The Kingdom of Gold and Ivory: Jinsha Site Museum and the Light of Ancient Shu

The Awakening of a Sleeping Kingdom

1.Located at: No. 2 Jinsha Site Road in the Qingyang District of Chengdu, the Jinsha Site Museum stands as a testament to one of the most significant archaeological discoveries in China in the 21st century. The site was discovered accidentally in February 2001 during real estate construction, unearthing a sleeping kingdom that had been lost for over 3,000 years. It is identified as the political, economic, and cultural center of the Ancient Shu Kingdom during the late Shang and early Spring and Autumn periods (approx. 1200 BC – 650 BC), serving as the successor to the mysterious Sanxingdui civilization. The museum is built directly over the excavation site, allowing visitors to walk through a lush, modern park while standing atop the very soil that concealed tons of ivory, gold, and jade for millennia. It is a place where history whispers from the earth, revealing the brilliant "Golden Age" of the Chengdu Plain,.

The Light of the "Sun and Immortal Bird"

2.The crown jewel of the Jinsha: Site is the "Sun and Immortal Bird" Gold Ornament (Solar Bird). This exquisite circular piece of gold foil is a masterpiece of ancient craftsmanship, weighing 20 grams and measuring only 0.02 cm in thickness—as thin as a cicada's wing. The design features a spinning sun with twelve saw-tooth rays at the center, surrounded by four birds flying counter-clockwise. It symbolizes the ancient Shu people's worship of the sun and their aspiration for light and eternity. This artifact is so significant that it was selected as the symbol of Chinese Cultural Heritage in 2005 and is also the core design element of the Chengdu city logo. Seeing this artifact glowing in the dark exhibition hall is a spiritual encounter with the artistic soul of an ancient civilization,.

A Treasure Trove of Gold, Jade, and Ivory

Jinsha is renowned for being one of the sites with the richest concentration of gold and ivory artifacts in the world from the same period. Beyond the Solar Bird, the Golden Mask is another star attraction. Smaller but more exquisitely crafted than those at Sanxingdui, it hints at the high status of the wearer, likely a sorcerer or king communicating with the divine. The site also yielded thousands of jade items, including the iconic Jade Cong (tube) and Jade Zhang (blade), which show influences from the Liangzhu culture of the Yangtze Delta and the Central Plains, proving that Ancient Shu was not isolated but part of a diverse and interconnected Chinese civilization. Perhaps most shockingly, the site contains tons of elephant tusks used in sacrificial rituals, a scale of sacrifice rarely seen elsewhere in the world,.

The Relics Hall: Walking Over History

Unlike traditional museums where artifacts are removed from their context, the Jinsha Site Museum features a massive Relics Hall built over the original excavation pit. Visitors walk on wooden boardwalks suspended above the active archaeological site. Here, you can look down into the earth to see the exact spots where the gold mask, the sun bird, and piles of wild boar tusks and deer antlers were found. The preservation of the stratigraphy allows you to visualize the ancient riverbed where these precious items were deposited as offerings to the gods. The combination of the raw excavation site and the refined Exhibition Hall nearby provides a comprehensive narrative of the rise and fall of this enigmatic kingdom. The museum grounds are also a beautiful park, home to a herd of deer, echoing the ancient environment where "Shu" people lived in harmony with nature,.