A dragon head bas-relief of the eighth century, from the State Museum of History of Uzbekistan. JIANG DONG/CHINA DAILY
The mutual influences among different cultures are sometimes preserved in inconspicuous details, if not told or paid great attention to.
In the Islamabad Museum in Pakistan sits a red sandstone quern dated between the second century BC and the second century AD. It holds flower and leaf patterns on its surface and a carved animal motif on one side of its pedestal.
"You think it's a fish, but take a closer, longer look. It has a dragon head," says Wang Zhiqiang, a scholar at the National Museum of China, where the quern is on display. "According to our counterparts in Islamabad, it incorporates the image of the Chinese dragon, which was introduced via the ancient Silk Road."
A quern with a dragon-face fish from the Islamabad Museum in Pakistan. JIANG DONG/CHINA DAILY
This quern, with its dragon-faced fish, is one of the over 220 cultural objects displayed in the exhibition Where Civilizations Meet: Collections from Museums of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Member States at the National Museum of China.
The objects come from the collections of 10 museums and cultural institutions of Shanghai Cooperation Organization member states to celebrate the diverse cultures that are thriving on the vast, fertile Eurasian soil, says Wang, the exhibition's curator.
The exhibition opened on Aug 27, ahead of the SCO Summit 2025 held in Tianjin on Aug 31 and Monday, and will run until Nov 16.
The SCO, a permanent intergovernmental international organization, was announced in Shanghai in 2001. Upholding the Shanghai Spirit, it pursues the principles of mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality, consultation, respect for diversity of civilizations and pursuit of common development.
The Where Civilizations Meet exhibition addresses the Shanghai Spirit's two pursuits — cultural diversity and common development — and includes representative objects that illuminate the ancient civilizations and highlight mutual influences among the member states.
"The exhibits span from the prehistoric period to the early 20th century, telling a brief history of each member state on show," Wang says.
Also at the exhibition is a dragonhead bas-relief from the eighth century, speculated to be an architectural component, from the collection of the State Museum of History of Uzbekistan. Its teeth are visible from the open mouth, and it has several curved horns on its head.
A jade pig-dragon belongs to the Neolithic Hongshan culture, one of the earliest known jade carvings in the shape of a dragon in China. JIANG DONG/CHINA DAILY
To complement the two dragons from afar, the National Museum of China displays a jade pig-dragon belonging to the Neolithic Hongshan culture dating back more than 5,000 years. It has a pig's head and a dragon's body to symbolize the fertility of farmland. The object is believed to be one of the country's earliest known jade carvings s
