The site of the clan's tombs and houses is one of several archaeological sites dating to the Shang dynasty that have been found in Anyang.Image credit: Anyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
Posted on 01/23/2022 9:44:06 PM PST by SunkenCiv
The complex of 24 tombs was discovered at an archaeological site within the city of Anyang in Henan province, less than 2 miles (2.4 km) from the UNESCO World Heritage archaeological site of Yinxu at the city's center. The ruins there are from the ancient city of Yin, the capital of the Shang dynasty, which ruled between about 1600 B.C. to 1046 B.C. — the earliest dynasty ever recorded in China.
The newfound tomb complex includes several pits that hold war chariots, the remains of horses that drew them and the remains of warriors. Some of the warriors were wearing hats decorated with strings of shells when they died, while the foreheads of some of the horses were decorated with gold veneer and a bronze backing, according to a statement from the government's Xinhua news agency...
As a study at Penn State University notes, the practice of the "ritual suicide" of servants, or "volunteering" to be buried alive at the funerals of their high-status masters was common in Shang dynasty China.
Archaeologists from Anyang have excavated the site for about two years. So far, they have found the foundations of 18 ancient buildings, as well as 24 tombs and burial pits for six chariots that also contain the remains of the sacrificed men and horses.
Archaeologists think the ancient site was a major living center for a clan called "Ce." The Ce people seem to have been buried there as well, indicated by the finely-made bronze vessels inscribed with the Chinese character "Ce" found in some of those tombs.
Kong said there was a record of a "Ce" clan in the oracle bone inscriptions found at Yingxu, which were written on turtle shells and animal bones and comprise the earliest known Chinese writings.
(Excerpt) Read more at livescience.com ...
The site of the clan's tombs and houses is one of several archaeological sites dating to the Shang dynasty that have been found in Anyang.Image credit: Anyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology
As a study at Penn State University notes, the practice of the “ritual suicide” of servants, or “volunteering” to be buried alive at the funerals of their high-status masters was common in Shang dynasty China.
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I’ll keep my day job, thanks.
That, or they were doctors reporting about a viral outbreak they government didn’t want revealed.
Gold plated pension plans look pretty good, and selling out to the government to get one seems as old as the hills.
Poor innocent horses. They didn’t volunteer to die slowly.
Must have been a great honor, or, they were drunk, or, they were merely flunkies dressed up as warriors.
“Must have been a great honor, or, they were drunk, or, they were merely flunkies dressed up as warriors.”
The Incas or one of the tribes in Mexico, people there would battle for the ‘honor’ of being thrown into a live volcano.
My thoughts exactly... Volunteering to die is not a good job. It’s a DEAD end job... 🤓
There’s no future in it........................
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