Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People's Republic of China in Russian – People's Republic of China in Russian –
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Source: People's Republic of China – State Council News
YINCHUAN, Aug. 24 (Xinhua) — The 9th International Tangut Studies Conference opened in Yinchuan, capital of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, on Friday. A new book titled "The Sculpture Collection from Heishui Cheng of P.K. Kozlov's Expedition of 1907-1909 and 1924-1926" attracted the attention of participants.
This is the first collection of sculpture monuments excavated in the city of Heishui and stored in Russia, which was jointly compiled by scientists from China and Russia as a result of systematic research and work on organizing.
As it became known, the publication, released in Chinese and Russian in July 2025 by the Gansu Cultural Publishing House, is considered one of the important achievements in the field of humanitarian cooperation and research between China and Russia. Its editors-in-chief were co-director of the Chinese-Russian Institute of Tangut Studies Du Jianlu and deputy director of the Hermitage G.V. Vilinbakhov.
This edition includes 171 sculptural objects. All their photo illustrations were made by the Russian side in high-resolution digital format, clearly demonstrating the textures, artistic specificity and the smallest details of the artifacts. Each photo illustration is accompanied by brief information about the size and scientific value of the object.
According to Du Jianlu, the 171 pieces include clay, wood, stone and metal sculptures made using the techniques of in-the-round sculpture, relief and engraving. The sculptures, dating back to the Xi Xia period (1038-1227) and the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), cover both secular and Buddhist themes, representing a society with a rich secular life and deep spiritual faith.
Most of these items have been published for the first time and serve as valuable materials for studying the religion of the Xi Xia and Yuan Dynasties, the historical evolution of fine arts and cultural exchanges along the Silk Road, Du Jianlu said, adding that the work on the book received financial support from the Rare and Unique Disciplines Individual Project of the National Social Science Foundation of China and the National Publication Foundation.
Let us recall that the Tangut Kingdom /Xi Xia, or Western Xia, Da Xia, Great State of the White and High/ is a Tangut state that existed in 1038-1227 to the northwest of the Chinese kingdom of Song and later the Jurchen Jin, on the territory of the modern Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, as well as parts of the provinces of Shaanxi, Gansu and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, which controlled the eastern section of the Great Silk Road. The kingdom ceased to exist as a result of attacks by the Mongolian troops of Genghis Khan.
Due to the complex writing of the Tangut and a number of historical factors, Tangut studies were considered a “forgotten science” for many years. The study of the culture, writing, and language of the Tangut people began with the discovery of a large library of Tangut texts by P. Kozlov during excavations of the dead city of Khara-Khoto (in Chinese, Heishui Cheng) in 1909 in what is now the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. In the first half of the 20th century, Russian and British adventurers brought back from China a huge number of manuscripts from the Tangut kingdom, 90 percent of which are currently kept in St. Petersburg. Based on the work of Russian scholars, Tangut studies began to be studied in China, Japan, and Germany.
Cooperation between China and Russia in the study of Tangut studies officially began in 2009, when the Institute of Tangut Studies at Ningxia University launched a Sino-Russian project called “Monuments from Khara-Khoto and the Study of the Xi Xia Kingdom.” In 2010, the Institute and the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of Sciences signed an agreement to establish the Sino-Russian Institute of Tangut Studies.
Over the past 15 years, this joint institute has successively published a series of research works, such as “A Series of Studies on the Monuments of Xi Xia”, “A Study of the Amended and Re-Approved Code of Heavenly Prosperity /abbreviated Tiansheng Luiling/”, “A Study of the Canons of Tangut Buddhism”, and “Commentaries and Facsimiles of the Written Monuments in Chinese from Khara-Khoto Stored in China”, “A Catalogue of Written Monuments in Chinese from Khara-Khoto in the Collection of Russia”. -0-
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