shang Dynasty.
Miluo City is located along the famous Miluo River, in which Qu Yuan, a well-known poet and minister of the State of Chu during the Warring States Period (475 B.C.-221 B.C.), drowned himself after he was accused of treason for his well-intended advice to the king and banished.
The discovery is of great value to the study of human activity in the Miluo River Basin during the Shang Dynasty and the following Zhou Dynasty (1046 B.C.-256 B.C.), according to Zhao Pan, the head of Miluo's cultural relics department.
The department will invite experts to restore the cymbal, carry out on-site salvage excavations and source tracing, and further investigate historical relics in the surrounding areas, Zhao added.
Source: Xinhua