Harmony and unity

A gilded silver plate was cast in the Eastern Roman Empire about 1,500 years ago, and centuries later it was excavated in Jingyuan county, Gansu province. It had lost much of its gilded surface, while the relief motifs of grapes and deities of ancient Greece are still vivid. The details of how this plate ended up in a county along the Yellow River are still mysterious to historians, but the techniques and decorations are enough to reveal its mission once as an envoy to connect trade and cultural exchanges between the East and the West, via the ancient Silk Road. The plate is now on show at the Harmony and Unity in China exhibition at the Liaoning Provincial Museum, through to Jan 8. Showing artifacts of different kinds and drawn from several museum collections across the country, the exhibition gives a vivid illustration of realizing harmony and coexistence.

9 am-4 pm, closed on Mondays. 157 Zhihui Third Street, Hunnan district, Shenyang, Liaoning province. 024-2320-5102.