In the summer and autumn of 1986, it was destined to be extraordinary for the archaeological community. Shortly after the joint archaeological excavation in Sanxingdui between the Sichuan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology and the teachers and students of the Department of History of Sichuan University, the archaeologists found the first and second sacrificial pits more than 10 meters to the northeast of the second excavation area and about 50 or 60 meters to the east of Sanxingdui. The subsequent excavation unearthed a large number of shocking bronze, gold, jade and other precious cultural relics, which immediately caused a sensation in the academic world. It can be said that "sleeping for thousands of years, waking up shocked the world".
one hundred and ninety-eight On July 18, 2006, Sanxingdui No.1 sacrificial pit was found. Photo data Sanxingdui Museum
Many years later, researcher Chen De'an, the archaeological leader in charge of the excavation, recalled that: "From July 18 to August 14, 1986, more than 400 pieces of bronze human heads, bronze masks, gold sticks, gold masks and jade objects were unearthed from the excavation of Pit 1; From August 16 to September 17, more than 1300 pieces of bronze statue, bronze mask, bronze head, bronze altar, bronze tree, bronze statue, bronze Lei, jade zhang, jade bi, jade dagger, etc. were unearthed in Pit 2. During that time, I was nervous and excited every day. The bronze sacred tree unearthed from Sanxingdui No.2 Sacrifice Pit. Photo data Sanxingdui Museum
The cultural relics unearthed in the two pits completely overturned people's understanding. Sichuan Basin is surrounded by mountains. "It's harder to get to the sky than to go to Sichuan". The transportation between Sichuan and the outside world is regarded as a dangerous way. However, the typical artifacts of the Yin and Shang culture in the Central Plains, such as Bronze Zun, Bronze Lei, Jade Zhang, Jade Ge and Jade Bi, were unearthed in Sanxingdui, which is located in the heart of the Chengdu Plain, showing the unimaginable cultural connection between the two places. On the other hand, people pay more attention to the bronze Dali people, Zongmu masks, human head groups, sacred trees, gold masks, gold sticks, and so on. This kind of unique combination of artifacts has not been seen in China or other regions of the world.
August 1986 On October 16, Sanxingdui No.2 sacrificial pit was found. Photo data Sanxingdui Museum
Mr. Li Xueqin, a famous scholar, believes that "such discoveries as Sanxingdui and Bashu culture should be recorded in the history of world archaeology as Troy and Nineveh in history". Professor Zhang Guangzhi of Harvard University commented that "Sanxingdui is a new discovery that rewrites history". The archaeological discovery of Sanxingdui Pit 1 and Pit 2 is recognized by the academic community as one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of mankind in the 20th century. On October 26, 1997, the Sanxingdui Museum was completed and opened. Up to now, it has received 25 million visitors at home and abroad. People are all amazed by the archaeological discoveries of Sanxingdui. The cultural relics unearthed in Sanxingdui drifted across the sea, and were invited to hold exhibitions abroad for more than 70 times. They have traveled to more than 100 cities in many countries and regions, such as the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, Singapore, and so on. Everywhere they went, they caused a sensation and received rave reviews.
In 1986, three When the stars wake up, they startle the world. Photo data Sanxingdui Museum
The "birth in the sky" of Sanxingdui Pit 1 and Pit 2 brings not only surprise, but also a lot of puzzles: who is its owner? How about the burial age? Whether to bury the country under subjugation or to offer a grand sacrifice... Many problems are coming, and academic opinions vary. The research upsurge triggered by Sanxingdui has continued to this day. When people once again turned their attention to the archeologists who pursued positivism, they "went up to the poor and down to the yellow spring, and searched for things" with tenacious perseverance in the land of Bashu. With new discoveries again and again, one after another mystery has been revealed, and the historical curtain behind Sanxingdui has been gradually opened.
