Snake from Set of Zodiac Figures, 618-907, in., Earthenware with white slip and traces of pigment, China, 7th-10th century, The appearance of certain animals played an important role in ancient beliefs regarding omens and portents, and a complex system of thought that spanned the Han (206 BCE-220 CE), the Six Dynasties, and Tang period (618-906). The earliest appearance of the twelve animals of the Chinese zodiac is in funerary sculpture like these found in northern Chinese tombs dating to the Northern Wei dynasty

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