By Ji Jing

On the night of June 15， the Sanxingdui Museum livestreamed a visit to the museum and many in the audience called for the museum to launch “blind boxes” that contain replica artifacts that need to be repaired. Unexpectedly， an official of the museum said such blind boxes are in the pipeline. That means when the product is launched， ordinary people can experience the pleasure of restoring artifacts for the museum.

This is not the first time that the museum has garnered attention for its culturally themed products. On the morning of May 1 this year， the first day of the May Day holiday， over 1，200 newly launched ice cream bars in the shape of the iconic bronze mask from the site sold out in no time. There were two flavors for the popsicles： matcha and chocolate.

The popularity of the sites culturally themed products can be partly attributed to the latest excavation of six sacrificial pits at the site in March. The excavation was broadcast live on TV and the Internet， attracting widespread public attention. The excavation has also greatly boosted tourism to the site. During the Qingming Festival holiday from April 3 to 5， 45，300 tickets were sold， worth 2.47 million yuan（$381，615）， up 278 percent and 330 percent respectively against the same period in 2019. With the increase in tourist numbers， culturally themed products from the site have also gained popularity.

New twist

Some artifacts of the Sanxingdui site were discovered by chance by a local farmer in 1929， with thousands more unearthed in the 1980s. Artifacts included numerous bronze items and a golden mask， all of which provide valuable insights into the ancient Shu culture of the region.

In 2001， more than 4，000 artifacts with a close connection to Sanxingdui were unearthed at the Jinsha Ruins site in downtown Chengdu， capital of Sichuan Province. The Sichuan Provincial Government announced in May that it will apply for UNESCO World Heritage status for the two sites.

Since June 2019， the Sanxingdui Museum has developed over 300 themed products， including key rings， notebooks， clothes and mugs designed either by itself or in collaboration with other cultural companies.

On May 18， the Sanxingdui Museum launched a set of blind boxes containing replica figurines of pigs， chickens， birds and a bronze tree unearthed from the site. The figurines were caked in earth similar to the earth in the sacrificial pits excavated in March. People have to remove the earth to see the figurines， similar to archaeological excavation.