China News Service, Taiyuan, February 17 (Gao Yuqing and Hu Jian) The Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology released archaeological results on the 17th. When archaeologists excavated a construction project site in Datong, Shanxi Province, they cleared a total of 58 tombs of the Tang Dynasty. 306 pieces (sets) of various funerary objects such as pottery, porcelain, and copper were unearthed.
Photo courtesy of Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology
Zhijiabao Tang Dynasty Cemetery in Pingcheng District is located in the northwest of Zhijiabao Village in the south of Datong City.
From June to September 2022, in order to cooperate with the construction of the urban shantytown reconstruction project on the north side of Kaiyuan Street in Datong City, after approval by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, the Datong City Institute of Archaeology will conduct archaeological excavations within the scope of the construction project land.
Photo courtesy of Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology unearthed bronze mirror combination
According to reports, the cemetery is located on a high terrain, high in the north and low in the south.
The distribution of the tombs is concentrated and the state of preservation is good.
The shape of the tombs is mainly small and medium-sized earth cave tombs. According to the plane shape of the tomb, it can be divided into three types: rectangular, trapezoidal and irregular. They are all shaft-type tomb passages, most of which have steps. Or west, most of the north of the tomb chamber has a "concave"-shaped raw earth coffin bed, on which wooden coffins or no coffins are placed, and the forms include single burial, couple burial, and multiple burials.
The stone epitaph unearthed in M47 is provided by the Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology
The most important thing is the excavation of the two tombs M47 and M90. The stone epitaphs of "the eleventh year of Zhenyuan (795)" and "the fifth year of Yuanhe (810)" were unearthed, which is the archaeological dating of the Tang Dynasty cemetery in Zhijiabao. A date scale is provided, and the twelve zodiac patterns are engraved on the cover, which is a kneeling or standing animal head human body, which is vivid, delicate and lifelike.
Photo courtesy of the Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology in the M90 tomb
Among them, M90 is the joint burial tomb of husband and wife. It is the only single-chamber brick tomb in this excavation. It faces south and is composed of tomb passages, corridors, tomb chambers, and ear chambers, with high specifications.
The plan of the tomb is circular, and there are exquisite brick-carved imitation wood structures in the four corners, which can provide physical evidence for the study of the above-ground wooden buildings in the Tang Dynasty.
The east, west, and north walls of the tomb are equipped with semicircular brick platforms protruding from the tomb walls. This is an isolated example in the materials of Tang tombs published in Shanxi, and it is of great significance for the study of funeral customs at that time.
In addition, an ear chamber was excavated on the east wall of the tomb, and inside it was built of bricks. A single coffin and the skeleton of a minor female were placed in it.
Photo courtesy of Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology
The funerary objects are mainly tower-shaped pots and owl-head pots, which are mainly placed in the southwest corner or west side of the tomb.
The tower-shaped jar is composed of a base, a jar, and a lid. It is tall and unique in shape. The surface of the jar is pasted with plastic animal faces, flower stamens, and wishful cloud patterns. It is more popular in late tombs and has typical era and regional characteristics.
In addition, a small number of yellow and white glazed jugs, yellow and white glazed bowls, bronze mirrors, etc. were also unearthed, which also have typical characteristics of the middle and late Tang Dynasties.
Photo courtesy of Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology unearthed porcelain combination
Hou Xiaogang, the person in charge of the excavation project, said that this is the largest number of Tang tombs excavated in Datong area. It provides an accurate basis for the age and provides important information for understanding the politics, economy, culture and funeral customs of Yunzhou in the Tang Dynasty.
In addition, the M47 and M90 epitaphs are rich in content and have high historical value, which is of great significance to the study of local officials in the Tang Dynasty and the Chenglifang system in Yunzhou.
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