"King" of the Zhu Qilin-- Another Yuezhi-Chinese Link: Part II
The man in Berel Kurgan 11 was entombed with 13 horses, including saddles and tack. These furnishings were made by a singular craftsman who worked in gold and white gold. Each piece of tack represents "animal-style" at its apex. With a mere glance, we realize this particular "king" was far more affluent than other Pazyryk individuals.
A forehead piece from a Kurgan 11 horse. We find a deer head in the jaws of a gryphon, a seamless flowage of gold and white gold into a singular work of art.
A psalia (cheek-piece) fashioned into a distinctive "S"-shape. Again we see the combination of gold flowing into white gold. "S"-shaped psaliae are only found in two locations-- the Pazyryk Altai and Qin China. This piece is fancier than other Pazyryk and Qin pieces, because it's embellished with a "Zhu Qilin" head.
The Qilin was a Chinese god, not Saka/Scythian. However, it represented fire; and fire was worshiped by the Yuezhi and Alans. This representation (above photo) was tattooed on the left shoulder of the man found in Pazyryk Kurgan 5. It's the same fantastic creature depicted on the cheek-piece in the first photo.
Another piece of horse tack from Berel Kurgan 11, embellished with mirrored and fully-rendered Qilins. We can only ask, "Why did the "king" buried in Kurgan 11 choose a Chinese god of fire as his personal totem?"
The answer may lie within the cavalry of Shihuangdi, the first Qin emperor. Here we see a Qin cavalry mount led by a "terracotta warrior." The horse wears an "S"-shaped psalia, as do all of Shihuangdi's mounts. This distinctive cheek-piece is a "plain" version of those owned by the "king" interred in Kurgan 11.
The horses owned by the "king" in Kurgan 11 wear the most expensive and artful tack yet found anywhere-- from China to Egypt. I believe this individual was a exceedingly high-ranking horse dealer and breeder. His burial corresponds precisely with the lifetime of Wushi Luo, confidant and minister of the Court of Shihuangdi. This man's wife was Asiatic, and so I ask, "Was she a Chinese noblewoman?" Of course, this link is conjecture. But harness fittings owned by this individual positively connect the Pazyryk culture to the earliest period of Imperial China... and to the Yuezhi.
A bronze Qilin by a Chinese craftsman. It was said that Emperor Wudi captured a live Qilin, but Sima Qian (the Grand Historian) believed the story to be fantasy.
The man in Berel Kurgan 11 was entombed with 13 horses, including saddles and tack. These furnishings were made by a singular craftsman who worked in gold and white gold. Each piece of tack represents "animal-style" at its apex. With a mere glance, we realize this particular "king" was far more affluent than other Pazyryk individuals.
A forehead piece from a Kurgan 11 horse. We find a deer head in the jaws of a gryphon, a seamless flowage of gold and white gold into a singular work of art.
A psalia (cheek-piece) fashioned into a distinctive "S"-shape. Again we see the combination of gold flowing into white gold. "S"-shaped psaliae are only found in two locations-- the Pazyryk Altai and Qin China. This piece is fancier than other Pazyryk and Qin pieces, because it's embellished with a "Zhu Qilin" head.
The Qilin was a Chinese god, not Saka/Scythian. However, it represented fire; and fire was worshiped by the Yuezhi and Alans. This representation (above photo) was tattooed on the left shoulder of the man found in Pazyryk Kurgan 5. It's the same fantastic creature depicted on the cheek-piece in the first photo.
Another piece of horse tack from Berel Kurgan 11, embellished with mirrored and fully-rendered Qilins. We can only ask, "Why did the "king" buried in Kurgan 11 choose a Chinese god of fire as his personal totem?"
The answer may lie within the cavalry of Shihuangdi, the first Qin emperor. Here we see a Qin cavalry mount led by a "terracotta warrior." The horse wears an "S"-shaped psalia, as do all of Shihuangdi's mounts. This distinctive cheek-piece is a "plain" version of those owned by the "king" interred in Kurgan 11.
The horses owned by the "king" in Kurgan 11 wear the most expensive and artful tack yet found anywhere-- from China to Egypt. I believe this individual was a exceedingly high-ranking horse dealer and breeder. His burial corresponds precisely with the lifetime of Wushi Luo, confidant and minister of the Court of Shihuangdi. This man's wife was Asiatic, and so I ask, "Was she a Chinese noblewoman?" Of course, this link is conjecture. But harness fittings owned by this individual positively connect the Pazyryk culture to the earliest period of Imperial China... and to the Yuezhi.
A bronze Qilin by a Chinese craftsman. It was said that Emperor Wudi captured a live Qilin, but Sima Qian (the Grand Historian) believed the story to be fantasy.
Alan J. Campbell
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
member of Legio III Cyrenaica and the Uncouth Barbarians
Author of:
The Demon's Door Bolt (2011)
Forging the Blade (2012)
"It's good to be king. Even when you're dead!"
Old Yuezhi/Pazyrk proverb
