What green stone was prized in ancient China, and used to make burial suits for royalty?
Rhinoceroses in ancient China like a wasp or a scorpion". Rhinoceros and buffalo hide was also recorded to have been used for the inner coffin of the emperor, as it was supposed to preserve the body, similar in function to Han Dynasty jade burial suits. In the "Manshu" (Tang dynasty) it states that rhino and buffalo hide was used for saddles, armor and weapons of Nanzhao troops in Yunnan. From an early date, rhinoceros horn was believed to have special properties, in particular that it would react by fizzing if it came into contact with poison, and so cups made out of rhinoceros horn
Rhinoceroses in ancient China horn was also sometimes used to make other objects, such as medicine / snuff bottles, hair pins, belt hooks, and dress toggles. Due to high demand for rhinoceros horn medicine, rhinoceros horn carvings were ground down for medicine. Whilst the popularity of libation cups has aided their survival, it appears far fewer of these other examples have survived. Rhinoceroses in ancient China The existence of rhinoceroses in ancient China is attested both by archaeological evidence and by references in ancient Chinese literature. Depictions of rhinoceroses in ancient Chinese art are typically very accurate and lifelike, suggesting that they were modelled