A tomb dating back 5,000 years, which archaeologists believe may belong an early Chinese king, has been discovered in central China.
The grave of what archaeologists believe may be the king of a prehistoric society have been discovered at the Wangzhuang ruins in the city of Yongcheng in Henan province, with over 350 artifacts unearthed to date.
"The newly discovered tomb might belong to a ruler of this kind of complex society in western Henan," Li Xinwei, Professor of the Institute of Archaeology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told Newsweek.
"In Chinese archaeology, we call the early complex societies around
5,000 bp (before present) archaic states," Li said. "It's among the biggest tombs in that period with abundant offerings, including more than 200 ceramic vessels for feasting and jade jewelry."
"The ceramic vessels show elements from eastern, southern and western regions, indicating intensive interaction with other complex societies."
The importance of the tomb is also highlighted by Zhu Guanghua, associate professor at Capital Normal University.
"The latest discovery indicates that the Wangzhuang ruins are not an ordinary settlement, but rather the capital of a prehistoric kingdom," Zhu was quoted as saying by China's Xinhua News Agency.
The tomb, measuring 4.52 to 4.8 meters (15 to 15.5 feet) in length and 3.47 to 3.68 meters (11.5 to 12 feet) in width, features both inner and outer coffins. It contains an abundance of burial items, including over 100 pieces of pottery, nearly 200 small jade ornaments, bone tools and animal remains such as pig mandibles symbolizing wealth.
The ancient tomb was once severely damaged, the archaeologists say.
"The tomb owner's remains were removed, and many significant artifacts were looted," Zhu said.
"Most of the tomb owner's skeletal remains within the wooden coffin are missing, with only a few toe bones left. Small jade ornaments were scattered both inside and outside the coffin, and many stone ceremonial blades were deliberately broken," the archaeologist added
Since 2023, experts from the Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Heritage and Archaeology, and Capital Normal University in Beijing, along with some other institutions, have been jointly conducting excavations at the Wangzhuang site.
Hundreds of burial artifacts, including exquisite pottery, stone tools and jade artifacts have been unearthed this year. The richness of the burial objects is closely linked to the size of the tomb, indicating that a clear social hierarchy and class stratification had already emerged.
Artifacts uncovered at the Wangzhuang site indicate a cultural melting pot in prehistoric times, where diverse cultures intersected and exchanged influences.
"The ancient residents were clearly influenced by the cultures of the eastern region and the central region, as well as cultural elements from the Yangtze River basin," Li said.
He spoke of the importance of the site for Chinese and global history.
"Its discoveries testify to the initial exchanges of early Chinese civilization, providing evidence for the nature of diversity of the Chinese civilization. This site offers important examples for studying the cultural fusion across different prehistoric regions."