Brief introduction to the Baiqil cemetery:
On a mountain beam in the south of Baiqier Village, Tuhulu Township, Hamiyiwu County, Xinjiang, there is an ancient site of the Bronze Age-Baiqier Cemetery. It is dated to about 1200-500 BC.
The area of the Baiqil tomb complex is about 30,000 square meters. It contains nearly 100 ancient tombs, and the burial relics include pottery, wood, jade, gold, bronze, iron, bone and horn shells, fur products, etc., among which pottery is the most abundant.
The large number of cattle, horses, sheep bones and other burial goods in the Baiqier tomb group indicate that the economic form in which it was located at that time was mainly animal husbandry, supplemented by hunting, and may also be engaged in some agricultural production, and at the same time, there are some nomadic cultural elements in the cemetery.
In May 2013, the Baiqier cemetery was announced by the People's Republic of China as the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units.
Excavation of the bronze ibex
During the archaeological excavation, a "bronze ibex" was born, which is a valuable cultural relic and is now in the collection of the Yiwu County Museum.
The ibex, also known as the Asian antelope, resembles a domestic goat, has a large body size, and is a national first-class protected animal. Tohuti Turahun said that this kind of "northern goat" copper jewelry represents the northern steppe culture, which has been found in the archaeological excavations in China's Inner Mongolia region and some countries in Central Asia, but it is the first time it has been unearthed in the archaeological excavations in Xinjiang.
This bronze ibex is about 10 centimeters tall, with a round body, strong limbs, two large horns that are long and curved, its front body is raised, and its legs stand on the arched bronze plate, majestic, graceful, lifelike. Even if it is not a cultural relic, as a masterpiece of craftsmanship, it is very rare.
The discovery of the bronze ibex has enhanced the cultural taste of the Baiqir cemetery and aroused people's interest in exploring ancient culture.
Meeting across time and space, Bronze Age Igo:
The Bronze Age represents the beginning of human civilization, and with the advent of the bronze ibex, the steppe Bronze Age, which belongs to the nomadic people, is presented to mankind.
It turns out that as early as three or four thousand years ago, Yiwu was already inhabited by humans, and the nomadic culture began to take shape, and it appeared in a rich form of life. The appearance of the bronze ibex shows that Yiwu was the habitat of the ibex, and also reveals that the aesthetic concept and pursuit of high-quality life of the local ancestors have entered an unprecedented stage.
Seeing such exquisite artifacts, we can't help but marvel at the exquisite casting craftsmanship and extraordinary artistic imagination that our ancestors possessed in ancient times. The bronze ibex is different from other bronzes as serious and heavy, it is simple and cute, is smart, lively, expressive, just like a northern goat when looking up at the snow peak on the grassland, in the moment of history was frozen in the Bronze Age, permanently preserved, it is full of realistic style, and in the simplicity of the interpretation of the story of the prehistoric Bronze Age Yiwu.
Finally, if you are interested in this piece of history, welcome to the Igo Prefectural Museum.