Posted on 01/28/2003 12:47:20 PM PST by vannrox
| Chinese dig unearths secrets of general with nine tombs John Gittings Tuesday January 14, 2003 The Guardian The legend of a Chinese general who had nine tombs - so that no one would know which one he was buried in - has come alive at an archaeological site in central China. The general's mausoleum was found last year at Zaoyang, in Hubei province, where a line of mounds had long been known by locals as the "ridge of nine". Details have now been published about the opening a fortnight ago of the elaborate coffin in which he was buried at least 2,300 years ago, at the end of the southern Chu dynasty in China's "warring states" period (475-221BC). The general's name remains a mystery, but it may be revealed when a large bundle of bamboo slips - used for writing - have been deciphered. The general lay with his hands crossed on his chest and a bronze sword by his side. His coffin was suspended inside a larger enclosing coffin, and painted bright red. Earlier, the remains of a battle chariot had been discovered to the west of the tomb. According to the legend, the general died on the battlefield. Fearing that the body would be dug up by his enemies, his followers built a line of nine tombs and placed it in one of them. Eight mounds had long been known at the site, but the ninth was discovered only last year when archaeologists moved in. The ridge lies in the way of a new motorway and must be excavated before work can begin. A new burst of Chinese economic development, with huge investment in roads, railways and new towns, has led to a wave of archaeological discoveries. The media has created an "archaeology fever" over the Zaoyang excavation, and the opening of the general's coffin was shown live on television. When a second tomb was opened, there was a fierce argument over what should be done with the coffin. "After heated debate," the China Daily said yesterday, "archaeologists jumped into the tomb and prised open the coffin with a crowbar." The dig has unearthed nearly 700 items, including bronze tripods, cauldrons and lamps, as well as 33 sets of carriages and horses, but none was of outstanding quality. Among the more important finds were more than 80 musical instruments, including a set of bronze chimes, drums, bells, reed pipes with the original reeds, and a 25-stringed zither - the first of its kind to be discovered complete. Perhaps in an indication of the haste in which the general was buried, none of the bronzes bears any inscription which might reveal his identity. The answer may lie in the bamboo slips unearthed in the ninth tomb. They are said to bear black writing upon them, but are "as soft as boiled noodles after being submerged in muddy water for a long time". Wrapped in plastic film, they have been taken to the provincial capital of Wuhan, where experts will try to stabilise them before deciphering their contents. Only then could the mystery of the general with nine tombs finally be solved.
Guardian Unlimited © Guardian Newspapers Limited 2003 |
These Chinese had/have wavy hair and high nose bridges. It is my opinion that they mixed with the Caucasians that were in the Tarim Basin of China.(The mummies found in China) There were groups of people migrating everywhere from that basin due to a sustained drought. I think the European counter part to the Han-Hakka are the Scytians and maybe even the Picts of Scotland. (Also see Xiongnu)
The Hakka were ethnically cleansed through-out their migratory journey south and the folks with the most obvious Caucasion features were routinely killed.
The emperors of the Han Chinese dynasty all had red-headed 'magic' men.
I think the Hakka used to be a tribe along with a host of different tribes in what is now southern and western china. And yes, I believe these people did have caucasian features when they first came in contact with the Han(dominant ethnic group in China). There are several other tribes of note in the south. The people there were and to a limited extent still are really dark skinned with distinct negroid features. I'm assuming all of these different groups migrated to the east asian mainland sometime in the last inter-glacial period. Anyway, by the time of the warring states period (300 BC), the Han had already entered the Iron Age, all the other tribes were still neolithic. I read accounts of how some of the southern states would routinely raid the settlements of these stone age peoples, kill off all the men, and take the women as slaves...etc. Basically by the end of the Han Dynasty (200 AD) 99% of these tribes were either totally destroyed, or they just blended into the dominant Han population. So the Hakka of today are considered as Han Chinese, and they look compeletly mongoloid, except for the 20% of their population who has wavy hair.
The emperors of the Han Chinese dynasty all had red-headed 'magic' men.
During the Han Dynasty, the red headed people probably came from central asia or persia. They are probably not indigenous to China itself. Unless you're referring to some northern Chinese people with red-tinged hair.
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