Stone Drums Of Qin
The Stone Drums of Qín or Qin Shi Gu (Chinese: 秦石鼓; Wade–Giles: Ch'in Shih Ku) are ten granite boulders bearing the oldest known "stone" inscriptions in ancient Chinese (much older inscriptions on pottery, bronzes and the oracle bones exist). Because these inscribed stones are shaped roughly like drums (although some describe them as looking more like steamed Chinese buns) they have been known as the Stone Drums of Qin since at least the 7th century.
Their fame is because they are the oldest known stone inscriptions in China, making them a priceless treasure for epigraphers. The stone drums are now kept in the Palace Museum, Beijing. They vary in height from 73 cm to 87.5 cm (with one which was at one point used as a mortar reduced by the grinding to 58 cm), and from 56 to 80.1 cm in diameter. The Stone Drums weigh about 400 kg. each.
Read more about Stone Drums Of Qin: Inscriptions, Discovery, Dating, Importance
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