The golden dragon unearthed in Jinyun. It has been classified as a national second-class precious cultural relic. [Photo/Zhejiang Daily]

A precious cultural relic was recently unearthed in Jinyun county – administered by Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province.

It was a glittering golden dragon, estimated by experts to belong to the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). 

The 3.3-centimeter-long dragon-shaped ornament is made of gold. It has been classified as a national second-class precious cultural relic.

According to experts, the golden dragon was used to pay tribute to Huangdi, or the Yellow Emperor, a legendary ancestor of the Chinese nation who is believed to have been the sovereign of a united China around 5,000 years ago.

The memorial ceremony for Huangdi in Jinyun dates back to the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420). The event was included in the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2011.

"The golden dragon is a very important sacrificial object in history and the unearthed relic is more solid proof that Jinyun was an official place to worship Huangdi in ancient times," said Ke Guoming, one of the experts who found the golden dragon.

The relic was found in the Jinlong Cave, an important archaeological site in Jinyun.