To quote fictional archeologist Indiana Jones, “It belongs in a museum.” And now, thanks to police in Northwest China’s Gansu province, a looted jianpen (a bronze vessel dating back to the Western Zhou Dynasty, which ran from 1046-771 BCE) may soon find its way to one after being recovered from a warehouse located in the outskirts of Lanzhou.
The valuable archeological and cultural artifact was stolen from a grave in Shanxi province by tomb robbers, according to Xinhua, and was resold on numerous occasions.
After being discovered by authorities in a warehouse owned by the relic’s latest owner, police began the process of transferring the jianpen back to Shanxi.
According to Xinhua, a five-month crackdown on crimes involving cultural artifacts began on August 1, jointly launched by the Ministry of Public Security and National Cultural Heritage Administration.
A note for the unaware: The image featured above is not from the grave robbing incident in Shanxi, it is from the iconic 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark.
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[Cover image via Lucasfilm/IMDb]
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