Home>News Center>China
       
 

3000-year-old tomb found... by accident
(China Daily)
Updated: 2004-05-18 23:18

Chinese archaeologists accidentally discovered a cemetery that may include the oldest tomb ever discovered of the Western Zhou Dynasty (11th century to 771 BC).

This week's find in Qishan County, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province may shed light on the mystifying history of the dynasty.

The four centuries of its rule mark the basis for ancient China's political and cultural systems.

The systems that originated then prevailed until the 19th century, said Li Xueqin, a historian with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

To date, historians have mainly depended on documents rather than relics as no other large-sized tombs from the period are known except for a few that were raided and empty.

The discovered cemetery covers an area of more than 115 acres and includes about 10 tombs built into the side of the Fenghuang Mountain in Qishan County, near the city of Baoji in the province.

The tombs are aligned in the shape of a pyramid, with the biggest one at the top. The number of tombs increases on the lower levels, said sources with the Shaanxi provincial Archaeological Research Institute.

Archaeologists from Peking University, Shaanxi provincial and Baoji municipal archaeological institutes are surveying the site.

They have allegedly discovered that the tomb at the top has four paths leading underground that lead into the tomb-room, said Zhu Fenghan, historian and director of the National Museum of China.

"A tomb with four paths was of an extremely high rank. The tomb of a Shang Dynasty (16th-11th century BC) king, unearthed in Central China's Henan Province, also had four paths. Other tombs found of the period had two paths or less," he added.

Li said the biggest tomb "very possibly belonged to a Zhou Dynasty king."

"If such a tomb still remains, it most possibly lies at the site," said Li, who is leading a state-level research project on Chinese history before the Christian era.

He said Qishan County, where the cemetery was found, was the capital of the Western Zhou Dynasty while Fenghuang Mountain was considered by the royal family to be the spot where its rise to power began.

The Xi'an-based Shaanxi Daily reported finds of pieces of oracle bones and tortoise shells at the cemetery.

The bones and shells were reportedly inscribed with writings bearing such meanings as "Wenwang"(King Wenwang) or "Zhougong Zhen (Lord of the Zhou had his fortune told).

Remains of a city wall, more than 700 metres long, was also discovered near the cemetery, said the newspaper.

Archaeologists are waiting for the State Administration of Cultural Heritage to decide whether excavation will be carried out or not.

"If there has been no damage done to the cemetery we might preserve it as it has been,'' said Zhu, who is to visit the site next week.

But Li said excavations will inevitably follow as it may be too difficult to protect relics covering such a large area from future damage.

 
  Today's Top News     Top China News
 

Gandhi walks away from Indian PM post

 

   
 

Taipei urged not to misjudge Beijing's resolve

 

   
 

WHO: China's SARS outbreak contained

 

   
 

US witness: 'Cover-up' at Iraq Abu Ghraib

 

   
 

Azerbaijan plane crashes, 7 dead

 

   
 

US delegation to Taiwan opposed

 

   
  US delegation to Taiwan opposed
   
  3000-year-old tomb found... by accident
   
  Fight ongoing against random land uses
   
  Taipei urged not to misjudge Beijing's resolve
   
  Finance firms lure top new talent
   
  Nation, US tackle fishing lawlessness
   
 
  Go to Another Section  
 
 
  Story Tools  
   
  News Talk  
  When will china have direct elections?  
Advertisement
         
主站蜘蛛池模板: 成人动漫3d在线观看| 波多野结衣69| 国产在线一区视频| 2020年亚洲天天爽天天噜| 女人洗澡一级特黄毛片| 中文字幕高清免费不卡视频| 日韩欧美在线观看视频| 亚洲人成人无码网www国产| 欧美高清69hd| 伊人色综合一区二区三区| 精品无码人妻一区二区三区不卡| 国产乱子伦视频在线观看| 黑人与欧洲性大战| 国产福利片在线| 100款夜间禁用b站软件下载 | 亚洲综合第一区| 精品一区精品二区| 又粗又黑又大的吊av| 色天使久久综合网天天| 国产婷婷综合在线视频| 欧美jizz18| 国产精品99久久精品爆乳| 2021国产麻豆剧传媒剧情最新| 国模冰冰双人炮gogo| 99精品热视频| 天堂/在线中文在线资源官网 | 欧美日韩国产精品va| 亚洲综合色丁香麻豆| 男人天堂手机在线版| 免费国产综合视频在线看| 精品无码一区二区三区水蜜桃| 四虎成年永久免费网站| 色偷偷偷久久伊人大杳蕉| 国产主播一区二区| 韩国色三级伦不卡高清在线观看| 国产无遮挡又黄又爽在线观看| 六月丁香综合网| 国产精品久久久久久福利| 色聚网久久综合| 国产精品jizz在线观看直播| 豆奶视频最新官网|