Hexi Corridor is one of the busiest passageway in ancient China since the Han dynasty opened it for trade in 1st century BC. And with this passageway, Chinese civilisation gets enriched with civilisations from the Central Steppes. This crown is one such example of cross-cultural influence.
Gold Buyao Crown with Antler Design 鹿角金步摇冠饰
Gold | Wei and Jin Dynasties (220-420) | Dimensions – L: 19.5cm, W: 14.5cm, Wt: 91.6g | Collection of the Inner Mongolia Museum, Excavated from the Xihezi Cache in Damao Banner, Baotou City, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. 金器 | 魏晋 （公元220年-420年） | 长19.5厘米，宽14.5厘米，重91.6克 | 内蒙古博物院藏，内蒙古包头市达茂旗西河子窖藏出土
The buyao 步摇 is one of the significant traditional headpieces for women in ancient China. It is often made of materials such as gold and jade and shaped like tree branches. The more elaborate designs include decorations like flowers, birds, and other animals on the branches. As the wearer walks, these decorations sway continuously, which is why it is named buyao, literally meaning “swaying as you walk.”
The base of the ornament features branches shaped like deer antlers extending from a horse head. Each branch ends in a small loop, from which a piece of gold leaf hangs. The horse head and antler-like branches are adorned with inlaid jewels.
Although no buyao have been found among Han Dynasty artefacts, they remained quite popular during the Wei and Jin periods (220-420). This set of golden buyao likely dates back to the 4th century and is attributed to the Xianbei people (which founded the Northern Wei dynasty).
In ancient China, ornaments that were decorated with “dangling beads” 垂珠 and swayed with the wearer’s movements were called buyao 步摇. The “yaoye buyao crown” 摇叶步摇冠 was a popular headdress among the Xianbei people, characterised by leaf-shaped ornaments that swayed. It was a combination of the traditional Chinese buyao and foreign elements known as yaoye 摇叶 (swaying leaves).
The art of inlaying existed before the Qin Dynasty, but the inlay of gemstones and beads flourished in the Jin Dynasty, and there were diamond inlays, which were imported into China and Southeast Asia for Greece, Rome, and eastward. The crown is the physical witness of Murong Xianbei’s gold-making using Western techniques based on the Han aesthetics. It is a perfect combination of Xianbei, Han and Western aesthetics, with national and regional characteristics. It bears witness to the mutual learning between Chinese and Western cultures.
The Five-tree Gold Crown 五树形金冠
Gold | 1st Century | Excavated from Tomb No. 6 at Tillya Tepe, Afghanistan. 金器｜公元1世纪｜阿富汗蒂拉丘地6号墓出土
The prototype of the yaoye buyao crown, dating to the 2nd century BC, was found in the tomb of a Sarmatian1 queen on the northern coast of the Black Sea. A more developed version, dating to the early Ist century AD, was found in the tomb of a noble from the Greater Yuezhi 大月氏2 in Tillya Tepe, Afghanistan3. During the Eastern Han period, it spread eastward through the Hexi Corridor to northern China, becoming very popular among the Murong Xianbei 慕容鲜卑. It also influenced other neighboring ethnic groups of the time and later continued to spread eastward to Japan and the Korean Peninsula.
Gold Crown and Girdle 금관 금허리띠 (National Treasure)
Gold, Jade |Three Kingdoms period (Silla) 5th century | Dimensions – H(crown) 27.3cm, L(girdle) 120cm, W(crown) 1,062g, (girdle) 919g | National Museum of Korea, Acquired in 1973, Excavated from Hwangnam-daechong Tomb in Gyeonglu. 금 | 삼국시 신라 5세기 | 높이(금관) 27.3cm, 길이(허리띠) 120cm 무게(금관) 1.062g (허리띠) 919g | 1973년 발굴, 경주 황남대충
This gold crown with similar ornamentation in the form of tree branches and deer antlers attached along the headband is from the Shilla kingdom4 during the Three Kingdoms period in Korea. The gold crown is designed to express the sovereignty of the king, the identity and world view of the royal family. The gold waist belt is composed of buckle, belt-end ornaments, accessories for leather or silk-made belts, and waist pendants, These pendants include fish-shaped pendants, miniature knife, and curved jades that seem to represent household tools.
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.
Footnotes:
- The Sarmatians were part of the Iranian steppe peoples, among whom were also Scythians and Saka. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sarmatians ↩︎
- The Yuezhi were an ancient people first described in Chinese histories as nomadic pastoralists living in an arid grassland area in the western part of the modern Chinese province of Gansu, during the 1st millennium BC. After a major defeat at the hands of the Xiongnu in 176 BC, the Yuezhi split into two groups migrating in different directions: the Greater Yuezhi and Lesser Yuezhi. This started a complex domino effect that radiated in all directions and, in the process, set the course of history for much of Asia for centuries to come. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuezhi ↩︎
- Tillya tepe, Tillia tepe or Tillā tapa (Persian: طلاتپه, romanized: Ṭalā-tappe, literally “Golden Hill” or “Golden Mound”) is an archaeological site in the northern Afghanistan province of Jowzjan near Sheberghan, excavated in 1978 by a Soviet-Afghan team led by the Soviet archaeologist Viktor Sarianidi. The hoard found there is often known as the Bactrian gold. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tillya_Tepe# ↩︎
- Silla (Korean pronunciation: [ɕiɭ.ɭa]; Old Korean: 徐羅伐, Yale: Syerapel,[8] RR: Seorabeol; IPA: Korean pronunciation: [sʌɾabʌɭ]) was a Korean kingdom that existed between 57 BCE[9] – 935 CE and was located on the southern and central parts of the Korean Peninsula. Silla, along with Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Silla had the lowest population of the three, approximately 850,000 people (170,000 households), significantly smaller than those of Baekje (3,800,000 people) and Goguryeo (3,500,000 people). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silla ↩︎
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