Yi People's Sky-Pointing Tombs

　　The Yi People's Sky-Pointing Tombs are situated on two small hilltops in Guo'ounaiju, Alimi Village, Longgou Township, Guli Area, Zhaojue County. They lie approximately 7 kilometers south of the Guli Work Committee and about 4 kilometers north of the seat of Longgou Township government. Judging from the terrain and landforms of the tomb site and its surroundings, valleys lie to the north and south, while the valley terraces at the foot of the mountain are used for farming. To the east lies the picturesque Shuogalada, and to the west stands the mystical Jiulidebo (Eagle-Perched Mountain). The road from Zhaojue County to the Guli Work Committee runs through this area, which is steeped in many mysterious legends.

　　The Yi People's Sky-Pointing Tombs are ancient tombs distributed across Yunnan, Guizhou, and Sichuan. Their shapes can generally be divided into three types: circular, single-circular-tiered, and triple-circular-tiered pyramid structures. The latter consists of three tiers—large, medium, and small—stacked together, with the top tier built with stones and an opening facing the sky. The single-circular-tiered type comes in two varieties: one has a circular flat surface at the top with a stone-carved opening facing the sky, while the other has its circular top surface filled with earth. The ring-shaped Sky-Pointing Tombs resemble well railings, with the ring opening directed skyward. Hence, they are collectively referred to as Sky-Pointing Tombs. They served as observatories or astronomical platforms for studying celestial bodies and stars (as noted in the 1985 book *A Major Discovery in Archaeoastronomy—The Structure and Function of Yi People's Sky-Pointing Tombs*, included in the *Collected Essays on Yi Culture Studies* published by Yunnan People's Publishing House, authored by Liu YaohHan and Lu Yang). The recently discovered Yi Sky-Pointing Tombs at Guo'ounaiju in Zhaojue are precisely of the single-circular-tiered, ring-opening-skyward variety. Their structure and design are highly unique.

　　A total of eight Yi Sky-Pointing Tombs have been discovered at Guo'ounaiju, arranged from east to west.

　　On one small hilltop to the east of the road, two tombs were found. Tomb M1 has a diameter of 1.90 meters and was looted long ago. Tomb M2, with a diameter of 1.60 meters, is relatively well-preserved. Both tombs are circular in shape, with their openings facing the sky. It is speculated that before burial, a circular pit was dug into the ground, and several natural stone slabs were vertically embedded to form a circular burial chamber. The body, skeletal remains, or ashes were then placed inside, and the structure was covered with earth to form a circular earthen mound with the opening facing upward. Alternatively, after digging the circular pit and setting up the stone chamber, firewood for cremation was piled inside, the body was placed atop it and burned, and finally the site was filled with earth. The fill soil was not fully added, leaving the ring opening deliberately facing the sky. Since these tombs have not yet been excavated, details about unearthed artifacts remain unknown. The earthen mound of Tomb M1 has a diameter of 4.40 meters and a remaining height of 0.54 meters, with the tomb walls constructed from seven stone slabs. Tomb M2’s mound is 3.70 meters in diameter and about 0.60 meters high, built with nine stone slabs.

　　On another hilltop to the west of the road, six densely distributed small tombs of the same type were found. Due to thick overgrowth of grass, measurements were difficult to obtain. The two tomb sites are about 100 meters apart.

　　The distribution of tombs here is extremely dense. From the exposed stone slabs of the tomb walls, it can be seen that the overall structure of the tombs on the western side of the road differs somewhat from those on the eastern side. First, the two tombs on the eastern side are spaced 2 meters apart, whereas the six on the western side are tightly packed with almost zero spacing, even sharing some tomb wall slabs. Second, the earthen mounds of the eastern tombs are more distinct, with each having its own mound, while the six western tombs have less obvious mounds. It is unclear whether the original six tombs all had mounds. It has also been observed that the stone slabs used in tomb construction were natural flagstones, roughly trimmed, then vertically embedded in the circular pit to form the burial chamber. Human remains or ashes were placed inside, and the site was finally covered with earth. No signs of processing or polishing were found on the construction slabs, and the sizes and thicknesses of the slabs vary.

　　Since no trial excavation has been conducted at the Guo'ounaiju Yi Sky-Pointing Tombs, the preservation status and specific cultural contents within the tombs remain unclear. As such, the ethnic identity and time period of the tomb occupants cannot yet be determined. Therefore, further archaeological surveys and excavations are urgently needed at this site.

　　Local Yi farmers in the vicinity say that Guo'ounaiju was once the dwelling place of the Shama Zimo (local chieftains) of the eastern Liangshan region, referred to as “Zimo Chihuo” (Yi Chieftain Tombs). “Zimo” originally meant king, tribal chief, or leader, and later evolved to mean tusi (hereditary native chieftain). “Chihuo” means cremation tomb. It is believed that this was the burial site of the Shama Zimo before A’zhi Ni’ayi, the eldest son of the A’zhi Ni’wei (the A’ family tusi of Shuixi, Guizhou), succeeded to the throne. Given the natural environment and feng shui of the area, it is considered a favorable location suitable for human habitation.