Golden Sun Bird

{{Short description|Ancient Chinese artifact}}

{{Infobox artifact

| image =250px

| image_caption =

| material = Gold

| size =12.5 cm in diameter

| created = {{circa}} 1125 BC

| location = Jinsha Museum, Chengdu

| id =

|discovered_date=2001|weight=20 grams|discovered_place=Sanxingdui}}

The Golden Sun Bird, or the Sun and Immortal Birds Gold Ornament ({{lang-zh|t=太陽神鳥金飾|s=太阳神鸟金饰|p=Tàiyáng Shénniǎo Jīnshì}}), is an ancient artifact, unearthed in 2001 at Jinsha archaeological site located in the city of Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China.{{cite web |author=unknown |url=http://www.chinese-treasures.net/node/54 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120721202201/http://www.chinese-treasures.net/node/54 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2012-07-21 |title=Gold Sunbird |publisher=Chinese Treasures |date= |accessdate=2012-02-15}}

It is a ring-shaped piece of foil, made of nearly pure gold. The pattern consists of four birds, flying in the same counterclockwise direction, located around the perimeter. The center is a sun pattern with twelve points. It is 12.5 cm in diameter, with a 5.29 cm inner diameter. It has a thickness of 0.02 cm, and weighs 20 grams.{{cite web|url=http://www.xinhuanet.com/chinanews/2005-08/16/content_4918640_1.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140203003043/http://www.xinhuanet.com/chinanews/2005-08/16/content_4918640_1.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 3, 2014 |title=:: 新华网 :: - 地方联播 |publisher=Xinhuanet.com |date=2005-08-16 |accessdate=2012-02-15}}

The piece dates back to the late Sanxingdui period (around 1200–1050 BCE), and is now located in the Jinsha Museum, Chengdu.