About 540 years later after the end of Han dynasty, the fortunes reversed. The remnant of the Eastern Jin dynasty 東晉 was invaded by the Huns, a descendent of the Xiongnu, and other minorities in a period called Sixteen Kingdoms of the Five Barbarians 五胡十六国 (304－439 AD). And it seems like a sweet revenge, when the victory was set in stone, in this monument which a Great Xia horse trampling on a Chinese mandarin.
Daxia Stone Horse 大夏石马
Stone | 6th year of Zhenxing Period, Great Xia Dynasty (424 AD) | Steele Forest (Beilin) Museum. 石雕 ｜ 大夏真兴六年（公元424年）｜西安碑林博物馆
This stone horse is one of the national treasures in the Xi’an Beilin Museum. It was carved in the 6th year of Zhenxing Period, Great Xia dynasty (424 AD) 大夏真兴六年（公元424年）. Great Xia dynasty (407-431 AD) lasted only 24 years and was founded by the minority Xiongnu in the Sixteen Kingdoms.
The horse statue was believed to be a direct response to the Statue Of A Horse Trampling A Xiongnu Barbarian 茂陵马踏匈奴石雕 from Western Han to commemorate the victory of the Chinese over the Xia’s ancestors.
The Chinese historians did not look to the foreign invasions very favourably, and in the history that I used to study when I was young, this invasion was also referred to as Upheaval of the Five Barbarians 五胡乱华 (304–316 AD). The “Five Barbarians” were the Xiongnu, Jie, Qiang, Di and Xianbei, many of whom had resettled within China during the preceding centuries. Despite the period’s name, many Han Chinese and other tribal people like the Wuhuan were also involved in the uprisings and often joined forces with the Five Barbarians.
There are very few surviving relics and therefore this simple carved stone horse is extremely precious. The inscriptions in front of its front feet represent valuable historic evidence the existence of the Great Xia dynasty and some of key persons during that time.
The period ended in 439 with the unification of the north by the Northern Wei 北魏, completing the transition into the Northern and Southern dynasties period, but the full unification of China would only be achieved by the Sui dynasty 隋 in 589 AD, which was the precursor to the glorious period called the Tang Dynasty.
About Chinese National Treasure Series
中華國寶系列 Chinese National Treasure series feature specific artefacts and relics from museums all around the world that are historically significant to be considered a National Treasure. The series covers the 5,000 years of Chinese civilisation from Neolithic periods before the Xia dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BC) to modern day.
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