ChinaOn October 28, the National Cultural Heritage Administration received in Australia two lost cultural relics returned by Australia to China: the head of a civil official statue from the Northern Song imperial Yongchang Mausoleum and the head of a military official statue from Yongyu Mausoleum. The report describes them as representative surviving works of Song dynasty stone carving.
Broadcast 28 October 2026 · Event date 28 October 2026
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On October 28, the National Cultural Heritage Administration received in Australia two lost cultural relics returned by Australia to China: the head of a civil official statue from the Northern Song imperial Yongchang Mausoleum and the head of a military official statue from Yongyu Mausoleum. The report describes them as representative surviving works of Song dynasty stone carving.
Translated paragraph context
Today (October 28), the National Cultural Heritage Administration received in Australia the return by the Australian side of 2 lost cultural relics: the head of a civil official statue from Yongchang Mausoleum of the Northern Song imperial tombs, and the head of a military official statue from Yongyu Mausoleum. They are representative surviving works of Song Dynasty stone-carving art. In 2025, the National Cultural Heritage Administration, together with the Ministry of Public Security and other departments, initiated efforts to recover the two relics. China and Australia worked closely together, ultimately bringing the 2 lost relics back to the motherland.Original Chinese quote
今天（10月28日），国家文物局在澳大利亚接收了澳方向我国返还的2件流失文物——中国北宋皇陵永昌陵文官像头部和永裕陵武官像头部，它们属于宋代石刻艺术的代表性遗存。