Investigations show the region has 56 tombs dating back to the Han (206 BC-220 AD), Tang (618-907), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. To date, 17 tombs have been unearthed, seven with brick structures and the rest in earthen form.

The majority of tombs built in the Han Dynasty had five or three chambers made of brick. Archaeologists confirmed these tombs date back to late Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220). Many had been robbed. This accorded with historical records of frequent wars in the late Eastern Han Dynasty.

Research results showed the shape of tombs and funerary objects were different from those in other parts of Beijing.

It suggested that Yanqing, a strategic point between central China and the northern grasslands, had been a cultural link between the two regions, said Wang Qinglin, a research fellow of the Beijing Municipal Research Institute of Cultural Relics.

Some archaeologists believe there was a relatively big city near Yanqing in ancient times.

(Xinhua News Agency June 7, 2003)