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It is very natural for ancient tombs to bury people, so when archaeologists carry out archaeological excavations, they should naturally unearth the bones of the tomb owner. However, unfortunately, in the tombs of the nobles of the Western Zhou and Shang Dynasties in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty or earlier, we rarely hear of the excavation of the bones of the master. And the higher the specification of the tomb, the lower the probability of unearthing the bones.
Why?
Many people naturally think of the factor of tomb robbery. Yes, this kind of ancient tomb is very old, ancient China was frequently in war, and the former dynasty lost its authority, and the ancient tomb will naturally become a place for "gold lieutenants" to show their skills. There are not many ancient tombs that were stolen and excavated in ancient China, let alone these ancient tombs of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties.
Cao Cao was keen to let his subordinates work as a lieutenant of touching gold
The ancient tomb was stolen, and the bones of the owner were naturally doomed. The ancients regarded death as life, and often buried many precious artifacts for themselves. In order to snatch the treasure on the bones of their masters, tomb robbers are naturally not very polite to them, which is also a big reason why it is difficult to preserve the bones.
However, in addition to the reasons for the tomb robbery, archaeologists have given two other important reasons.
The first is air. Often, the higher the identity of the owner of the tomb, the larger the size of the burial chamber, and the more funerary products. If the burial chamber space is large, a lot of air will enter. In this way, the bones of the owner of the tomb come into contact with the air, and oxidation will occur over time. This is also one reason why it is difficult for bones to be preserved in later generations.
In addition to air, the metallic elements in the funerary products are the second reason that cannot be ignored.
During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, the nobles mostly used bronze as daily utensils. At that time, there was a strict ceremonial system, stipulating the number and size of bronzes used by people of different ranks and identities. The ancients often regarded death as life, and after death, the utensils they used before their deaths were also buried, including a large number of bronzes. Moreover, the higher the identity of the tomb owner, the greater the number of burial bronzes.
Well, here's the problem.
As we all know, in addition to copper itself, the smelting of bronze also requires a certain proportion of lead, tin and other metals. Over time, the lead and tin metal elements contained in the bronze vessel will react chemically, and come into contact with the bones of the tomb owner, decomposing the calcium and other components of the corpse. Because of the oxidation of air and the decomposition of lead and tin metals, it will make it difficult to preserve bones.
The above two reasons are also the reasons why the bones of the owners of noble tombs during the Shang and Zhou Dynasties are difficult to preserve.
At that time, the nobles were expecting to bring enough funerary goods with them and continue to enjoy them in another world. After death, the bodies of these people are actually difficult to preserve, and they end up being decomposed and excavated.
Is that irony?
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The picture in the article comes from the Internet.