Hotan Jade
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Shaanxi History Museum
Shaanxi History Museum, is among the largest and most important museums in China. The museum houses over 370,000 pieces of historical relics in a 65,000 square meter area, its contents include pottery, bronze works, coins, porcelains, murals, paintings, gold and silver objects. Artifacts at the museum span a period of more than 1,000,000 years, ranging from the Stone Age to modern times, around 1840. The museum's buildings are replicas of those typically found in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and symbolize Shaanxi’s extensive history and remarkable culture. Among its precious collections are 18 pieces have been listed as national treasures. Some of its most important pieces are: 1. Duoyou Ding (Bronze Tripod) Shaanxi History Museum Age：Western Zhou Dynasty (c. 16 century – 11th century BC) 288 Chinese characters in 22 lines are inscribed inside the vessel, recording the account of when the Zhou army, led by General Duoyou, defeated Yan Yun, an ethnic group in the northern part of China. According to the inscription, the Zhou army defeated the enemy in four battles, killing 350 and capturing 23 Yan Yun soldiers and 127 war carriages. This vessel is of great importance in researching the war history of Western Zhou and neighboring ethnic groups. 2. The Empress’ Jade Seal Shaanxi History Museum Age：Western Han Dynasty (206 BC – AD 24) This seal, made from Hetian jade from the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, features a monster-shaped protrusion as a knob. Used as a seal, it was inscribed with the four characters ‘Huang Hou Zhi Xi’, which identifies it as an empress’ seal. It was unearthed just 1 km from Changling ,the mausoleum of Emperor Gaozu of West Han Dynasty and his wife, Lye Zhi. It is likely that the seal was used by Empress Lye Zhi, making it one of the most important seals ever to have been found. 3. Silver Pot with Cup-in-Mouth Dancing Horse Design Shaanxi History Museum Age：Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907) This bronze pot features a decorative design of a horse with a ribbon around its neck and its tail flowing in the air. The horse holds a drinking cup in its mouth -- an allusion to poetry from the period describing "dancing horses." Dancing horses were often used as entertainment at the time. It is said that during the performance, the horses were given wine to drink in cups, which they learned to pick up and tilt into their mouths. Records show that the horses were used in this manner to celebrate Emperor Xuanzong’s birthday. 4. Painting of Watchtowers Age：Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907) Shaanxi History Museum This painting was unearthed in the tomb of Prince Yide which is located on southeast of the Qian Mausoleum. Prince Yide was the eldest of Emperor Tang Zhongtong and grandson of the third Tang emperor, Gaozong and Emperess Wuzetian. He was sentenced to death at the age of 19 for opposing his grandmother’s autocracy. Located on the east and west walls of the tomb’s main passage are paintings of watchtowers, displaying the structure of Prince Yide’s graveyard. According to traditional Chinese architectural principles, a large watchtower and two small watchtowers were arranged in the form of "Three Watchtowers," with trees and mountains behind them. On the right is a low building that resembles a watchtower and acts as the gate tower of the city. 5. Painting of Palace Maids Ages：Tang Dynasty Shaanxi History Museum Princess Yongtai was the seventh daughter of Emperor Tang Zhongzong and the granddaughter of Emperor Tang Gaozong and Emperess Wuzetian. She was forced to kill herself at the age of 17 for opposing her grandmother’s autocracy. This famous painting lies on the southern side of the east wall in the front tomb chamber. It depicts nine palace maids, all of who have vivid facial expression and are in the position to serve the Princess at nighttime. The maids have exposed necks and seven of them are wearing long skirts and shawls. The other two girls are wearing men’s clothing of the time. The appropriate composition, smooth lines and proper color, make this fresco one of China’s national treasures. 6. Gold Bowl with Mandarin Ducks and Lotus Petals Age: Tang Dynasty Shaanxi History Museum Hammered masterfully into shape, this bowl features two layers of lotus petal engravings on the outside, with each lotus containing ten petals. The upper layer was engraved with various designs, including foxes, rabbits, rivers deer, parrots, Mandarin ducks, flowers and straw. The lower layer was decorated with honeysuckle. A rose carved on its inner base contains the characters “Jiu Liang Ban”.
Xinjiang government plays matchmaker at expo
The government of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region has reduced its red tape for the ongoing 2015 Eurasia Commodity and Trade Expo that opened on Wednesday and is striving to instead act as a facilitator for the event and promote more projects as a result, said the expo's organizing committee. Chi Wenjie, secretary-general of the EACT Expo organizing committee, said, "International and Chinese exhibitors are the main 'players' and a high-level professional business atmosphere is in place." The official said the government has boosted its matchmaking services for the expo that runs in Urumqi until Aug 16, and attracted provincial level delegations. As an expansion event of the China Eurasia Expo, the organizing committee expects this year's expo to successfully promote Xinjiang's international trade and obtain more international clients. The expo is focused on providing a high-level professional exhibition for the emerging autonomous region, rather than covering "a large area on a mega scale", Chi said. The exhibition zones are arranged in what the expo calls "2+3" - two main zones for the textile and agricultural sectors and three smaller zones for wine, jewelry and jade, and exquisite overseas products, Chi said. The Chinese government has given priority to the textile and garment industry in Xinjiang, with the aim of creating job opportunities for more than 1 million people. It is projected that by 2020, the sector will generate a combined industrial value of 163.5 billion yuan ($25.85 billion). Aksu, Shihezi and Kuerle have become the production centers to boost industrial transfers from central and eastern China. Inspired by the Xinjiang officials, provinces and cities in Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Hebei, Fujian, Shanghai and Shenzhen, which have taken the lead in the textile and garment sector, are taking group tours to the expo. As the source of much of the country's fruit, including melons, thanks to its abundant sunshine, Xinjiang boasts quality agricultural products but its processing sector is feeling the pinch. The organizers have attracted some 150 buyers to the event and senior executives of fruit processing firms, including beverage and juice processors, and counterparts in the food chain, Chi said. In the wine sector, 48 local wine companies are taking part in the event, having been selected from the 70 firms in the autonomous region. A summit on the industry will be held in a bid to boost the branding of Xinjiang's local wine. Seventy-six jewelry companies of which 47 are local are exhibiting their elegant works during the event. A high-profile Hetian jade forum will also be held so industry insiders can discuss their insights. Hetian jade is precious and is only could be found in the Hetian area in Xinjiang. "We aim to offer a diverse cultural atmosphere there and showcase leading international products, of which we hope to display the EACT Expo's truly international standards and professionalism as well as its high-end branding position," Chi said. zhuanti@chinadaily.com.cn
Sparkle in gem and jewelry trade
Hong Kong-listed China Assurance Finance Group Ltd (CAF) will cooperate with Guangzhou Commodity Exchange's (GCE) Gems and Jewelry Trade Center to provide financial support for enterprises and traders in the industry. An online platform for the center was officially launched on Thursday to provide comprehensive services, including financing, trading, marketing, storage and clearing, for the industry. Sparkle in gem and jewelry trade CAF has invested 12 million yuan ($1.9 million) in Beijing Jindianpai Ltd, securing a 60-percent stake in the company. Jindianpai will act as the platform operator. CAF Vice-Chairman Nixon Pang Man-kin said the company has been promoting financial innovation of the gems and jewelry industry since 2013. "The group attaches great importance to cooperating with GCE, which is a core point in the combination of the industry and Internet finance. Cooperation prospects for both sides are broad," he said. Industry insiders are upbeat with the online platform. "The platform changes the traditional trading mode and establishes a bridge between supply and demand," said Chen Guifang, general manager of Guangzhou Xiyaoyuchi Jewelry which specializes in making Hetian jade. "Previously, there was no link between the jewelry industry and finance on the national scale. The exploration of GCE is the first cheese in the industry," she said. Chen's company, a member of the trade center, will conduct its first transaction through the platform soon, but she did not disclose the trading amount involved. "I've confidence in the trading platform as it provides sound services and supervision." According to statistics from the Gems and Jewelry Trade Association of China (GAC), the industry's retail volume on the mainland exceeded 470 billion yuan in 2013, of which Guangdong province accounted for more than 300 billion yuan - about two-thirds of the national volume. More than 60,000 enterprises are involved in the industry. However, the industry is undergoing a difficult time as prices of raw jade and diamond have gone up considerably while gold prices have been fluctuating violently. Last year, growth in the gems and jewelry industry plunged to 3 percent from 28.7 percent in 2011. A major challenge facing the gems and jewelry industry is financing. Due to a lack of widely recognized value and risk management systems, financial institutions are not willing to support the industry. Yu Dingchang, honorary chairman of GAC, pointed out that critical cash flow and sluggish sales are the two main difficulties confronting the industry. "The industry strongly needs systematic innovation, financial support and a new mode," he said. Sparkle in gem and jewelry trade The online platform, in some sense, will help solve the problem as it introduces third-party organizations to provide authentication and appraisal reports for every piece coming to the transaction stage. A third-party storage management organization has also been brought in to provide safe storage for the jewelry. Apart from traditional bank loans, some innovative financing modes, including P2P and crowd-funding, have been introduced on the platform, providing enterprises and traders with a variety of fund-raising methods. Yang Yong, executive vice-president of the Peking University Alumni Venture Association, said the gems and jewelry industry is one of the fields that's quite suitable for crowd-funding. "If 200 people, each contributing 200,000 yuan, cooperate together, it will be easy to open a jade experience shop in a city. Investors who are experts in the field will, at the same time, be able to bring in customers to ensure that it's profitable," Yang said. sally@chinadailyhk.com (HK Edition 01/16/2015 page8)
Knowledge Graph
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1 Hetian jade, also called tremolite jade, is one kind of nephrite, it is aggregation of tremolite mineral.
2 Hetian jade produce from Xinjiang in China, already several thousand years history be a kind of Chinese culture.
3 Hetian jade have no gradational distinction, but is divided into mountain and river materials according to the geology source.