My system is not decent

Chapter 1765 The Golden Apple of Troy

The Sasanian Dynasty ruled from 226 AD to 650 AD.

The Sasanian Dynasty established after the overthrow of the Parthian Dynasty inherited and developed the art of metal crafts.

Its production process covers many aspects such as forging chisel, carving, hammering, inlaying, gilding, casting, welding and so on.

This gilt-silver ewer is a typical example of the combination of various craftsmanship.

Technological progress has always been triggered by war.

There were many wars between the Sasanian Dynasty and Rome, and among the prisoners captured, there may be a large number of Roman craftsmen.

The gilt and silver ewers depicting stories from Greek mythology should have come from their hands.

At that time, the business exchanges between the Sasanian Dynasty and the Northern Zhou regime were very frequent.

Yuanzhou (now Guyuan) is located at the hub of the Silk Road, with a large number of business travelers and convenient transportation. It is not surprising that a large number of commodities from the Western Regions flowed in.

The discovery of the joint tomb of Li Xian and his wife was a major event in the archaeological history of Xia Ning, which caused a sensation in the domestic archaeological and academic circles.

As a famous family in the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Li Xian and his wife buried a large number of precious cultural relics in their luxurious tombs and painted exquisite murals on the tomb walls, which is already expected by archaeologists.

However, the unearthed national treasure-level Sasanian handicrafts, gilt silver pots and glass bowls, were unexpected.

The two pieces that Chen Wenzhe saw now are likely to be a pair with the two pieces that are currently hidden by the country. This is the power of tomb robbers.

It's just that Chen Wenzhe couldn't imagine why the tomb robbers took the first move, but only took one piece, instead of stealing a pair?

No matter what, now Chen Wenzhe can get two of them. Although they are not paired, he is very satisfied with one single piece.

Not to mention anything else, this gilt and silver pot is quite extraordinary.

In particular, the three groups of patterns on the gilt silver pot describe an ancient Greek myth.

The first group of patterns are the three goddesses Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite.

They are arguing about "who is the most beautiful goddess".

Zeus, the king of the gods, sent them a "referee" - Paris.

Paris was the son of King Troy and was famous for his bravery.

But facing the "beauty pageant" of the three goddesses, he seemed very helpless.

The three goddesses were all extremely beautiful in his heart, and after repeated consideration, he still couldn't make a decision.

The "bribery" begins here - Aphrodite promises Paris that if she is chosen, she will give him Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world.

In the end, Paris did not resist the temptation of the beauty, and dedicated the golden apple engraved "To the most beautiful goddess" to Aphroshite.

The second set of patterns depicts Paris, with the help of Aphrodite, crossing the sea to Greece to find Helen.

Helen is the queen of Menelaus, the king of Sparta. When she saw Pariston who came from afar, she fell in love with her.

So while her husband was leaving the palace, she eloped with Paris to Troy with her jewelry.

This elopement story soon sparked a war.

Knowing this, Menelaus was furious, and the ten-year Trojan War kicked off.

Ten years of fighting and resistance made it difficult for both sides to decide the outcome.

In the end, the Greek army cleverly implemented the famous "Trojan horse trick" to completely defeat the Trojan defenders.

In the end, Menelaus regained his beloved queen Helen, and the battle for the beauty was settled.

The third group of patterns is Menelaus wearing a helmet, welcoming Helen back.

Beautiful women love heroes, so they are naked.

This is the most controversial "Golden Apple" and "Trojan War" story in ancient Greek mythology recorded in "Homer's Epic".

It will make people ignore the golden light on the surface of the silver pot, and touch the past glory of the Silk Road from afar.

And when it was integrated into the daily life of the upper class aristocrats at that time together with the spiked glass bowl.

After witnessing their extravagance and luxury, Guyuan also witnessed the commercial status of Guyuan as an international metropolis.

However, after a thousand years, when the years erase the whispering of myths and legends.

Therefore, Guyuan, a famous historical city with high terrain on the Loess Plateau and overlooking the Guanzhong Plain, began to decline gradually after the "megacity" of the Yuan Dynasty.

So much so that people who don't understand it today regard it as a remote and nameless small city in the northwest.

In addition to cultural relics, we can see that apples that originated in my country's border provinces were endowed with the light of mythology after they spread to Persia and Rome.

Later, along with the gold-plated and silver pots, they flowed back to my country.

Among them, the gilt and silver pot unearthed from Li Xian's tomb is called Hu Ping in ancient Chinese literature.

"Hu" is a rather broad concept, generally referring to the surrounding ethnic minorities other than the Han.

Chinese people know the exact age of "Hu Ping" in the Western Jin Dynasty.

The "Qianlianglu" quoted in "Taiping Yulan" has records.

"During the opening of the rails, there were gold vases from Xihu Zhijin, all of which were made by blowing rice paddies. They are strange in shape and as tall as a person. There are two of them."

Zhang Gui, the governor of Liangzhou in the Western Jin Dynasty during the Sixteen Kingdoms period, was also the actual founder of Qianliang.

The time when he ruled Hexi was the first year of Emperor Hui of Jin Yongning, that is, 301 AD.

The Hexi region he ruled is the throat of the Silk Road.

According to expert research, "Xihu" probably refers to the Sogdian people in Central Asia.

They presented the Golden Hu bottle as a gift to Zhang Gui for safe trade through the region.

It is worth noting that when Xihu presented the vase, it was clearly recorded that its origin was "Fushi", which was the Roman Empire that had not yet been divided at that time.

Therefore, the golden bottle of the Roman Empire entered my country along the Silk Road in the early 4th century AD.

The earliest archaeological discovery of Hu bottles was in the period of the Sixteen Kingdoms, and it was very popular from the Northern Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties.

This gilt-silver ewer unearthed from the tomb of Li Xian is of great value for the study of the relationship between Central Asia, Persia, the Eastern Roman Empire and my country, especially the status and role of Guyuan on the Silk Road.

At present in the world, there is no artifacts exactly like it.

An apple, turned golden in the West, sparked a war.

Gilt silver pots, Greek stories, and Persian utensils were unearthed in my country.

Only because of the connection of the Silk Road, there is a prosperous trade.

As a result, Xia Ning has become a place shining with golden light on the Silk Road.

As fascinating as the gilded silver pot is Li Xian himself. Behind him, there is a bright road full of human changes.

Li Xian (502-569), courtesy name Xianhe, was born in Chengji, Longxi (now Qin'an County, Gansu Province).

He was an important minister in the Northern Wei and Northern Zhou dynasties, and the descendant of Li Ling, the riding captain of the Western Han Dynasty.

This Li Ling is not simple, his name is Shaoqing, he is the grandson of Li Guang.

"The Book of Southern Qi·Wei Lu Biography" records: "Wei Lu is also of the Xiongnu family. The surname is Tuoba... At the beginning, the Xiongnu female name was Tuoba, and his wife Li Ling. Hu custom took his mother's surname, so the prisoner was the descendant of Li Ling."

"Li Xian's Epitaph" also said that his "ten ancestors" came from Tudigui.

(End of this chapter)