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Name: Five Stars Rising East Benefit China | 中文名: 五星出东方利中国
Date to: Han Dynasty  (~200B.C – 200A.D.) | Unearthed: Ruins of Niya, Xinjiang, 1995
Current location: Xinjiang Archaeology Institute
Dimension: 16.5cm x 11.2cm

A prediction made two millenniums ago

What’s so special with this piece of clothing? Well, several points:

• First, it’s a beautiful and complicated clothing. Its color, design, weaving, etc, all represents the wonderful textile technology in ancient China.

• Second, it’s a product of Han Dynasty found in West China region. It shows the prosperity of ancient Silk Way and influence of Han Dynasty in Middle Asia region.

Five Stars Red Flag - Flag of P. R. China

• Third, which is the most mysterious and interesting part, the characters on the clothing read: Five stars rising east benefit China. As you might not know, “Five Stars Red Flag” is the flag of People’s Republic of China (1949 – now). So the words on the two millennium old clothing predicted the flag flying in China now.

No superstition please.

I don’t believe in any superstition or predictions. Historians know the possible connections.

Five stars mean the five planets that are visible by bare eye. In the beginning of Han Dynasty (~ 202 B.C.), they lined up in the east sky. The astrologists considered this as a good sign for the fate of Middle Kingdom (China). Lots of literature and history books recorded this theory and the astronomy event happened that year. So the words on the clothing probably have a similar blessing meaning.

Back to 20th century, the designer of the flag of China, who was also a learned scholar, probably had read those theories and history records and applied the blessing idea in his design.

Well, it’s still very interesting to connect the ancient clothing and the national flag together. Maybe this is the beauty of history, right? When you look at it, you feel like you are talking to someone lived two millenniums ago.

[Forbidden Treasure of China Series]
This is the 1^st of 64 culture heritages that the government of China forbid to exhibit abroad. The complete list is here. In Chinese.

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[Chinese Keywords]
国家一级文物 禁止出境