464 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1926 
As part of my study of this most interesting site and its surround. 
ings, I made a plane-table survey of it, in the course of which I 
noticed some indications which I thought might point to the exist- 
ence of another worn-down mound; but Doctor Li tells me that this 
is not the case. 
Of the wonderful group of bronzes found here I speak with diffi- 
dence; for I saw them only after their removal to the local military 
headquarters at Chéng Chow. There, however, through the courtesy 
of Gen. Wu Pei-fu and of Gen. Chin Shih-chang after his return, 
I was permitted to examine and photograph them; while on my two 
visits to Hsin-chéng Hsien I secured all the information I could 
from those who had been actually present at their discovery and 
excavation. 
Accounts differ, naturally, regarding the precise arrangement of 
the bronzes in relation to the interment. As nearly as I can learn, 
however, they were all found to the south of the body, which, it will 
be remembered, lay with its head to the north; and they occurred 
at varying depths, beginning about 10 feet below the present surface. 
This looks as if, at the time when the burial took place, the bronze 
vessels were placed on ledges of earth or perhaps wooden stands or 
shelves of varying heights. Such a hypothesis would account at 
least for their discovery at different depths, about which there seems 
to be no doubt. 
While I make no pretensions to knowing anything about ancient 
Chinese bronzes, those found at Hsin-chéng Hsien impressed me 
as being unlike those usually dated as Han, but as resembling rather 
those commonly attributed to the Chou dynasty, though with impor- 
tant differences. In any case, their style and ornamentation are of 
the highest order. In some instances traces of former gilding are 
still visible, and there is reason to believe that the workmen made 
away with a really very large amount of sheet gold, stripped from 
the bronze surfaces. There are also instances of turquoise inlay that 
must have been very effective when intact. ‘The symbolic designs, 
in high and low relief, are unexcelled. The use of conventionalized 
animal figures for handles, supports, and decorative elements is most 
striking and, I think, unparalleled. And the patination, in shades 
of green and blue and red, is in many cases unusually rich and fine. 
I know of nothing of the kind comparable with this collection as a 
whole. The room in which I saw it at Chéng Chow seemed, as it 
was, a veritable treasure house. 
In all, about 100 vessels are known to have been discovered, al- 
though it is thought probable that the workmen stole a great many, 
particularly of the smaller pieces. Of the latter, many were found 
inside larger vessels, and hence managed to escape the pickaxes of 
