Over 1,100 ancient tombs discovered in China's Sichuan

CHENGDU -- Archaeologists have found more than 1,100 tombs dating back to the late Shang Dynasty (c.16th century-11th century BC) and the early Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24) in Yanyuan county, Southwest China's Sichuan province.

Over 5,000 artifacts including pottery, bronzeware, ironware, goldware, and silverware have been unearthed from the Laolongtou ruins site since an excavation launched in April 2020, according to the cultural relics and archaeology research institute of Chengdu, capital of Sichuan.

Archaeologists said that most of the pottery are jars with ear handles. Highlights among the bronzeware include a set of intact textile equipment, a three-wheeled bronze carriage which is believed one of the earliest models of its kind in China, and diverse branch-like bronzeware which indicate the unique local belief and worship.

"The excavation is of great significance for the study of the development of bronze culture in southwestern Sichuan and western Yunnan, and provides evidence for the exchanges among ethnic groups in Southwest China," said Zhou Zhiqing, deputy head of the institute.