Sixty-five rare cultural relics unearthed in Xi'an more than three decades ago are on display in Beijing for the first time at the Arthur M Sackler Museum of Art and Archaeology at Peking University.

The exhibition, approved by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage and sponsored by the Shaanxi Provincial Museum of History, bears witness to the extent of international trade relations between China and the outside world at the time of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907).

Ancient Chinese civilization is believed to have been at its zenith at that time. The relics were discovered at a construction site called Hejiacun in the suburbs of Xi'an, known as Chang'an at that time, when it was the capital of the Tang empire.

Till this day, the discovery continues to puzzle Chinese historians and archaeologists studying the Tang Dynasty.

Gold and silver

The site, excavation of which officially got under way in October 1970, has proven to be a trove of splendid treasures, according to Tan Qianxue, deputy office director of the Shaanxi Provincial Museum of History.

Among the finds were more than 1,000 pieces of ancient gold and silver ware and coins: There were 271 gold and silver objects, eight silver ingots, 22 silver bars, 60 silver plates, three pieces of agate ware and one piece of coloured glazed ware.

"There was a total of 39 different kinds of coins," Tan said, "not only coins made by the Chinese in the Tang Dynasty, but also foreign coins from Japan, Central Asia, Persia and Rome.

"It was the first time in the Chinese archaeological history to find so many foreign coins side by side with those made in Tang China," Tan said.

The inscriptions on the silver ingots, bars and plates contain information on reign titles, regions, taxes and corvee labour, providing useful information on the over-all economic system at the time of the Tang Dynasty, the deputy director said.

Aside from the gold and silver items, archaeologists also unearthed a complete set of tools for making Chinese medicines, along with a number of herbal medicines.

Tan said that these were all rare medicinal herbs for imperial family use. These were first-time discoveries, yielding useful information on the development of traditional Chinese medicine.

The researchers were especially excited because the Hejiacun site yielded more rare Tang Dynasty relics than all the previous ancient Tang Dynasty capital sites put together, said Shen Qinyan, researcher and director of the Repository Department of the Shaanxi Provincial Museum of History.

This remarkable trove of treasures has given Chinese historians valuable evidence to help clarify a part of Tang Dynasty history that has until now been shrouded in mystery.

"From ancient times, gold and silver have been considered symbols of wealth, and the Tang Dynasty was the most mature and flourishing period for the manufacture of gold and silver objects in Chinese history," said Qi Dongfang, a professor at Peking University and a noted expert on gold and silver objects made in the Tang Dynasty.

At that time, palace gold and silver objects were made in the central imperial workshop, following the best style and disregarding cost, Qi said.

As symbols of high rank, gold and silver objects were exclusively reserved for the royal households and officials of the top three ranks, Qi said.

However, little had been known about the manufacture of gold and silver objects in the Tang Dynasty before the Hejiacun discovery.

"From the rare relics from Hejiacun we can see how rich the dynasty was," Qi said.

There are other blanks in Tang history as well, and the relics from Hejiacun are helping to fill them in.

Qi elaborated: "Historical records show that the horse was revered in the Tang Dynasty. They were not only used for war, travel and transportation, but also for social events and entertainment by the imperial family and the nobility."

One historical source contains intriguing tales of dancing horses, which performed during a birthday celebration for Emperor Xuanzong (AD 685-762).

It was said that one dancing horse could hold a cup between its teeth to propose a toast to the emperor.

"We had read a lot about horses, but few material objects had been found to verify such activities until the Hejiacun discovery," Qi said.

On a silver pot from Hejiacun, archaeologists were delighted to find a relief sculpture of a dancing horse with a cup in its mouth. It is exactly the same as the historical description, and from this experts have concluded that dancing horses actually existed, according to Qi.

Among the gold coins unearthed at Hejiacun, archaeologists have found many bearing the words "Kaiyuan Tongbao." It was said that Emperor Xuanzong threw these coins about among his officials when he felt happy.

"Among the unearthed relics from Hejiacun, there are 30 gold Kaiyuan Tongbao coins, which is proof of the existence of these coins talked about in historical records," Qi said.

Perfume bag

One rare relic from Hejiacun was connected with Emperor Xuanzong's beloved concubine Yang Yuhuan (AD 713-757).

Yang was originally the concubine of the emperor's father. After she gained favor with Xuanzong, her brother Yang Guozhong became the state chancellor, in charge of the imperial court and all royal affairs.

In 755, a military officer named An Lushan, who fought for power against the chancellor Yang Guozhong, rose up in rebellion and Emperor Xuanzong was forced to flee from the capital Chang'an.

During the flight, the generals and soldiers that had been fighting all along for the emperor killed Yang Guozhong and forced Emperor Xuanzong to order the execution of his favorite concubine.

She was hanged on the emperor's orders.

However, the affection remained. It was said that two years later when Emperor Xuanzong returned to Chang'an, he searched for Yang's body. It was reported that only her perfume bag remained.

"We were puzzled when we read these things in historical records," Qi said. "Why hadn't the perfume bag, usually made of silk, not rotted away?"

They got the answer when they identified a perfume bag among the finds at Hejiacun.

"The perfume bag was made of gold and silver," Qi said.

Experts believe that the rare relics from Hejiacun testify to the high level of craftsmanship in the Tang Dynasty. The relics serve as convincing proof of the high technological levels achieved in forging, design, welding and manufacturing of gold and silver objects at that time.

The most puzzling question of all was who these rare relics belonged to.

Archaeologists initially considered the site an imperial secret cellar, and that all the rare relics had been the property of the imperial family, Tan said.

However, after careful research, experts have now concluded that the bulk of the rare treasures were under the keeping of a high ranking financial official named Liu Zhen.

Liu was in charge of storage of imperial wealth. Experts now believe that in 783 when a mutiny threatened the capital Chang'an, Liu buried these relics before he fled the city.

Whatever new historical evidence these relics provide us with, "the pieces from Hejiacun give us a vivid picture of trade and cultural exchanges along the ancient Silk Road, the most important transcontinental highway for trade between China and western Asia and Europe," Shen said.

(China Daily July 13, 2004)