The remains of a gold mask are among a large closet of 3,000-year-old artifacts found at an archeological site in Sichuan Province, China.
The find was found in Sanxingdui, an area of 4.6 square kilometers outside the provincial capital Chengdu. Some experts believe that the objects may shine further on the ancient Shu state, a kingdom that ruled in western Sichuan basin until it was conquered in 316 BC.
A bronze item recently found from a sacrificial pit at the archeological site of Sanxingdui. Credit: Li He / Xinhua / Sipa USA
More than 50,000 ancient artifacts have been found in Sanxingdui since the 1920s, when a local farmer accidentally encountered a number of remains on the site. A major breakthrough came in 1986 with the discovery of two ceremonial pits containing more than 1,000 items, including extensive and well-preserved bronze masks.
A gold ornament was among more than 500 other items recently found from the site. Credit: Handout / Xinhua / Sipa USA
After a long hiatus in excavations, a third well was found in late 2019 that led to the discovery of a further five last year. Experts believe the pits were used for sacrificial purposes, explaining why many of the items in them were ritually burned while being dumped and buried.
Independent civilization
Sanxingdui presumably sat in the heart of the Shu state, of which historians know relatively little because of barely written records. Discoveries discovered on site date from the 12th and 11th centuries BC, and many of the items are now on display in a museum on the site.
The site has revolutionized experts’ understanding of how civilization developed in ancient China. In particular, evidence of a unique Shu culture suggests that the kingdom developed independently of neighboring societies in the Yellow River Valley, which was traditionally considered the cradle of Chinese civilization.
An archaeologist worked at a pits earlier this month. Credit: Shen Bohan / Sinhua / SipaUSA
The Deputy Director of the National Cultural Heritage Administration, Song Xinchao, told the state-run press agency Xinhua that the latest findings “enrich and deepen our understanding of the Sanxingdui culture.”
The discovery of silk fibers and the remnants of textiles can also expand our understanding of the Shu. Head of the excavation team and head of the Sichuan Provincial Research Institute for Cultural Relics and Archeology, Tang Fei, told a news conference that the discovery indicated that the kingdom was ‘one of the most important origins of its in ancient China’, according to Xinhua . .
A bronze head and mask discovered in Sanxingdui in 1986, when the first sacrificial wells were found on the site. Credit: Shen Bohan / Xinhua / Sipa USA
Top Caption: A gold mask excavated from a sacrificial pit at the Sanxingdui ruins in China’s Sichuan province.