The world's earliest turquoise ornaments excavated from the Jiahu site; the turquoise owl of the Neolithic Hongshan culture; the bronze bronze plaque ornaments inlaid with turquoise excavated from the Erlitou site... The surging news learned that the country's first ancient turquoise culture exhibition "Color like heavenly phases, instruments passed down to the autumn - ancient Chinese turquoise culture exhibition" opened on March 15 in Wuhan Panlong City Ruins Museum, exhibiting a total of 165 pieces (sets) of turquoise cultural relics from all over the country such as jiahu ruins, Erlitou ruins, Jinsha ruins, Yin Ruins, Zeng Houyi tombs, Liangzhuang Wang tombs, etc., focusing on the deep spiritual pursuit of the ancestors and the profound Chinese civilization.
Exhibition site
The exhibition brought together a total of 165 pieces (sets) of turquoise cultural relics from 38 cultural institutions across the country, namely from the Jiahu Ruins, Erlitou Ruins, Jinsha Ruins, Yin Ruins, Jinhou Cemetery, Majiayuan Cemetery, Zenghou Yi Tomb, Mancheng Han Tomb, Turki Mountain Liao Tomb, Liangzhuang King Tomb... These well-known cultural relics and treasures of ancient and modern times are dazzling and outstanding, quietly witnessing the development process of the mainland since the Neolithic Age, through the Xia Shang, the Two Zhou, the Qin and Han Dynasties, the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and the Song Ming, which has lasted for 9,000 years, and the magnificent Development of Chinese civilization is diverse and integrated.
The continent is the first place in the world to use turquoise, and today, it is the world's most important source of turquoise. Turquoise culture has come from history and developed in the times, with a long history and endless life. In the West, it is decorated on the mask of the pharaoh and the crown of Persia, and in China, it ranks among the four famous jades of ancient times, because of the blue sky and the blue color of the water, it once enjoyed the title of "national jade".
Exhibition scene Image source: Xinhua News Agency
The exhibition is divided into four units, under the theme "What is Turquoise?" For the entry point, according to the chronological order, it is divided into three parts: "The First Appearance of Huaguang - Neolithic Xia Shang Period", "Liujin Yaoshi - Two Weeks qin and Han period", and "Baojing Style and Elegance - Sui, Tang, Song and Ming Periods", which tell about the long and splendid turquoise culture of the mainland.
As early as the early Neolithic period, the ancestors of Jiahu in the Central Plains became the pioneers in the production and use of turquoise in the world, and by the time of the Xia Shang, turquoise became a ceremonial vessel and was regarded as a symbol of royal power.
Turquoise ornament JiaHu site early Collection of Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
Jiahu turquoise may also have the function of seeing the eye, which is also the earliest example of the funeral custom of turquoise eye.
Turquoise Owl Neolithic Hongshan Culture Collection of Liaoning Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
This animal-shaped work deliberately sculpts the detailed characteristics of animals, which looks lifelike and exquisitely carved, reflecting the high level of jade craftsmanship of the Hongshan culture.
Jade charms Neolithic Dawenkou culture Collection of Shandong Museum
Jade pieces are lightly ground, jade color is lustrous, the color is green and white, and the shape is rich and flexible,
Some are rounded into hearts, double rings and four rings, like flowers, of which turquoise plays a role in finishing touches. Although the shape is slightly smaller than the double jade bi and triple jade bi of the Hongshan culture, the production method is similar, and it is a masterpiece of the prehistoric ancestor combination necklace, reflecting the love of beauty of the people in the Dawenkou culture period.
Wrist ornament Late Neolithic Longshan Collection of Shanxi Institute of Archaeology
There is generally a layer of black gelatinous substance below the turquoise sheet, which still has a certain viscosity today.
Turquoise inlay neolithic Liangzhu culture Collection of Zhejiang Liangzhu Museum
Turquoise inserts and turquoise beads have also been found at Liangzhu cultural sites in the lower Yangtze River region, possibly embedded in popular lacquered wood vessels, using lacquer liquid as an adhesive. There are many found in the mosaic patch, indicating the widespread use of the inlay process.
Inlaid turquoise bronze plaque adorned Xia Henan Erlitou Site Museum collection
This artifact is one of the most characteristic heavy vessels of Erlitou culture, and it also advances the mature mosaic technology of the mainland by one or two thousand years from the Spring and Autumn period and the Warring States period.
Turquoise gold-encrusted ornaments Shang Hubei Panlong City Ruins Museum collection
This is the first gold and jade inlay ornament found at the site of Panlong City, and it is also the earliest molded gold and jade inlay ornament that appeared in the Central Plains cultural system, which is of great significance for the study of early gold and jade inlay processes in the mainland.
Inlaid jade pieces of lacquered wood ware late Shang to the Western Zhou Dynasty Chengdu Jinsha Site Museum collection
Inlaid jade piece lacquer wood ware is the earliest lacquerware found in Chengdu that uses the inlay process.
In the past two weeks, Wang Qi and the princely states regarded turquoise as a treasure decorated with richness; the Qin and Han dynasties were unified, the turquoise decoration process was becoming more and more exquisite, and the turquoise culture also showed the characteristics of the fusion of Eastern and Western cultures.
Turquoise copper beans Warring States Hubei Provincial Museum collection
Bean is a kind of eating vessel, the Neolithic age has appeared pottery beans, bronze beans from the late Shang Dynasty began to appear, prevailing from the late Spring and Autumn period to the Warring States period.
Gold-handled cockroach pattern inlaid with turquoise iron sword Spring and Autumn Baoji City Archaeological Research Institute collection
The turquoise iron sword with gold handle is the pinnacle of the Eastern Zhou gold casting process, known as the "Star of the Qin Sword".
Jeweled tiger bird pattern gold medal ornament Warring States Inner Mongolia Museum collection
Northern nomads use tigers to send their own star, Pleiades.
The beads are collected by the Lijiashan Bronze Museum of the Western Han Dynasty
The beads may be what is known in ancient texts as the "beads and jade trees".
Wei Jin, Sui and Tang dynasties descended, turquoise with sky blue water blue color, among many precious jade treasures, highly respected by the court. The steppe peoples and the snowy Tubo are also very favored, both for decorating themselves and for their faith.
Inlaid turquoise lifeng gold headpiece Tubo period Qinghai Tibetan Medicine Culture Museum collection
Gilded eleven-sided Guanyin statue in the Collection of the Gansu Provincial Museum of the Ming Dynasty
Through the exhibition, it can be seen that the world's earliest turquoise ornaments unearthed from the Jiahu site are not carved and rich in color; the bronze plaques of turquoise excavated at the Erlitou site in 1984 are well preserved, and hundreds of pieces of turquoise inlays are buckled; the Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology has a combination of two huang lianzhu jade pendants, about 42 centimeters long, which is exquisite; the gold-encrusted gemstone hollow yunlong jade hat excavated from the tomb of King Liangzhuang in Zhongxiang, Hubei Province, is exquisite and gorgeous, reflecting the fusion of Chinese and Western cultures... The exhibition will also combine the characteristics of the display of cultural relics, make full use of multimedia projection videos, scene paintings, images and text descriptions and other means to explain the exhibition content, and fully highlight the beauty of cultural relics.
Wan Lin, dean of the Panlong City Ruins Museum, mentioned that the archaeological research of turquoise is a worldwide academic issue, as the first exhibition in the mainland to concentrate on presenting the ancient Chinese turquoise culture, these cultural relics and treasures meet in Panlong City across a vast area, which can allow the audience to glimpse the Chinese civilization of continuous tolerance and mutual learning and exchange and development from the cut side of turquoise culture.
Exhibition posters
The exhibition will run until 21 May 2022.
(The graphic information in this article comes from the Panlong City Ruins Museum, and some of the content is synthesized from relevant reports)