On October 25, 2023, in the cultural relics exhibition hall of the Mausoleum Museum of the First Emperor of Qin, a special exhibition of Shu culture in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty with the theme of "Asking Shu" opened. More than 300 exhibits from 25 cultural and museum units in Sichuan, Hubei and Shaanxi are displayed here, reflecting the process of the ancient Shu civilization gradually merging into the long history of Chinese civilization
At noon on October 29, 2023, I went to the Mausoleum Museum of Qin Shi Huangdi, and I specially visited this exhibition. Walking into the exhibition hall, there is a replica of the bronze statue unearthed from the Sanxingdui site, as if through more than 3,000 years of history, bringing us into the ancient Shu civilization. The exhibition unfolds in the form of questions, sorts out the regional characteristics and development sequence of Shu culture, and emphasizes the contribution of the Bashu region to the unification of Qin. 
1.Who are you: the maverick ancient Shu civilization
On the south bank of the Yazi River in the northwest of Guanghan City, Sichuan Province, there is a Sanxingdui site with a history of 3,000 to 5,000 years, which is the ancient Shu cultural site with the largest range, the longest duration and the richest cultural connotation found in the southwest region, allowing us to see a world of social stability, affluence and worship of gods. 
Within the Chengdu Plain, important relics such as the Guiyuan Bridge Ruins, Baodun Ruins, Jinsha Ruins, and Twelve Bridge Ruins have been discovered one after another, showing the maverick and mysterious brilliance of the ancient Shu civilization, and opening the prelude to a comprehensive study of the origin and development of the ancient Shu civilization. Sanxingdui culture has a close relationship with the Central Plains culture and has become an important part of China's Bronze Age culture. The bronze statues unearthed here basically imitate the same type of bronzes in the Central Plains, but they are more local in terms of decorative style. The bronzes unearthed in Chenggu County and Yangxian County of Hanzhong City contain Sanxingdui cultural factors, reflecting the exchange between cultures. 
2.You come from: Shu culture under the collision of multiple cultures
From the late Shang Dynasty to the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, the relics of Xinfanshui Guanyin Ruins, Pengzhou Zhuwa Street Cellar, Xindu Majia Wooden Coffin Tomb, Chengdu Commercial Street Boat Coffin, Shuangyuan Village Boat Coffin, Shifang Chengguan Warring States Qin and Han Tombs reflect the collision of different regional cultures, making the ancient Shu civilization exude different brilliance. In a wider area, an unequal number of Shang and Zhou bronzes have been found, proving that Shu culture at this time changed from a maverick local culture to a more inclusive regional culture. The two bronze pieces unearthed in the Zhuwa Street cellar are respectively cast with the inscriptions of "Mu Zheng Father" and "Qin Father Gui", which also appear on the bronzes in the Zhuyuangou cemetery in Baoji City. 
The largest tomb in the Warring States Period was found in Sichuan Province in the Xindu Majia wooden coffin tomb, and it is speculated that this tomb is the tomb of an enlightened Shu king of a certain generation. In the waist pit of the tomb, 188 pieces of bronze artifacts were unearthed, with the largest variety, the most complete combination, and the highest grade. On most of the bronzes, the Bashu symbol is cast, which is a unique phenomenon of ancient Shu culture. Chengdu Commercial Street Boat Coffin Burial is the largest boat coffin and single wooden coffin burial found in China, which may be an extremely rare royal family of the Enlightened Dynasty of the ancient Shu Kingdom or the family cemetery of the King of Shu himself. The tomb here is grand, the ship coffin is huge, there are many burial coffins and a large number of funerary goods, which shows the prominent status of the tomb owner, and the religious ritual system is quite complete. 
3.You went**: The long history of Shu culture merging into Chinese civilization
In 316 B.C., the historical event of "Qin and Bashu" occurred, ending the history of the ancient Shu kingdom in the southwest. In the following hundred years, Qin will strive to manage the Bashu region, as the rear of the unification of the six countries, set up county guards, build water conservancy, and attach importance to agriculture and mulberry. Under the strategy of the Qin people, the Chengdu Plain gradually became a country of abundance, and the water and drought were from the people, and they did not know the hunger. At the same time, the Qin State immigrated here many times, leading new production methods, accelerating the process of integrating Shu culture into Chinese civilization, and the Sichuan Basin became a strategic place for the first dynasties to operate in the southwest. In 221 BC, after the establishment of the Qin Dynasty, under the policy of great unification, the whereabouts of Shu culture were clearly visible. 
The Chengdu Plain changed from the rear before the unification of Qin to the local counties under the politics of great unification. So, does the Shu culture that was historical thousands of years ago still exist?Was the Great Qin Empire compatible with the cultures of different regions and different ethnic groups, or did it dissolve?Yangzishan Tutai is located near Chengdu Xima Bridge, the sacrificial platform of the ancient Shu people in the late Shang and early Zhou dynasties, and became a burial area after being abandoned at the end of the Warring States Period. More than 200 tombs were found on the earthen platform of Yangzi Mountain, of which tomb No. 172 was the tomb after the Qin and Bashu in the late Warring States period, and the gray pottery bottom jar, bronze kettle retort, Bashu symbol seal and other utensils with local characteristics were unearthed. At the same time, the unearthed Chu-style bronze similar utensils, the use of Chu tomb white plaster mud to prevent moisture, reflects the historical fact that the Chu people settled in Bashu.
The Sichuan Basin, where the Shu civilization is located, is closed but not blocked, and it is all-encompassing. In the pre-Qin period, it was the only place in the southwest, and it became the main traffic artery in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River through plank roads and convenient many rivers. In the valleys of the Qinba Mountains and the Hengduan Mountains, the Bashu ancestors took the traffic arteries from the south to the north, and the north had long-term contacts with the Central Plains Dynasty, and the south kept in touch with the southwestern ethnic groups. The ever-evolving Shu culture is like a trickle of a great river, integrated into the system of Chinese civilization.