In the chill of a 1942 Changsha night, tomb robbers broke into a Warring States-era burial chamber in Hunan Province, stealing lacquerware, bronze swords and, unknowingly, a fragile silk manuscript.
A Cultural Tragedy Unearthed
Dating back roughly 2,300 years to 475 6221 B.C., the Chu Silk Manuscripts from Zidanku offer a rare window into early Chinese cosmology and ritual practice. At over a century older than the Dead Sea Scrolls, their intricate text and illustrations are an archaeological treasure.
From Changsha to Shanghai: Theft and Smuggling
After selling other artifacts, robbers tossed the silk handkerchief into a bundle of loot. It passed to dealer Tang Jianquan and then to Cai Jixiang, who prized it through wartime chaos. In 1946, in Shanghai, American collector John Hadley Cox seized the manuscripts under the guise of photography and smuggled them to the United States.
Cai, realizing he had been duped, signed a powerless contractreceiving just $1,000 of a promised $10,000 if the manuscripts were not returned from America. Thus began nearly eight decades of cultural exile.
Scholarly Consensus and the Path Forward
Professor Li Ling of Peking University has spent over 40 years tracing this tumultuous journey. His research establishes a complete chain of custody, confirming that the artifacts housed at the Smithsonianâs National Museum of Asian Art are indeed the Chu Silk Manuscripts from Zidanku.
As global citizens, we face a clear choice: honor cultural heritage and academic integrity by returning these manuscripts to China. Repatriation would reunite this 2,300-year-old treasure with its place of origin and ensure it inspires future generations.
Reference(s):
cgtn.com
