Some things you'd expect to find on a farm. A 17th century document in a near-dead language is not one of them.
But at his farm in Linxi, Hebei Province, a man surnamed Wu has carefully been preserving an imperial edict written during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) by one of its greatest rulers, the Kangxi Emperor, kankanews.com reported Sunday.
Dated September 24, 1684, the 1.2-meter-long document contains text in both Chinese and Manchu, language of the ruling tribe of the Qing dynasty.
Originating in what is now Northeast China, there are only 10 native speakers of Manchu left, according to 2015 statistics from UNESCO.
Yang Zunyi, a local historian, said the edict was issued by the emperor to Wu Chenglong, then magistrate of Nanchuan county, Chongqing, in praise of his public service.
The edict also praised Wu's late wife and his second wife for their homemaking skills.
Local records show the Wus enjoyed prestige during the Qing dynasty, with six family members holding official positions.
It was not mentioned how the farmer Wu acquired the edict or whether he was a relative of the late magistrate.
Netizens praised the preserved document. "[I] have never seen such beautiful calligraphy before. Nice!" wrote "shuiyiyangdenvren" on qq.com.
"Hurry and hand it over! It belongs to the State," wrote "buzhidaoshishui."
