Yidigang Tombs

Yidigang Tomb Cluster

The Yidigang Tomb Cluster is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Yidigang Tomb Site in Suizhou’s Zengdu District is located in the eastern urban area of Suizhou City, covering an area of approximately 180,000 square meters. It primarily consists of noble tombs of the Zeng State from the mid-Spring and Autumn period to the early and mid-Warring States period.

In 1994, three Zeng State tombs were excavated in the southwestern part of the site, uncovering a wealth of pottery, bronze, and jade artifacts. Many of the bronze items featured inscriptions, which offered valuable evidence for determining the identities of the tomb occupants. Based on the structure of the tombs and the characteristics of the burial objects, the three tombs are dated to the late phase of the late Spring and Autumn period. Some of the inscriptions on the bronze ware also introduced new material regarding self-referential object names—terms commonly found in Chu-style bronze artifacts—which is also a characteristic of Chu-style bronzes after the late Spring and Autumn period.

The Yidigang Ancient Tomb Cluster is a Provincial Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit. This tomb group served as the public cemetery of the Sui State during the Spring and Autumn period, and Ji Liang, a renowned thinker of that era, was buried here.

The exploration work at the Suizhou Yidigang Tomb Cluster has been successfully completed, with a total of 19 tombs discovered. Due to multiple planned construction projects within the tomb cluster area, exploration was carried out under the organization of the Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, involving the Suizhou Museum, Zengdu District Archaeological Team, Suixian County Archaeological Team, and Shiyan Museum. Over the course of two months of exploration—excluding areas covered by ponds and residential buildings—a total of 64,000 square meters were surveyed, leading to the discovery of 19 tombs. These include 17 earthen pit tombs from the Eastern Zhou period and 2 brick-chambered tombs from the Eastern Han period. The tombs range in size, measuring approximately 2 to 5 meters in length, 1 to 3 meters in width, and 1 to 2.2 meters in depth.

On October 7, 2019, the Yidigang Tomb Cluster was included in the eighth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

Source: Hubei Provincial Department of Cultural Relics

Further Reading:

· Third Batch of Hubei Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Eighth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units