Southern Dynasties Ancient Tomb Cluster

　　Rong’an County is situated in the northern part of central Guangxi, covering an area of 2.905 square kilometers with a population of 320,000 and is a mountainous region. Most areas of the county consist of sloping hills and ridges. With a long history, Rong’an was known as Rongzhou during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. Before the Qin and early Han dynasties and during the Three Kingdoms era, it was part of Tanzhong County. During the Tang, Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties, it was again known as Rongzhou. Even before the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Central Plains culture had already been introduced to the region. Through continuous migration from other areas and the blending of various ethnic groups, Rong’an has always been a thriving homeland for its people.

　　Among the ancient tombs discovered and excavated in Rong’an County, the majority are from the Southern Dynasties. From 1979 to 1997, in collaboration with the Autonomous Region Cultural Relics Work Team, the District Museum, and municipal and regional cultural heritage departments, ten Southern Dynasties tombs were excavated in various locations such as Anning Village and Muzhang Village in Daxiang Township, Hongwei Village and Dongxu Village in Dale Township, and Quantou Village in Fushi Town. These include earthen pit tombs and brick-chambered tombs. Their structures vary: single-chamber vaulted tombs with short passageways; rectangular brick-chambered tombs consisting of front, middle, and rear chambers; vertical earthen pit tombs; multi-chamber vaulted structures; and “convex”-shaped brick-chambered tombs. A rich array of artifacts have been unearthed, including twelve-breast-foot porcelain inkstones, talc land deed tablets, talc figurines, talc cups, talc pigs, porcelain bowls, chicken-head ewers, and pottery jars. Among the talc figurines, some are exquisitely carved with fine lines, delicate facial features, and natural drapery; others feature bold carving techniques with smooth lines; and some portray muscular builds with solemn expressions. The talc pigs resemble modern domestic pigs—with slightly upturned snouts, sturdy limbs, some being flat and elongated—strikingly lifelike and finely crafted. Currently, the museum collection includes 36 second-grade national cultural relics and 58 third-grade national cultural relics, most of which were excavated from Southern Dynasties tombs. This collection ranks first among all counties in Liuzhou City and Laibin City. These tombs are highly representative of Southern Dynasties burial sites in Guangxi and possess strong local characteristics, offering significant research value for the study of the region’s history and culture.

　　Rong’an County is located in northern Guangxi, where there is a narrow valley approximately 10 kilometers long and 3 kilometers wide. The Rong River flows from north to south through this valley. Anning Village in Daxiang Township is situated at the southern end of this valley. In 1979, local residents continuously unearthed red ancient bricks and various talc artifacts on the earthen slopes west of Huangjiazhai and Mujiazhai. Based on these clues, the district cultural relics work team conducted an investigation and discovered numerous exposed brick-chambered tombs. They also collected a batch of artifacts, confirming the existence of a Southern Dynasties tomb cluster. Between 1980 and 1982, the district cultural relics work team excavated and cleared six Southern Dynasties tombs, assigning them the codes Rong’an County M1, M2, M3, M4, M5, and M6.

　　Tomb M1 is a rectangular brick-chambered tomb. The main chamber is about 8 meters long and 2.2 meters wide, with a height of 2 meters from the floor to the ceiling. It consists of a passageway, main chamber, and offering platform. The arched ceiling is built with wedge-shaped bricks, and the floor is paved with two layers of bricks in red and gray, arranged in a herringbone pattern. The bricks measure 33 cm in length, 14 cm in width, and 6 cm in thickness. The front side of the bricks bears an impression of a person standing upright, wearing a long robe with both hands clasped in front of the chest holding a long staff. As the tomb was looted early on, only a series of human figurine bricks standing on the passageway and offering platform remain.

　　Tomb M2 is slightly “convex”-shaped, also a brick-chambered tomb. It has a passageway, main chamber, and offering platform, with a vertical cross-section resembling three-tiered steps. The tomb is 6.3 meters long, 2 meters wide, and 2 meters high, and also features a vaulted ceiling. The walls are constructed with double layers of red bricks arranged in patterns of three stretchers and one header repeated three times, and one group of four stretchers. The bricks measure 32 cm in length, 16 cm in width, and 6 cm in thickness. Near the entrance to the main chamber, small niches are set on either side above the doorway. The floor is paved with two layers of red bricks, with the upper layer arranged in a herringbone pattern and the lower layer laid horizontally and vertically. Artifacts unearthed include: porcelain bowls, talc cups, porcelain inkstones, talc inkstones, talc male and female figurines, talc pigs, talc land deed tablets. One land deed tablet measures 18.7 cm in length, 12.7 cm in width, and 2.2 cm in thickness. The inscription reads: “On the fourth day of the twelfth month in the year of Ji Hai, Qi Xi Commandery, Tanzhong County, Duxiang Zhixia Li, Tan Hua, of short life, now returns to the mound of the dead. Today, I purchase a residence in Qilidian of this commandery, measuring five mu in area, to establish a grave mound and bury myself. I pay ten million nine hundred ninety-nine thousand nine hundred coins. All things that take root within this boundary belong to the deceased. Completed today. Witnesses: Li Dingdu and Zhang Jiangu, who split the contract into halves for clarity, as per the law.”

　　Tomb M4 is a rectangular brick-chambered tomb, consisting of a front chamber, middle chamber, and rear chamber. The ceiling has collapsed. Judging from the accumulated wedge-shaped broken bricks inside, it was likely a vaulted tomb. The tomb is 7.60 meters long and 1.82–2.46 meters wide. The four walls are built with double layers of red bricks, each 31 cm long, 15 cm wide, and 5.2 cm thick, arranged in staggered courses. The outer side of the front wall of the front chamber has an additional horizontal single-brick layer. Inside the front wall of the front chamber and between the walls of the front, middle, and rear chambers, brick pillars are installed to reinforce the structure. The inner side of the rear wall of the rear chamber also has a central brick pillar to support inward pressure. The pillars are built in a one-stretcher-one-header pattern. The vertical cross-section of the tomb is in three-tiered steps. The walls are constructed with double red bricks in staggered courses, and the floor is paved with two layers of red bricks in a herringbone pattern. Unearthed artifacts include talc buckets, plates, talc pigs, and bronze mirrors.

　　Tomb M5 is a rectangular vertical earthen pit tomb, 5.2 meters long and 2 meters wide. The walls of the pit are straight, with the western wall partially damaged. A layer of charcoal about 32 cm thick surrounds the pit, and a large amount of charcoal blocks are piled inside. The charcoal layer shows a slight north-to-south incline. At the bottom of the pit are three horizontal grooves, equal in length to the width of the pit, each 10 cm wide and 15 cm deep. The grooves are filled with pure fine sandy soil, likely serving as drainage channels to collect seeping water and protect the coffin. This feature is relatively rare among tombs in Guangxi and neighboring regions, and its exact purpose remains unclear. A total of 22 artifacts were unearthed, including celadon ware, talc items, pottery, bronze mirrors, and gold objects.

　　Tomb M6 is a rectangular single-chamber brick tomb, 3.90 meters long and 1.20 meters wide, with a short passageway and a “convex”-shaped layout. The ceiling has collapsed, but the accumulation of many wedge-shaped bricks suggests it was originally a vaulted tomb. The remaining walls are 1.30 meters high. The north and south walls are built with single bricks in a three-stretcher-one-header pattern, while the rear wall is constructed with alternating flat and side bricks, with an additional inward-projecting brick column formed by side-standing bricks. The floor is paved with a single layer of bricks in a herringbone pattern. The bricks used for the walls and floor are plain. Two four-eared jars were found at the northern end of the tomb chamber.

　　Although the Niuapatang Southern Dynasties Tomb Cluster in Hongwei Village, Dongxiang Township, eastern Rong’an County, has not been excavated, the artifacts and their types unearthed by locals during routine farming activities are identical to those found in the Anning Southern Dynasties Tomb Cluster. Therefore, this site is confirmed to be another Southern Dynasties ancient tomb cluster.

　　The Jiulong Southern Dynasties Ancient Tomb in Fushi Town, Rong’an County, was excavated and cleared in 1997. It is a rectangular brick-chambered tomb consisting of a front chamber, middle chamber, and rear chamber, measuring 6.34 meters long and 2.68–4.23 meters wide. Its structure is the same as Tomb M4 mentioned above. The difference is that this tomb features richly decorated floral-patterned bricks. Two inscribed talc plaques were unearthed—one side of each bears Taoist talisman inscriptions, while the other sides are inscribed with “正南方” (Due South) and “西南方” (Southwest) respectively. Since previously excavated Southern Dynasties tombs were fully backfilled, few people have ever seen their structures or experienced their historical aura. The public has thus been unable to appreciate the customs, funeral rites, and unique masonry artistry of the Southern Dynasties from 1,500 years ago, nor admire the diverse decorative tomb bricks. In light of these factors, as well as the distinct local characteristics, unique southern-style tomb structure, overall preservation, and favorable geographic location of the Jiulong Southern Dynasties Tomb, experts from the district and city museums proposed the construction of a Southern Dynasties Tomb Cultural Relics Exhibition Hall on the original excavation site.