A farmer in south-west China has uncovered a bronze drum believed to date back nearly 2,000 years to the Eastern Han Dynasty, offering archaeologists fresh insight into ancient ritual practices in the region.
The discovery was made in Yunnan Province, China, when a local farmer came upon a metallic object while ploughing his land.
The farmer informed local officials, and the object was later examined by experts from the Yunnan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, who ascertained it was a bronze drum of the Eastern Han period, dating between AD 25 and 220.
The Weixin County Cultural Relics Management Department explained that the drum, which is entirely cast in bronze, was likely used in ritual or religious settings, rather than as a musical instrument. It measures about 58.5 cm across the drumhead and has a body diameter of 65 cm and a height of 29 cm.
Decorative features include a 12-pointed sun motif in the centre of the drumhead, surrounded by bands of short linear patterns. The rim is evenly spaced by four sculpted toads, each around 7 cm long, arranged symmetrically. The drum features two pairs of flat, strap-like handles decorated with rope-style patterns and small square perforations, attached symmetrically to the waist.
Archaeologists examining the burial pit where the drum was found also identified impressions matching the drum’s shape, along with marks left by the toad decorations at the bottom of the cavity. These traces indicate the drum had been buried upside down.
Researchers believe this orientation held symbolic meaning. In ancient south-western Chinese cultures, the toad was associated with fertility and prosperity. Burying the drum inverted may have represented a ritual act intended to convey blessings or prayers into the earth.
The newly discovered drum was found around 25 metres from the site where another Eastern Han bronze drum was unearthed in 1980. Archaeologists believe the two artefacts were buried independently as ritual deposits.
The drum is currently undergoing conservation and study before likely being placed in a museum collection.
Source : Yunnan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
