14 DAY TRIAL // A recent paper in the journal Chinese Cultural Relics announces the discovery of an ancient tomb in the city of Datong, in the country's Shanxi province. The tomb, estimated to be about 1,000 years old, was first discovered back in 2011.
Archaeologists have been excavating it ever since, and in the paper describing it, they explain that it is unlike anything they have ever seen before. Thus, they say that it is beautifully decorated and that the murals on its walls offer an insight into how life was like in ancient China.
Not your regular ancient tomb
As detailed in the journal Chinese Cultural Relics, the tomb sits close to a railway station in the city of Datong. Unlike the majority of the ancient tombs archaeologists have until now had the chance to study, it has a circular shape.
The tomb's ceiling, now damaged, is decorated with images of stars and constellations. Interestingly enough, whoever created this ceiling did not use yellow paint to depict the celestial bodies. Thus, the stars were painted using a bright red color.
What's more, they have dots connecting them. These dots were added to the representation of the stars to show exactly which constellations the artist was looking to represent. A photo of the ceiling was shared with the public and is included in the gallery below.
The tomb's walls are beautifully decorated as well, Live Science informs. Thus, they all show murals that researchers say were created to offer an insight into the life of the person for whom the tomb was built about 1,000 years ago.
Of these murals, some show scenes from the day-to-day life of the individual for whom the tomb was meant. Others show people holding fruit and drinks. It is believed that these people used to be the servants of the tomb's occupant.
Interestingly enough, there are also images of a black and white cat and of a black and white dog. This is yet to be confirmed, but specialists believe that these animals were included in the murals because they used to be the pets of the tomb's occupant.
Hence the fact that both the cat and the dog are shown wearing a red ribbon around their necks and the fact that the animals are surrounded by both men and women who, centuries ago, were probably put in charge of looking after them and tending to their every need.
Whom was this tomb meant for?
Seeing how the tomb was robbed quite a while ago and no human remains were left inside it at the time archaeologists got around to exploring it, it's impossible to tell who the tomb's occupant used to be. More so since the name of the tomb's owner was destroyed during the robbery.
What is clear is that this individual was quite wealthy and enjoyed a high status in society. Otherwise, they could not have afforded to build this tomb for themselves. Judging by the murals found inside the tomb, it is believed that the tomb's owner belonged to the ethnic group Han Chinese.
Having found a 3.1-foot (0.94-meter) tall statue inside the tomb, researchers argue that this work of art shows the man who was supposed to spend eternity resting in this location. The statue, a photo of which is included in the gallery below, shows a man dressed in a long robe and sitting on a platform.
