Hat with nearly 400 pearls of a princess of the Tang Dynasty

According to Sohu, On April 28, Shaanxi Archaeological Museum – the first museum specializing in archeology in China – opened its doors to visitors, exhibiting many long-standing historical items. Including the sophisticated hat of Princess Ly Thuy, who lived more than 1,200 years ago.

The lavish jade hat of the princess of the Tang Dynasty

Ly Thuy (711-736), self-titled Thuc Nhan, is the fifth great-grandson of Duong Cao To – the founding emperor of the Tang dynasty. The princess died of illness at the age of 25, attributed to a difficult birth. Archaeologists in Shaanxi province discovered Li Thuy’s grave in 2001, in a population of more than 180 tombs. Duong Quan Xuong – the person in charge of the project to protect and restore Ly Thuy’s grave – said that when excavating, the tomb of Princess Ly Thuy was the most surprising because of its large scale and highest class.

According to Duong Quan Xuong, the princess’s hat, despite being worn down by time, still overwhelmed the experts to hold their breath because of its splendor and sophistication. Jewelry is made from many types of jade and metals such as turquoise, amber, pearl, rubies, glass, seashells, onyx and gold, silver, and copper. The hat weighs nearly a kilogram, is 42 centimeters high, only worn by the princess at important events.

Ly Thuy’s hat converges the top goldsmithing techniques of the Tang Dynasty, including casting, forging, gilding… Some tricks have been handed down from abroad to China along the Silk Road, and are now lost. transmission. The hat is Western Region style when using a large amount of turquoise.

It took Chinese experts and more than 10 German experts several years to restore the hat. This is the first Tang dynasty hat to be recreated. In addition to this costume, many other items were buried with Ly Thuy, from gold, silver and bronze to ceramics, jade, iron, and lead.

Nghinh Xuan (according to Sohu)