The emblem, which represents Chengdu, has been chosen as the symbol of China Cultural Heritage by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage.

The emblem's exquisite craftwork and its representation of ancient Chinese people's worship for the sun and the Chinese nation's enterprising spirit account for the decision, according to the administration.

The gold-leaf sunbird, believed to be about 3,000 years old, was excavated from the Jinsha Ruins in the western suburbs of Chengdu.

The Jinsha Ruins, which cover 4 sq km, include an area for holding sacrificial rites, a residential quarter for the nobility, a residential quarter for commoners and a graveyard.

Archaeologists hail the ruins as one of Sichuan's most important archaeological finds after the discovery of the Sanxingdui Ruins in 1929.

On February 8, 2001, builders were working at an apartment construction site in Jinsha village. Suddenly they found ivory and jade were amidst the piles of mud.

Since then, archaeologists have excavated more than 5,000 precious relics including gold, jade, bronze and stone wares as well as one ton of whole elephant tusks and tens of thousands of pottery and ceramic pieces.

Many of the relics unearthed in the Jinsha Ruins bear a strong resemblance to those at Sanxingdui.

Located in Guanghan, a city 40 km from Chengdu, the Sanxingdui Ruins were accidentally discovered in 1929 by a farmer digging a ditch in his field.

Since then, more than 10,000 relics, some of which date back 3,000 and 5,000 years, have been unearthed. The excavations have yielded what are considered some of the most significant archaeological discoveries in China in the last century.

The discovery of the Sanxingdui Ruins, whose site is believed to have served as the capital of several kings of the state of Shu, offers proof that Chinese civilization has diverse origins.

It can be said that Chinese civilization has several cradles - the Yellow River Valley, the Yangtze River Valley and the Sichuan Basin, where the Sanxingdui and Jinsha ruins are located.

According to archaeologist Yu Weichao, former curator of the Beijing-based Museum of Chinese History, the Jinsha Ruins are most likely to be the political and cultural center to which the ancient state of Shu moved from Sanxingdui.

After the sudden demise of the Sanxingdui culture some 3,000 years ago, the Shu king likely moved to areas around today's Jinsha Ruins in Chengdu, he said.

Many relics unearthed from the Jinsha Ruins including the sun-bird gold leaf are on display in the Jinsha Site Museum.

(China Daily August 4, 2008)