In January 1972, when the Spring Festival was approaching, a septuagenarian in the Inner Mongolia Yikezhao League Amenqizhige Commune had planned to pick up some waste paper, bones, etc. for some change, but what he did not expect was that he actually dug up "gold".
In fact, not only he, but also the bank staff were very happy; but what they did not know was that these "gold" were actually the legendary and unusually fierce "Xiongnu King" burial in history, and they were also today's national treasure-level cultural relics.
Of course, this "old man" was originally just a simple scavenging, using tools to rummaging through a garbage heap full of cattle and sheep bones; who knows, some copper arrows were actually planed out, and there was an "iron rod" wrapped in gold.
These were already an unexpected gain for the scavenger Wang Laohan, but he was not satisfied and continued to plan; to the old man's surprise, he actually unearthed more gold and silver utensils.
If today, the old man may realize that what was found is cultural relics, but it was 1972; at that time, people had almost no concept of "cultural relics", and the Inner Mongolia region at that time was more information-blocked, and the old people thought that "the windfall from heaven" was it.
However, the old man is also very kind, digging up gold by himself, and not forgetting to find others to "share"; finally called his son, neighbors and relatives to "dig gold" in the garbage heap. Of course, in January, Mongolia was freezing cold, "digging gold" is so easy, these 5 people tired for half a day, seeing that they can't dig, so they planned how to exchange the "gold" dug for money.
It should also be noted that in 1972, the only person who could exchange gold was the bank, so 5 people happily smashed these things and went to the bank to exchange them together; the bank staff was also surprised to see these "gold", and when asked, the 5 people replied that they were "picked up in the garbage heap".
The staff of the bank naturally listened to these words as jokes, and normally thought about how there could be gold in the garbage heap; it should be explained that it was 1972 at that time, and even the staff of the bank had no concept of "cultural relics", let alone reported the matter in time.
Not only that, but the exchange of gold is also a "rush performance" for the bank, and this staff member is naturally very happy; in the end, the 5 people took a total of 2500 grams of gold, which was a "huge amount" at the time.
It's over, but it's not over. At the New Year, the bank staff remembered this matter again, and told it to a friend as a joke, and finally did not forget to say, "Where is the good thing of picking up gold in the garbage heap, do you say?" ”
The speaker had no intention, the listener was intentional, and this person actually worked in the newly established Cultural Bureau in Inner Mongolia. When he heard this, he immediately realized that "Wang Laohan" may have dug up cultural relics, so he reported to his superiors; although the Inner Mongolia Cultural Bureau had just been established at that time and did not yet have a complete "archaeological" force, he still sent an investigation team to first conduct a preliminary appraisal of the "gold" received by the bank.
Unfortunately, the gold artifacts collected by the bank have been smashed, although the fragments of smashed agate, jade, turquoise and other inlays have been found, but the artifacts have been difficult to recover; but it is basically certain that these smashed gold artifacts should be based on some ancient headdresses, roofs and other cultural relics.
At this time, the problem was serious, and the Inner Mongolia Cultural Bureau immediately reported to the superiors, and quickly requested support from the public security department, and 5 people including "Wang Laohan" were immediately arrested; later, the superiors sent experts and archaeological teams, under the leadership of "Wang Laohan", once again found the garbage heap dug into the gold that year.
After investigation, it turned out to be a group of Xiongnu nobles more than 2,000 years ago, and various precious cultural relics were excavated, with more than 200 first-class cultural relics alone; the most precious of which was a "golden crown of eagle top", with a height of 7.3 cm, a belt length of 30 cm, a circumference of 60 cm, and a weight of 1394 grams.
The "Golden Crown of the Hun King" is more or less a combination of an eagle-shaped crown, a hemispherical crown and a crown band, with exquisite reliefs and various animal ornaments; in particular, animal reliefs, a bite-fighting pattern of four wolves and four coiled horned sheep, and a crown topped with an eagle spreading its wings.
Speaking of "Xiongnu", it is a legend in history, whether Qin Shi Huang built the Great Wall, or several generations of "peace and relatives" of the Han Dynasty, it is indispensable to the figure of this powerful nation; according to historical records, from 209 BC to 128 BC, the Xiongnu entered its heyday and had a great impact on China.
Not only is the "History" dedicated to the Xiongnu, but there is also a story of "King Wuling of Zhao riding and shooting"; it is said that the "King of Zhao Wuling" in the Warring States period carried out army reform, and the "Hu Guan", which was more conducive to combat, was introduced to the Central Plains.
However, the "eagle" on the Hu crown was changed to a pheasant long plume by king Wuling of Zhao, which became the prototype of the "helmet" used by the Central Plains army in later generations; of course, now this "golden crown of the Xiongnu king" is made of pure gold, and its noble status is more prominent.
From the perspective of cultural relics, this also represents the highest level of craftsmanship of the nomadic Huns in the north during the Warring States period; today, naturally, it is natural that the most precious and representative art treasures and national treasure-level cultural relics left by the Xiongnu are now displayed in the Inner Mongolia Museum.
This "Golden Crown of the Hun King" is also known as the "Golden Crown of the Eagle", it is also the only "Hun Crown" among all the archaeological discoveries so far, and its preciousness can be seen; back to the "Wang Laohan", he led 5 people to excavate and smash the cultural relics, how to deal with this matter?
Theoretically, "Wang Laohan" led 5 people to damage cultural relics without authorization, resulting in artifacts that cannot be restored so far, this problem is very serious; but it was 1972, people did not have a deep understanding of cultural relics protection, not to mention that no Wang Laohan was the first to discover, perhaps the archaeological team will have to wait a long time to discover this "Xiongnu aristocratic tomb group" more than 2,000 years ago.
In this way, the merits of "Wang Laohan" and his 5 people are offset, but the damaged cultural relics and the money exchanged from the bank must still be returned.