Bronze Statue of the Twelve Zodiac Beasts' Heads in Yuanmingyuan - Rat Head
National Museum of China
The first of the twelve zodiac animals
Bronze statues of animal heads from the twelve zodiac animals in Yuanmingyuan
3D printing of animal heads for the twelve zodiac animals
Rat head
Zishi (23:00 to 1:00 the next day)
Bronze Statue 3D Model
The French Pinault family donated to China without compensation
Chinese Cultural History
Beijing Yuanmingyuan
15
Coin
The copyright of the 3D model belongs to the original author and the material may not be distributed, published, transmitted, copied, rented, resold or compiled in any form.
Originally part of the fountain outside the Haiyan Hall of the Yuanmingyuan in Beijing, it was designed by Italian missionary Lang Shining and made by craftsmen in the Qing court. Each animal capital has its unique symbolic significance. In 1860, when the British and French coalition burned down the Yuanmingyuan, it was stolen and lost overseas. The bronze statue of the rat's head represents the hour of Zi (23:00 to 1:00 the next day) and is one of the twelve zodiac bronze statues. It was auctioned at Christie's in France in 2009, but ultimately failed to sell. On April 26, 2013, the French Pinault family announced that they would donate rat and rabbit heads to China without compensation, and held a donation ceremony at the National Museum of China on June 28 of the same year.
