A three-dimensional imperial seal "Dragon Seal Tianzi (the son of the heaven)" has been found in Taiyuan, the capital of north China's Shanxi Province.

The main characteristic of the seal is that its handle is engraved in the dragon shape. Such a seal is rare in China's seal sculpture history.

According to archeologists, the seal probably imitates the imperial seal of ancient emperors. The imitation time was estimated in the reign of Emperor Qianlong (1736-1795) of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

(Xinhua 04/24/2001)