Foreword: Eggs, which are now commonplace daily necessities, are still very "noble" in ancient mainland china, and many times they can only be eaten by royal families or rich families. Many ordinary people do not have the opportunity to eat eggs, and because of this, in ancient times, eggs were also a symbol of status and status.
In today's ancient tomb excavation process, the thing that experts are most afraid of finding is eggs. The reason is actually relatively simple, eggs are not something that ordinary people can eat in ancient times, let alone take it to accompany the funeral. But because of this, many experts are also very afraid of finding eggs, because it is very likely that the tomb has been stolen.
Eggs dating back 2,800 years were found
The earliest egg unearthed in the mainland was during the Western Zhou Dynasty, and a clay pot containing eggs was found in a Western Zhou ancient tomb in Jiangsu Province, which also surprised and delighted experts. The worry is how to dig them out of the tomb, and it is happy that this is the earliest egg found on the mainland, which also shows that this is the tomb of the Western Zhou nobles.
After the experts discovered the clay pots, everyone was really surprised. Because it is full of eggs, but the eggs themselves are very thin because of their age, the eggshell is very thin, which also makes it very difficult to excavate and preserve these eggs. Because the eggs in the clay pots have been petrified for a long time, in order to better protect these eggs, the Nanjing Museum did not take these eggs out of the clay pots, but has always maintained the original appearance of the excavation for exhibition and storage.
It can be said that this is also the best respect for these eggs, not only so that these eggs can be preserved, but also so that they can continue to be passed on. Because this is the earliest egg found in the mainland, it also has a lot of historical research value. The reason why experts dare not touch these eggs is because their outer skin is very thin and will break when touched.
Tombs with eggs are generally of high specification
Eggs represented identity and status in ancient times, because it was difficult for the poor to eat eggs, and the general eaters of eggs were people of great status in ancient times. The discovery of eggs in the funerary products also shows that the owner of the tomb was very fond of eggs before he died, and he hopes that he can eat this delicacy after death.
But it is precisely because of the discovery of eggs in the tomb that experts will be very worried, because this shows that the owner of the tomb is either rich or expensive, not an ordinary family. That is to say, the specifications of the tomb are very high, it is very likely that such tombs have been found by tomb robbers, and even some of the older tombs have been patronized by many waves of tomb robbers, and there are few artifacts with research value in the tombs.
Eggs are really hard to dig and preserve
The fate of the eggs found in the ancient tombs, in the early days of archaeology on the mainland, was indeed not very good, because of the age, although there were some petrifications, but it was still very fragile. If you touch them directly with your hand, you will make them break directly, so that they will not be well preserved.
The excavation of these eggs is very difficult, like the eggs in the Western Zhou tombs, mainly because of the protection of clay pots, which can still be preserved in a space. Without the protection of the container, the eggs in the tomb can be easily broken, so after the archaeological community touches the egg, it is generally afraid to touch it or dare not touch it.
To sum up: although eggs are not scarce in modern times, they are rare and expensive in ancient times, and even can only be enjoyed by princes and nobles. It is precisely because of this that the egg has become a criterion for determining the identity of the owner of the tomb. At the same time, the excavation and preservation of eggs, even with the current science and technology, is not very good to complete, but also a very headache for the archaeological community.
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