Posted on 09/03/2011 11:45:43 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
Lying side by side, these horses have drawn a chariot in an ancient tomb for the past 3,000 years, which was recently discovered.
The equine bones, found in the Chinese city of Luoyang, have remained undisturbed since the early Western Zhou dynasty.
Archaeologists believe the 12 horses lying on their sides show the animals were slaughtered before burial, not buried alive.
As well as the horses and five chariots, bronzes and ceramics have escaped the clutches of history's grave robbers.
Archaeologists are convinced that the perfectly preserved tomb belongs to an official or a scholar of standing, given the pottery, metal weaponry and inscriptions.
The tomb, a vertical earthen pit, has excited historians since it was discovered during the construction of a hospital.
It gives an unprecedented insight into the funeral customs in the early Western Zhou dynasty.
It was the time of the great Chinese philosophers of ancient times, including Confucius.
The latest find is reminiscent of the famous terracotta army of thousands of preserved soldiers, which was discovered in 1974 in the Lintong district.
It had also remained undisturbed for thousands of years.
(Excerpt) Read more at metro.co.uk ...
I think the excuse was the mercury contamination in the soil (which I believe was the way that the site was verified). The surviving legend is, the main burial chamber was built to resemble his capital city, and mercury was used to mimic the rivers.
My pleasure!
Thanks!
Although modern Chinese are new to the idea of being careful with poisonous substances, I think this tomb has them scared.
We’ve all heard about mercury rivers and lakes, the Emperor’s curse, and mechanical deathtraps as reasons why that man-made mountain is still untapped.
I don’t care. Get a squad of ‘suicide archeologists’ to go in with biohazzard suits.
Let’s get er done!
Couldn’t they use acoustic, electric, magnetic or other technology to at least map the features under the surface?
As I recall from seeing pictures, the man-made mountain which holds the tomb is pretty damn big and I don’t know if the devices you name would function to map something as deep as the tomb probably lies.
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