Ancient Tombs of Zuocun

Ancient Tombs of Zuocun

The ancient tombs of Zuocun are protected cultural heritage sites of Hebei Province.

The ancient Han tombs of Zuocun are located about 200 meters south of Zuocun Village, approximately ten kilometers southwest of the seat of Nanhe County, Xingtai City, Hebei Province.

The ancient Han tomb group consists of three tombs. The one in the southeast of the village is designated Tomb No. 1, the one in the southwest is Tomb No. 2, and the one directly south is Tomb No. 3.

Tomb No. 1: Located about 200 meters southeast of Zuocun, this tomb was accidentally discovered in the winter of 1976 when villagers were leveling the land. A total of 17 relics were unearthed, including one bronze wine warmer with a zipper-like design, four bronze mirrors, one bronze tiger-head stove, one bronze incense burner, one gilded bronze tripod, one gilded Boshan censer, and one gilded long-necked pot. These artifacts are now preserved at the Cultural Relics Department of the Xingtai Municipal Bureau of Culture. Additionally, broken pottery fragments were found. Provincial-level authentication identified these relics as dating back to the Western Han Dynasty.

Tomb No. 2: Located about 150 meters southwest of Zuocun Village, in the winter of 1982, villagers removed the burial mound, exposing two tomb chambers. The chambers at the northern ends on both sides remained untouched, but the southern chamber on the western side had been damaged. Unearthed artifacts included two bronze swords, one lampstand, one Boshan censer, and three jade discs, all of which have since been accessioned into museum collections.

Tomb No. 3: Located about 200 meters directly south of Zuocun Village, this tomb remains well-preserved. Its burial mound stands 8 meters high and covers an area of approximately 400 square meters.

There are no historical records of the ancient tombs of Zuocun in any past literature. Authentication based on artifacts unearthed from Tomb No. 1 and Tomb No. 2 identifies them as Western Han Dynasty tombs. Locally, they are referred to as “Earth Mounds” or “Golden Horse Mounds,” among other names.

Judging from the artifacts unearthed from Tomb No. 1 and Tomb No. 2, this site is an ancient tomb complex from the Western Han Dynasty. The tomb owners held relatively high status, and the burial objects were quite valuable, making it a site of significant historical, scientific, and artistic worth. In particular, the bronze wine warmer with a zipper-like design, identified by the Hebei Provincial Bureau of Cultural Relics as a national first-class treasure, has been included in the nationally published “Dictionary of Chinese Cultural Relics Masterpieces.”

This Han tomb complex was listed as a county-level key cultural heritage protection unit in July 1984.

It was designated as a key cultural heritage protection unit of Hebei Province in 1995.

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Key Cultural Heritage Protection Units of Hebei Province