Stone zodiac figurine on display to mark Year of Monkey

A rare ancient stone monkey-head zodiac figurine has been on display in northwest China's Shaanxi province to celebrate the Year of the Monkey.

Carved from limestone, the monkey-head-human-body statue is 42.2 centimeters tall. Unearthed in 1974 from the burial site of Emperor Su of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), it is now in the Museum of Zhao Tomb about 15 kilometers away from Liquan county.

A horse-head stone figure found at the same time was also on exhibition.

Statues with heads of Chinese zodiac animals and human bodies were typical of the Tang Dynasty, said Li Langtao, vice curator with the museum, adding that while most of such statues were made from clay, stone figurines were quite rare.

According to Li, the statue was discovered by a local farmer while he was leveling the soil. It had been guarding the tomb gate.

Li noted that it was the first time that such figures of Chinese zodiac animal heads were found outside the tomb vault.

Emperor Su, namely Li Heng, was the eighth emperor of Tang. He died in 762 following a palace coup.

Spring Festival this year marks the beginning of the Year of the Monkey, according to the Chinese zodiac that assigns one of 12 animals, either real or mythological, to each year. Endi