Is the royal seal unearthed by an elderly farmer in Nghe An province a fake?

(Baonghean.vn) - A farmer in Nghe An province was working in his field when he struck a strange metal object with his hoe, suspected to be an ancient royal seal.

Mr. Truong Van Suu and the strange object, believed to be a royal seal, that he unearthed while working in the fields. Photo: Pham Hoa.

On November 26th, Mr. Truong Van Suu, residing in Hamlet 5, Nghi Lam Commune, Nghi Loc District, accidentally discovered a strange object while working in the fields. Suspecting it to be a valuable antique, he brought it home for safekeeping. The object is made of metal, weighs 1.6 kg, has nine dragon heads, and is engraved with some Chinese characters on its surfaces.

The artifact has Chinese characters engraved on its sides and underside. Photo: Pham Hoa

Officials from the Nghi Loc District Cultural Department personally inspected the artifact and identified the inscriptions as: "Cuu Long Tin Chi" (Nine Dragon Seal) and "Dai Thanh Tu Thien Tu Bao" (Seal of the Crown Prince of the Qing Dynasty, China).

These days, Mr. Suu's house is bustling with people coming to see what is believed to be a valuable antique. Photo: Pham Hoa

Upon hearing the news that Mr. Suu had unearthed a valuable artifact, many people have been flocking to his house to see it over the past few days. However, some experts on ancient artifacts believe that this seal is most likely a fake. Some even assert that genuine Qing Dynasty seals are made of black bronze or gold, while the discovered artifact is merely ordinary metal.

However, some people suspect that the seal is fake and argue that similar souvenirs in the shape of a seal are readily available on online marketplaces. (Image: Internet)

Some netizens also expressed skepticism about the artifact's value and shared that similar souvenirs featuring the seal could easily be purchased at souvenir shops.

PV