As China prepares to celebrate Qixi Festival on Friday, often called the country’s traditional Valentine’s Day, cultural relics across museums offer silent testimony to love stories that have transcended centuries. From intricately carved jade pendants to faded silk paintings, these artifacts preserve emotional narratives that continue to resonate today.
One standout example is a 2,000-year-old Han Dynasty jade pendant inscribed with the characters “eternal union,” discovered in a joint burial tomb in Shaanxi Province. Archaeologists suggest the artifact symbolizes a couple’s vow of devotion, mirroring modern marriage traditions. Similarly, a Song Dynasty painting depicting a scholar and his wife exchanging poems under the moon reflects the enduring value of intellectual companionship in Chinese romantic ideals.
At Beijing’s Palace Museum, a Tang Dynasty gold phoenix hairpin tells a bittersweet tale. Records indicate it was commissioned by an emperor for his late wife, embedding pearls said to represent tears of remembrance. Such relics not only showcase artistic mastery but also humanize historical figures through their vulnerabilities and affections.
Experts note that Qixi’s themes of loyalty and connection—rooted in the myth of celestial lovers Zhinü and Niulang—are repeatedly echoed in these artifacts. “These objects remind us that love, in all its complexity, has always been central to the human experience,” says Dr. Li Wei, a cultural historian at Peking University.
For modern observers, these relics bridge past and present, offering tangible connections to emotional legacies that continue to shape cultural values across Asia.
