According to local sources, the rectangular, single-chamber tomb, buried less than a meter below the surface, was found by workers bulldozing ground near the ancient road in Ximen Village, Xucheng Town of Xuwen which falls under jurisdiction of Guangdong province.

Thirty-one pieces of jewelry, including a copper necklace and a copper mirror, were excavated from the tomb, said the sources.

Experts concluded that the tomb occupant was a woman, and various pieces of jewelry used in her burial were imported luxury items of the time and also the hot trade goods on the sea route.

The findings will be of great value for study of the life, economy and trade situation in the early Han Dynasty, said the experts.

Some 1,000 tombs from the same dynasty have been found in Xuwen since the early 1960s.

(People’s Daily 11/09/2000)