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Neolithic pottery jar with snake-biting-toad motifs
Updated: Feb 7, 2025
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This cylindrical pottery jar, dating back 8,000 years, was made from sand-tempered red clay. It features two symmetrical raised toad motifs. Beneath one toad, a long snake appears to bite the toad's leg. As toads have strong reproductive abilities, the motifs reflect ancient people's reverence for nature and their hopeful wishes for fertility and survival.
Unearthed from the Chahai site in Fuxin, Liaoning province, the jar from the Neolithic period is China's earliest known artifact containing a snake motif. Collection: Liaoning Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology.
