Shaliangpo Han Tombs Cluster

Shaliangpo Han Tombs Cluster

The Shaliangpo Han Tombs Cluster is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Shaliangpo Han Tombs Cluster

Shaliangpo Han Tombs Cluster (Sixth Batch National Heritage)

Era: Han Dynasty

Address: Southeast of Jifengyao Village, Nanhépu Township, Tianzhen County

The Shaliangpo Han Tombs Cluster in Tianzhen County, Datong City, is situated on the Shaliangpo hill southeast of Jiajiayao Village, approximately 5 kilometers south of Tianzhen County town. There are 43 existing Han-era tombs of soldiers and officers with preserved earthen mounds. It has been determined through testing that these tombs are nearly 2,000 years old, dating to the Eastern Han period and served as burial grounds for frontier guards. The cluster spans an area about 5 kilometers from north to south and 2.5 kilometers from east to west. The earthen mounds are generally 5 to 8 meters high, with perimeters of around 50 to 90 meters. All were built by compacting yellow earth. Numerous tombs of varying sizes are scattered across the seemingly endless sandy slope, with distances between them ranging from over 30 meters to three to five kilometers. Their layout is well arranged, forming a large-scale tomb complex.

The Han tombs are distributed in a north-south orientation and arranged in an east-west formation. They stretch 5 kilometers from north to south and 2.5 kilometers from east to west. Currently, 41 visible tombs are present on the surface, varying in height from 8 to 12 meters and in circumference from 50 to 90 meters. In 1978, a flood exposed one Han tomb, and the coffin was C14 dated to (BP) 2340±100 years. A bronze mirror with grass-leaf patterns from the Eastern Han Dynasty was also unearthed. Between 1991 and 1992, two Han tombs and 44 smaller Han tombs were excavated, yielding a collection of Han Dynasty pottery and bronze ware.

Jifengyao Village: Jifengyao Village…… More details about Jifengyao Village++

Further Reading:

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units