

Silk panel
(Fragment)
1st century AD
Woven silk
35 x 184 cm
This fragment of an
ancient Chinese
woven silk (Han
period, 206 BC-220
AD) was found in the
Hun tumuli at
Noin-Ula and is one of
the oldest known
examples of silk. It
may have been an
official gift or
peace-offering to a
Hun chief – the Huns
presented a great
threat to China at the
time.
Against the originally
purple ground are
alternating mountains
with trees, lingchih
mushrooms, and
birds. In ancient
Chinese mythology,
birds were associated
with the sun, and
lingchih mushrooms
symbolised longevity.
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