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A MYSTERIOUS unsealed 1,200-year-old tomb in China has revealed a stunning mural figure leaving researchers baffled.
Stunned archaeologists discovered the ancient Tang dynasty tomb on a mountain outside Taiyuan, the capital of China’s northern Shanxi province.
Rex
RexThe tomb is decorated with remarkable carvings depicting everyday life and it dates back to 618-907AD – or Europe’s dark ages.
In 2018, during road construction on a hillside in the area archaeologists stumbled upon the incredible find.
The excavations of this tomb were recently completed, and the findings were reported in June, according to Livescience.
A tombstone epitaph states its owner died at home in the 24th year of Kaiyuan (736AD) at the age of 63 along with his wife, Guo.
LiveScience cited an article from China’s state news agency Xinhua.
This article sheds light on the Tang dynasty which ruled much of central and eastern China from CE 618 to 907.
Inside the tomb, archeologists found murals vividly portraying scenes of daily life during the Tang period, including men threshing grain, making noodles, and engaging in other everyday tasks.
A bold, elaborate design marks the entrance. Three pairs of yellow-robed figures line the doorway and passage.
One mural shows a “Westerner” figure who appears to have long blonde hair and a beard.
The scene depicts the man leading camels.
The murals in the tomb are well-preserved and mainly show human figures under trees, LiveScience reports.
The pair at the door hold jade tablets, which Xinhua says reveals them to be “gatekeepers”.
A pair inside the portico appear to be welcoming visitors.
And two more figures just inside the tomb itself are guards armed with swords.
Mystical beasts – at least one of which is a dragon – weave between thick red banners, dividing the conical ceiling into four equal parts.
And 12 regularly-sized red-bordered panels stand beneath.
Many appear to show the same ethnic Han man, based on the consistency of his appearance and clothing.
These could be different stages of the unnamed tomb owner’s life and career.
But the Xinhua report says experts also speculate that the stylistic pictures may represent his particular “virtues”.
One shows the owner holding a ritualistic jade tablet. Another shows him facing a tomb. And in a third he’s bravely confronting a snake.
Others show him chopping wood and in one scene – without people – there’s a plant with wilting flowers.
Similar murals have been found in regions like Xinjiang, Shandong, Shaanxi, and Gansu.
Chinese archaeologists say the bold outlines, simple shading and two-dimensional designs make the tomb’s artwork distinct from other works from the same era.
The South China Morning Post quotes the director of the Jinyang Ancient City Archaeological Institute, Long Zhen, as saying the artistic style was similar to that found in the tomb of Prince Wang Shenzi.
Prince Wang rose through the ranks of administrators to become a military governor, chancellor and eventually anointed as a prince.
It comes as archaeologists uncovered a 2,000-year-old sarcophagus with perfectly-preserved ancient mummies inside.
The “unprecedented” discovery was made in the historic “tomb of Cerberus” in Naples, Italy.
The remains had been smothered in plant-based creams before they were locked in the chamber – which experts believe helped preserve the bodies.
The fascinating find supplied new and detailed evidence that reveals how Ancient Rome embalmed its own dead.
Upon unwrapping the shroud covering one of the bodies, the team discovered that the person was impeccably preserved.
Given the special attention paid to the deceased and the chronology of the grave goods found, it is suggested that he was the head of the family for whom the mausoleum was constructed.
Rex
Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology
English (US)