(ORDO NEWS) — Many ancient artifacts have been discovered on the territory of the Sanxingdui (“Three Stars Mound”) archaeological site.
Sanxingdui is located in Guanghan County, Sichuan Province. It was built by a Bronze Age culture and discovered in 1928 when a farmer found a large cache of jade relics while digging an irrigation ditch.
In the 1980s, sacrificial pits 1 and 2 were discovered there, containing many valuable items.
During a recent study, archaeologists discovered 6 new rectangular pits ranging from 3.5 to 20 m2 in area.
“The artifacts were buried in layers in pits 3, 4, 7, and 8, with ivory mostly in the upper layers and bronze artifacts in the lower layers,” the authors write.
Pit 5 was dominated by small gold and ivory items, while Pit 6 was dominated by a wooden chest with red cinnabar paint.
The bronze objects discovered are predominantly vessels and figurines, many of the new artifacts differ from those found in pits 1 and 2.
Archaeologists also found gold foil decorations in the form of stripes, circles and birds, as well as a gold mask from the Shang and Zhou dynasties ( 1554-1046 and 1045-221 BC).
Researchers have been able to better understand the Sanxingdui sacrificial custom, as well as take a fresh look at the exchange of values in ancient China. The authors hope that further research will help systematize the findings.
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