Sangxingdui Bronze Head at The Museum of Natural Science of Houston, USA

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This bronze head (height 27 cm) originates from the thirteenth or twelfth century BCE that was excavated from Pit 1 in Sanxingdui. Read more about the Sanxingdui Bronzes here. A remarkable discovery took place in the once-tranquil village of Sanxingdui, in a quiet part of Sichuan province in China, which immediately attracted international attention and has since rewritten the history of Chinese civilization. Two giant sacrificial pits were unearthed containing thousands of gold, bronze, jade, ivory, and pottery artifacts that were so unusual and unlike anything ever found in China before, that archaeologists realized they had just opened the door to an ancient culture dating back between 3,000 and 5,000 years. In the spring of 1929, a farmer was digging a well when he discovered a large stash of jade relics. This was the first clue that eventually led to the discovery of a mysterious ancient kingdom. Generations of Chinese archaeologists searched the area without success until 1986, when workers accidentally found the pits containing thousands of artifacts that had been broken, burned, and then carefully buried. The discovery of the artifacts opened up a world of intrigue. The objects found in the sacrificial pits included animal-faced sculptures and masks with dragon ears, open mouths, and grinning teeth; human-like heads with gold foil masks; decorative animals including dragons, snakes, and birds; a giant wand, a sacrificial altar, a 4-metre tall bronze tree; axes, tablets, rings, knives, and hundreds of other unique items. Sanxingdui is the name of an archaeological site and the previously unknown Bronze Age culture for which it is the type site. Sanxingdui is now believed to be the site of a major ancient Chinese city in what is now Sichuan, China. The Bronze Age culture which inhabited it was re-discovered in 1987 when archaeologists excavated remarkable artifacts, that radiocarbon dating dated as being from the 12th-11th centuries BCE. The culture that produced these artifacts is now known as the Sanxingdui Culture, and archeologists are identifying it with the ancient kingdom of Shu. The discovery at Sanxingdui, as well as other discoveries such as the Xingan tombs in Jiangxi, challenges the traditional narrative of Chinese civilization spreading from the central plain of the Yellow River, and Chinese archaeologists have begun to speak of "multiple centers of innovation jointly ancestral to Chinese civilization." This object is part of "Scan The World". Scan the World is a non-profit initiative introduced by MyMiniFactory, through which we are creating a digital archive of fully 3D printable sculptures, artworks, and landmarks from across the globe for the public to access for free. Scan the World is an open source, community effort, if you have interesting items around you and would like to contribute, email stw@myminifactory.com to find out how you can help.