Tags: Spring and Autumn Period | weapon

The golden handled sword was unearthed from the tombs of Wei Lords, Liuli Chamber, Hui County, Henan Province. The manufactured design was of a hollow and round-handled sword. The handle and the part between the handle and the body are all wrapped with golden foil. Even though the body has seriously rusted, the protruding spine of the blade that goes all the way up to the tip of the sword can still be clearly seen. Now, please carefully examine the decorative design on the golden handled sword. Besides the handle, which is decorated in a spiral design, there is a circular hole in the center, with a two-bodied dragon design carved in relief all around it, and a circled triangle design engraved by the head of the sword. There is a geometric graphic design that consists of three continuous spiraling lines by every other triangle design. As for the protruding part between the handle and body, there is a matching hook design. It looks like an upside down Taotie dragon, which was associated with gluttony.. The design indicates that this sword was made in the Chu Kingdom, in the late Spring and Autumn period. The relationship between the Wei kingdom and the Chu kingdom was very close, and the two nations exchanged many artefacts. 

National Museum of History