Researchers found an extremely rare seal made from pure gold that was cut into quarters when the Ming Dynasty was overthrown nearly four centuries ago.

A team of experts led by Liu Zhiyan, director of archaeological measurements at the Sichuan Provincial Institute of Archeology and Cultural Relics, discovered that the seal weighed more than 7.7kg and contained 95% pure gold. The golden seal along with about 10,000 other artifacts were announced on April 28 when the research team ended a month-long excavation at Jiangkou Tran Dan Historical Site in January 2020. This is phase 3 of a major archaeological project that began in spring 2017 on the banks of the Dan River in Sichuan’s Jiangkou town.
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Liu assessed the seal as the most special discovery in recent years. The meticulously carved seal has a size of 10 x 10 cm and the handle is made of pure gold in the shape of a turtle with the words “Treasure of the King of Shu”. Researchers speculate that this is one of the treasures scattered when the emperor was overthrown in a rebellion more than 370 years ago.

When the off-season arrived in November 2019, a group of workers began fencing off the 5,000 square meter excavation area with an embankment before the water receded to reveal the river bed. Among the antiquities found, 2,000 artifacts were of exceptional value, including gold, silver, bronze coins, ornaments and jewelry. But the golden seal divided into four pieces is still the most notable object.
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According to Liu, this seal was once owned by Truong Hien Trung, the leader of a peasant uprising in the late Ming Dynasty, who invaded present-day Sichuan in 1644. The most reasonable hypothesis is that Truong divided the seal into 4 pieces to represent the end of the Ming Dynasty.

“During the third phase of excavation, we made two very important observations. The first was that the artefacts were found deep below the rock and river bed, meaning they had been there for a long time. long. This stretch of the river is most likely the battlefield where Truong Hien Trung and Duong Trien, a loyal general of the Ming Dynasty, fought. Second, we noticed groups of artifacts revealing Truong Hien Trung’s classification and sorted out the treasures when leaving Chengdu. During the first and second phases of the project, we found mainly weapons, tools and ornaments, but this excavation yielded many valuables. worth like coins,” Liu said.

Besides the golden seal, on April 28, the archaeological team also announced another 10,000 antiques, after finishing the excavation at the Jiangkou Chengyin historical site in January 2020. It is known that this is phase 3 of the archaeological project on the Min River in Jiangkou town, Sichuan province.
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“During phase 3 of the excavation, we made two very important observations. One of them is the artifacts found deep under the rocks and river beds, proving that they were located here for a long time. In the first and second stages, we found mainly weapons and utensils, but this time we recovered many valuable items,” Director Liu shared.

The first official excavation began in April 2017, the second in January 2018. To date, more than 52,000 artifacts have been excavated.