Archaeologists in central China’s Hunan Province have discovered a double burial tomb from the Ming Dynasty (1368–1644), according to the provincial institute of cultural relics and archaeology.
The tomb was discovered in Nanhe Village, Lixian County, and it contains two burial rooms with arched tops. According to Tan Yuanhui, an associate researcher at the institution, flower-themed murals were uncovered in the tomb, as were 16 characters of auspicious words in a niche in the tomb’s north chamber.
No coffins or funeral artifacts were found at the excavation site due to tomb raiding in previous dynasties. “But, based on the shape, scale, and murals found in the tomb, the tomb likely belonged to people of high social and economic status, based on its size, design, and murals,” added Zhou Hua with the county’s archaeological research and cultural relics protection center.