Inheriting from the Qin and Han Dynasties, and initiating the Sui and Tang Dynasties | Hebei Cixian Northern Dynasties Archaeological Museum

【The Autumn of Chaos·Northern Dynasties·Inheriting from the Qin and Han Dynasties, Initiating the Sui and Tang Dynasties】There are two periods of division and chaos in Chinese history, one is the Southern and Northern Dynasties, and the other is the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms. The Northern and Southern Dynasties are divided into the Southern Dynasties and the Northern Dynasties (Northern Wei, Eastern Wei, Western Wei, Northern Qi, Northern Zhou), as the name suggests, the Northern Dynasties were mainly located in the northern part of China, lasting for more than 200 years. A large number of Eastern Wei and Northern Qi tomb groups have been found in Linzhang County and Cixian County in Hebei today. Among them, the most abundant cultural relics were unearthed from the tombs of Princess Ruru and the Wan Zhang large tomb (presumed to be the tomb of Emperor Gao Yang of the Northern Qi) excavated in Cixian County. From the Ye City Archaeological Museum in Linzhang County to Cixian County to visit the Northern Dynasties Archaeological Museum, the distance between the two is not far. This museum mainly collects pottery figurines, murals, gold and silverware, Wei stele tomb inscriptions and other collections excavated from the Northern Dynasties tomb group in Cixian County. The museum is large and quite imposing, but the collections inside are too single and there are not many highlights. The main ones are various pottery figurines unearthed from Gao Yang's tomb (Wan Zhang's large tomb), known as 'small terracotta warriors', and the gold ornaments (the treasure of the museum) unearthed from Princess Ruru's tomb, which are very small and extremely beautiful (Figure 9). Two Roman gold coins are also the treasures of the museum. There is also a mural hall that is not open, which is a replica of the murals of the Wan Zhang large tomb, restored at a 1:1 ratio, which is the pinnacle of the Northern Dynasties murals, and the original is now collected in the Hebei Museum. It's a bit of a stretch for this museum to call itself the 'Northern Dynasties Archaeological Museum'. Tips1: Gold openwork inlaid flower vine flying sky ornament - the treasure of the museum, unearthed from Princess Ruru's tomb, is a decoration on Princess Ruru's hat. On the lower right is a flying sky figure, and on the upper left is a lotus child figure, which is extremely exquisite. Byzantine gold coins (two) - the treasure of the museum, unearthed from Princess Ruru's tomb, are physical evidence of the Eastern Wei and Northern Qi's interaction with the West via the Rouran. One of the gold coins has a half-length portrait of Byzantine King Anastasius I on the front, and the other is Justin I, with the Victory Goddess on the back. These two gold coins indirectly illustrate the important role of Cixian County on the ancient Silk Road. At that time, Cixian County, which was close to Ye City, was an important node on the Silk Road. From here, it passed through Shanxi, Shaanxi, Gansu and other places, along the Silk Road, all the way to ancient Rome. 1500 years ago, two gold coins traveled thousands of miles from the Mediterranean to Hebei, which is a miracle created by the Silk Road. Tips2: The 52-meter-long corridor mural of Emperor Gao Yang of the Northern Qi Dynasty (550–559) in Wuning Mausoleum (Zhangwan) is the most exquisite Northern Dynasties mural discovered so far, including the emperor's exclusive Lu Bu ceremonial team, auspicious birds and beasts, flowing clouds and lotus flowers, etc. The Zhangwan mural is the highest level of Northern Dynasties painting art. Archaeologists cut it off completely and it is now in the Hebei Museum. It is a national first-class cultural relic and one of the top ten treasures of the Hebei Museum. The Northern Dynasties Archaeological Museum displays a complete replica.