Follow-up on "Mysterious Symbol Signs Appear Along the Jingmen Railway": Suzhou Numerals Sign Finds a Home at the Railway Museum

December 31, 2018, Legal Evening News, Page 06

The ramp sign featuring Suzhou numerals preserved in the China Railway Museum

The Suzhou numerals ramp sign, once located on the Jingmen Railway between Xihuangcun and Shijingshan. To see the incised characters clearly, Wang Wei cleared away the surface soil and accidentally squeezed and broke his finger. Photographed in December 2016

Legal Evening News, which had previously reported on a large number of railway cultural relics, ceased publication in 2019. However, its final issue in 2018 still followed up on the three Suzhou numerals signs discovered by Wang Wei along the Jingmen line two years prior. Upon verification, the newly erected sign at the Railway Museum is indeed the gradient sign previously reported by Legal Evening News. Although it was not protected in its original location, it has found a good final home. Finally, gratitude goes to Reporter Cui for his extraordinary contributions to cultural relic preservation, as well as to Legal Evening News for its efforts and "urging" role in advancing cultural relic protection, which has helped many relics gain official cultural status and protection, while also bringing the truth behind many acts of cultural and relic destruction to light.

Legal Evening News Report (Reporter Cui Yifei): Recently, railway culture scholar Wang Wei visited the East Suburb branch of the China Railway Museum and discovered a newly erected Suzhou numerals sign in the exhibition area. Upon comparison, it is confirmed to be a historical relic from the roadside of the Jingmen Railway. This concrete sign, used to indicate railway gradients, has a history of over a century and was buried under construction waste and garbage before settling at the museum. The Jingmen Railway is a branch line of the Jingzhang Railway, designed and constructed under the supervision of Jeme Tien Yau in 1906 and opened to traffic in 1908. Originally running from Xizhimen Station to Mentougou Railway Station, it was later extended to Muchengjian, and the route remains in use today. In February 2017, Wang Wei discovered the square-headed concrete sign half-buried in a pile of debris mixed with garbage along the roadside of the Jingmen Railway; it measured 60.5 centimeters wide and 17 centimeters thick. The west side of the concrete sign displayed the symbols "〢〥〇". After digging down 10 centimeters with an engineering shovel, the character "下" (down) was revealed beneath the symbols, while the east side displayed the incised characters "〡二〥上". Wang Wei explained that this is a railway gradient sign, and the incised symbols upon it are China's unique Suzhou numerals. Originating as early Chinese folk "commercial numerals" derived from ancient counting rods in Suzhou, they were widely used in olden times for recording numbers in commerce, handicraft industries, pawnshops, and accounting. Wang Wei noted that although Suzhou numerals have been out of use for many years, they remain a unique witness to the early construction of the Jingzhang Railway.

On February 7, 2017, Legal Evening News published an article titled "Mysterious Symbol Signs Appear Along the Jingmen Railway," detailing the buried condition of this Suzhou numerals sign. This subsequently drew the attention of cultural heritage departments, who promptly cleared it out, though where it was transferred for preservation remained unknown until now. Recently, while visiting the East Suburb branch of the China Railway Museum, Wang Wei found that this Suzhou numerals sign from the Jingmen branch line now stands proudly in the outdoor exhibition area, with both sides displaying the complete and clear Suzhou numerals for free public viewing. Wang Wei told reporters that there are around 20 railway-related Suzhou numerals signs discovered in the Beijing region.

Text by Reporter Cui Yifei

Legal Evening News announced its suspension of publication starting January 1, 2019, with its editorial team integrated into the Beijing Youth Daily.

Gratitude to Legal Evening News and Reporter Cui Yifei for their long-term, continuous reporting on railway cultural relics.

Salute to Legal Evening News!