Mythical animal. Excavated in Xujialing, Xichuan county, Henan Province, in 1990, Chu State, Eastern Zhou, Spring and Autumn period, 770 - 476 BCE. Bronze inlaid with malachite, height 48 cm, Institute of Archeology and Cultural Relics, Henan Province. © The Israel Museum

Detail: head. Mythical animal. Excavated in Xujialing, Xichuan county, Henan Province, in 1990, Chu State, Eastern Zhou, Spring and Autumn period, 770 - 476 BCE. Bronze inlaid with malachite, height 48 cm, Institute of Archeology and Cultural Relics, Henan Province. © The Israel Museum

Detail: body. Mythical animal. Excavated in Xujialing, Xichuan county, Henan Province, in 1990, Chu State, Eastern Zhou, Spring and Autumn period, 770 - 476 BCE. Bronze inlaid with malachite, height 48 cm, Institute of Archeology and Cultural Relics, Henan Province. © The Israel Museum

This fantastical animal, which is one of a pair, may have served as a drum stand. It is composed of a tiger's body and a dragon's head, on which six small dragons writhe. On its back stands another animal, a dragon emerging from its mouth. The body is inlaid with malachite in the form of dragons, phoenixes, and spirals, which add to the feeling of frenzied movement.