The British Museum has the largest collection of cultural relics in China, with more than 23,000 cultural relics and 2,000 pieces on display for a long time, including paintings, jade, bronzes, pottery, prints and decorations, which can be said to have witnessed the history of China. From the Opium War, British troops entered China and fought from Guangdong to Beijing. Later, they signed a treaty to give up their rights in exchange for temporary peace. Later, the British and French allied forces entered the Yuanmingyuan, burning and looting. The fire burned for three days and nights, and so many exquisite buildings, pavilions and various western-style buildings were destroyed by the fire. Yuanmingyuan is the place where the Qing emperors collected rare treasures of past dynasties, including famous paintings, calligraphy and peak works of art, but all these treasures were looted by a war and shipped back to China.
At present, the British Museum also has Dunhuang frescoes on display, which were cut by people who entered the Mogao Grottoes at that time and fortunately brought out of the country. At that time, the Taoist King exposed the location of the Tibetan Sutra Cave, and many treasures and murals were looted. The Tang tombs in Xinjiang were also seriously looted by western grave robbers. Not to mention the dead wood paid by King Gaochang at that time, many gold jewels were discovered by foreign countries and all were dug up and transported away. It is said that dozens of camels are exhausted in order to transport them. In fact, there are not many noble tombs that have been excavated in China, either by the peasant army at the end of the dynasty as the starting capital, or by the invaders during the war.
Our country is not allowed to actively explore ancient tombs, and now they are basically discovered by engineering construction.