www.chinaservicesinfo.com

Features

3rd-century white jade cup testimony to trade on the Silk Road

Updated: Sep 6, 2022 www.chinaservicesinfo.com Print
Share - WeChat
The white jade cup, dating back to the Wei Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period, is in the permanent collection of the Luoyang Museum. [Photo/Official WeChat account of the Luoyang Museum]

A white jade cup, dating back to the Wei Dynasty (220-265) during the Three Kingdoms period (220-280), has a translucent texture. Carved out of luxurious Hotan “mutton fat” jade, it is a rare burial item to find from when simple funerary was advocated. Its smooth lines and lack of additional decoration result in an appealing natural beauty.

Different from the jade used for sacrificial rituals, the jade cup would have been a daily utensil. As Hotan jade is endemic to Xinjiang in the Western Region, it also provides testimony to the exchange of goods along the ancient Silk Road.

Excavated from a Wei Kingdom tomb in Luoyang, Henan province, in 1956, the 13-centimeter-high jade cup is now in the permanent collection of the Luoyang Museum.

1 2 >

Copyright©2024 China Daily. All rights reserved.

京ICP备13028878号-6

京公网安备 11010502032503号 京公网安备 11010502032503号