US returns cultural relic to China, fostering relations

On Thursday, Chinese Ambassador to the United States Xie Feng received a tiger-shaped plaque artifact from a private US institution to be returned to China.

The plaque, made in typical Ordos bronze style, is a symbolic cultural artifact from the northern grasslands of China, dating from the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BC) to the Warring States Period (475-221 BC). The artifact offers vital information for studying China's ancient grassland culture and communication among different ethnic groups.

Xie expresses deep gratitude for the return of the artifact, noting that its repatriation enables the full appreciation and display of its historical, artistic, and scientific significance, while also fostering cultural exchanges between China and the US.

China plans to share the compelling stories behind this artifact through exhibitions and other means, Xie says.

He encourages more individuals to support and facilitate the return of lost cultural relics to their origins, contributing to the friendship between the Chinese and American people and strengthening the relationship between the two countries.

The repatriation of this artifact from the US follows the return of parts of the Zidanku Silk Manuscripts, the earliest silk manuscripts ever found in China, in May this year.

In 2009, China and the US signed a key intergovernmental agreement on combating the theft and illegal trade of cultural relics. Since then, nearly 600 Chinese cultural relics have been returned from the US to China, thanks to bilateral judicial cooperation.