The Sasanian dynasty of Persia ruled from 226 AD to 650 AD.
The Sasanian Dynasty, established after overthrowing the Parthian Dynasty, inherited and developed the art of metal crafts.
Its production process covers forging, carving, hammering, inlaying, gilding, casting, welding and many other aspects.
This gilt silver pot is a typical example of the integration of multiple craftsmanship.
Technological progress has always been prompted by war.
The Sasanian Dynasty had many wars with Rome, and among the prisoners captured there may have been a large number of Roman craftsmen.
The gold-plated silver pot depicting Greek mythology must have been made by them.
At that time, there were very frequent trade exchanges between the Sasanian Dynasty and the Northern Zhou Dynasty.
Yuanzhou (now Guyuan) is located at the strategic point of the Silk Road, with a large concentration of business travelers and convenient transportation. It is not surprising that a large amount of goods from the Western Regions flowed into it.
The discovery of the tomb of Li Xian and his wife was a major event in the archaeological history of Xia Ning. It caused a sensation in the domestic archaeological and academic circles and was rated as one of the top ten archaeological discoveries in my country in 1984.
As a prominent family in the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Li Xian and his wife were buried in a luxurious tomb with a large number of precious cultural relics and painted exquisite murals on the tomb walls, which is what archaeologists expected.
However, the unearthed national treasure-level Sasanian dynasty crafts, gilt silver pots and glass bowls, were unexpected.
The two pieces Chen Wenzhe saw now are probably paired with the two pieces currently hidden in the country. This is how powerful the tomb robbers are.
However, Chen Wenzhe could not imagine why the tomb robbers struck first and only took one piece instead of stealing them one by one.
No matter what, now Chen Wenzhe can get two of them. Although they are no longer a pair, he is very satisfied with one single piece.
Not to mention other things, this gilt silver pot is very extraordinary.
In particular, the three groups of patterns on the gilt silver pot narrate an ancient Greek mythology story.
The first group of patterns shows the three goddesses Hera, Athena and Aphrosite.
They were arguing over "who is the most beautiful goddess".
Zeus, the king of the gods, sent a "judge" for them - Paris.
Paris was the son of the Trojan king and was famous for his bravery and fearlessness.
But facing the "beauty contest" of the three goddesses, he seemed very helpless.
The three goddesses were all extremely beautiful in his heart. He thought about it over and over again, but still couldn't decide.
This is where the "bribery" begins - Aphrosite promises Paris that if she is chosen, she will give him Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world.
In the end, Paris could not resist the temptation of the beautiful woman and dedicated the golden apple engraved with "To the most beautiful goddess" to Aphrosite.
The second set of patterns describes Paris, with the help of Aphrosite, crossing the sea to Greece to find Helen.
Helen was the queen of King Menelaus of Sparta. She fell in love with Pariston when she saw him from afar.
So while her husband was leaving the palace, she took her jewelry and eloped with Paris to the city of Troy.
This story of elopement soon triggered a war.
Knowing this, Menelaus was furious, and the ten-year Trojan War began.
Ten years of fighting and resistance made it difficult for both sides to win or lose.
In the end, the Greek army cleverly implemented the famous "Trojan Horse Strategy" and completely defeated the Trojan defenders.
In the end, Menelaus took back his beloved queen Helen, and the battle for beauty was settled.
The third set of patterns is Menelaus wearing a helmet, welcoming Helen back.
Beauties love heroes, so they stay naked.
This is the most controversial story of the "Golden Apple" and the "Trojan War" in ancient Greek mythology recorded in "Homer's Epic".
It will make people ignore the golden light on the surface of the silver pot and touch the former glory of the Silk Road from afar.
And when it was combined with the convex nail pattern glass bowl, it was integrated into the daily life of the upper class aristocrats in society at that time.
After witnessing their luxury and luxury with a lingering taste, I also witnessed Guyuan's business status as an international metropolis.
However, thousands of years later, when the years have erased the whispers of myths and legends.
Therefore, Guyuan, a historic city on the Loess Plateau that is high enough to overlook the Guanzhong Plain, began to decline gradually after becoming a "megacity" in the Yuan Dynasty.
So much so that people who don't know it today regard it as a remote and nameless small town in the northwest.
In addition to cultural relics, we can see that the apple, which originated in my country's Xinjiang Province, was endowed with the light of myth after spreading to Persia and Rome.
Later, it returned to my country along with the gilt silver pot.
Among them, the gilt silver pot unearthed from Li Xian's tomb is called Hu Ping in ancient Chinese literature.
"Hu" is a rather broad concept, generally referring to surrounding ethnic minorities other than the Han people.
The Chinese know the exact date of the "Hu Ping" during the Western Jin Dynasty.
There are records in "Qianliang Lu" quoted by "Taiping Yulan".
"At the time of Zhang Gui, Xihu sent two golden Hu vases, all of which were made of velvet. They were strangely shaped and as tall as a person."
Zhang Gui, the governor of Liangzhou in the Western Jin Dynasty during the Sixteen Kingdoms period, was also the actual founder of Qianliang.
He ruled Hexi in the first year of Yongning, Emperor Hui of Jin Dynasty, which was 301 AD.
The Hexi region he ruled was the chokepoint of the Silk Road.
According to expert research, "Xihu" probably refers to the Sogdians in Central Asia.
They presented the Golden Hu Bottle as a gift to Zhang Gui in order to safely carry out trade through this area.
It is worth noting that when Xihu presented the bottle, it was clearly recorded that its place of origin was "Fulu", which was the Roman Empire that had not yet been divided at that time.
Therefore, the golden vases from the Roman Empire entered our country along the Silk Road in the early 4th century AD.
The earliest Hu bottles discovered by archeology were from the Sixteen Kingdoms period, and were very popular from the Northern Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties.
This gilt silver pot unearthed from Li Xian's tomb is of great value for studying the relationship between Central Asia, Persia, the Eastern Roman Empire and my country, especially Guyuan's status and role on the Silk Road.
At present, there is no identical artifact found in the world.
An apple turned into gold in the West and triggered a war.
Gilt silver pot, Greek story, Persian utensils, unearthed in our country.
Just because of the Silk Road connection, there are prosperous trade exchanges.
And Xia Ning has therefore become a place shining with golden light on the Silk Road.
As fascinating as the gold-plated silver pot is Li Xian himself. Behind him, there is a bright road full of human changes.
Li Xian (502-569), courtesy name Xianhe, was born in Chengji, Longxi (now Qin'an County, Gansu Province).
He was an important official in the Northern Wei Dynasty and the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and after Li Ling, the cavalry captain in the Western Han Dynasty.
This Li Ling is not a simple person. His nickname is Shaoqing and he is the grandson of Li Guang.
"Book of Southern Qi·Biography of Wei Lu" records: "Wei Lu are a Xiongnu species. Their surname is Tuoba... In the early days, the Xiongnu female was named Tuoba, and his wife was Li Ling. Hu customs took their mother's surname as their surname, so the captive was named after Li Ling."
"Li Xian's Epitaph" also states that his "tenth generation ancestor" came from Qidi Gui.