Ancient Chinese Art
This is an excavation photo of work on a tomb at Anyang, in the northern part of Henan province. This excavation was started in 1934, and although grave robbers had taken the most valuable treasures, there were many carvings and vessels in the pit. One interesting object found was a hair brush used for painting. Inscriptions on oracle bones found here explained the presence of 164 human skeletons interred with the king--90 were given proper coffins or ornaments, but 74 were human sacrifices of enemy prisoners of war. These were either beheaded or cut in two and laid out along the southern ramp in groups according to age.
Excavation photo: Tomb No. 1001 at Anyang, late Shang Dynasty, ca 1,200 BCE. Henan province. Courtesy Academia Sinica, Republic of Taiwan. Asian Art Museum of San Francisco