Extraction of information on lacquerware ornaments and patterns
On May 18, the archaeological excavation project of the "Wuwangdun" tomb, a major project of "Archaeological China", which has attracted much attention, released the results of the second phase of excavation to the society. Combined with the comprehensive analysis of the scale, structure, unearthed written materials and historical documents of the tomb, the identity of the owner of the tomb of Wuwangdun may be the King of Chu Kaolie recorded in the "Historical Records of the Chu Family".
Bronze inscription (Chu Wangyu made a gold bowl for the year to taste)
The archaeological excavation of the coffin chamber is progressing in an orderly manner. The excavation of the four side rooms in the north and west (numbered in the north 1, 2, west 1 and 2 respectively) has been completed, and the excavation work of the east room 1 and south 2 is underway, extracting more than 3,000 pieces (groups) of various cultural relics, as well as a large number of animal and plant remains. The first and second rooms of the north were seriously disturbed, and more than 600 pieces (groups) of utensils were still extracted, most of which were stringed instruments such as the qin, and the beams of the unearthed bell frame were preserved intact, and there were 14 hanging holes on them, which coincided with the number of bronze bells recovered. Lacquer boxes, ear cups, plates, beans, drums, jade, Huang, Pei and a large number of copper arrows were unearthed in the first and second rooms of the south. The relics of the first and second rooms of the west are mainly lacquered wooden figurines, and wooden carts, musical instruments and a small number of bamboo slips have also been found. There are more than 200 individuals in wooden figurines, divided into different postures such as standing posture and sitting posture, and some wooden figurines wear wooden swords. The east room is dominated by bronzes, and more than 150 pieces (groups) of bronzes have been extracted, and the utensils include Ding, Gui, Bang, Dun, Fang, Pot, Ning, Bean, Jian, Kettle, Plate, Zun, etc., and the bronze ritual combination is preserved completely; Together with the bronzes, there are more than 100 pieces of lacquered wooden dining and banquet living utensils such as cases, figurines, boxes, and couches.
The main picture of the tomb of King Wu is engraved
The main picture of the tomb of King Wudun is a bronze tripod of cultural relics
Remarkable results have been achieved in the protection of unearthed cultural relics and multidisciplinary research. The research team built an atomization sprinkler system at the archaeological excavation site to effectively control the micro-environment in the coffin, and avoid the cracking and deformation of organic cultural relics such as coffin boards and lacquered wood due to the increase in temperature and water evaporation. Emergency protection measures were taken in time for all kinds of cultural relics extracted into the room, and the samples of perishable organic matter cultural relics were stored in the low-oxygen sterilization chamber to control the humidity and oxygen to slow down their deterioration; A large number of extracted wooden figurines have been cleaned and moisturized, and the surface fabric of the garment figurines has been strengthened in situ by silk protein technology. The lacquer ornamentation and patterns were extracted by curved micro-X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy to provide a scientific basis for subsequent restoration. At the same time, through interdisciplinary and multi-platform collaboration, the research team systematically carried out the identification and residue analysis of animal and plant remains, among which more than 10 kinds of animals such as cattle, pigs and dogs were identified in animal bones, and melons and fruits such as gourds, melons, plums, chestnuts, crops such as millet, millet and rice, spice crops such as pepper and mallow were found, as well as the traditional Chinese medicine plant Evodia officinalis.
Huainan City strengthens work security, cooperates with archaeological work needs to start the expansion of cultural relics protection rooms and the renovation of the surrounding environment of tombs in a timely manner, further improves security measures, sets up card points at important entry and exit intersections, installs electronic fences in the excavation area, and is equipped with more than 30 public security officers and security personnel on duty 24 hours a day, so as to achieve fully enclosed and no dead end management, and ensure the safety of the excavation site and cultural relics warehouse. During the "May Day" period, the Huainan City Museum held a temporary exhibition of "pictures of the excavation progress of Wuwangdun and some physical objects", which introduced the latest archaeological progress of Wuwangdun Tomb to the public in a timely manner, which was widely praised.
On May 14, 2024, Anhui Province organized an expert demonstration meeting, inviting experts from the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Peking University, Wuhan University, China Association for the Protection of Historic Sites and other units to conduct in-depth research and discussion on the age, nature and value connotation of the Wuwangdun Tomb. Experts believe that the shape, ornamentation, and combination of cultural relics unearthed from the tomb of Wuwangdun have typical characteristics of Chu culture in the late Warring States period. Combined with the comprehensive analysis of the scale, structure, unearthed written materials and historical documents of the tomb, the identity of the owner of the tomb of Wuwangdun may be the King of Chu Kaolie recorded in the "Historical Records of the Chu Family". The archaeological achievements of Wuwangdun Tomb vividly show the splendid achievements of Chinese civilization, and the archaeology and protection and utilization of Wuwangdun Tomb will play an important role in promoting the creative transformation and innovative development of China's excellent traditional culture.
In the next step, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage will continue to promote the archaeological research and cultural relics protection of Wuwangdun Tomb with high standards, timely report the latest archaeological discoveries and research results, and respond to social concerns. (Reporter Huang Nana, Zheng Qiangqiang)
The unearthed condition of the pig bone in the copper tripod
Lacquer case
Lacquered ear cups