Brief information on Astana Tombs  

40 kilometers from Turpan city in the Gobi Desert of northern Gaochang are the remarkable Astana Tombs. These were used as a public cemetery for the inhabitants of Gaochang from 273 in the Western Jin Dynasty to 778 in the Tang Dynasty. Thousands of priceless historical relics have been unearthed here including mummies, writings, inscriptions, paintings, earthen figurines, and artifacts of stone, pottery, wood, bronze, iron, gold, silver, as well as ancient coins and cotton, silk, and wool. With so many artifacts and examples of social history from a period covering 500 years, the Astana Tombs have been called Gaochang’s ‘Living Historical Archives’ and an ‘Underground Museum’.

The Astana Tombs served as the graveyard for the citizens of Gaochang from 273-778 A.D. The residents here varied from high rank government officials and great generals to soldiers and civilians. The cemetery was divided by family and each body had a small brick placed next to it with the deceased’s name and other particulars. Each tomb may be entered via a slope of about 10 meters and the earth chamber within is over 2 meters high and 4 meters wide with a flat ceiling or a dome. The dead were placed on an earthen Kang or a simple wooden bed at the back of the chamber.  They wore cotton or silk clothes and each had a wooden bar in his hands. Their faces were covered by pieces of cloth. Around them lay models of pavilions, towers, horses, carts, parades, pens, ink and musical instruments or some food including grapes, melons, dumplings, and pancakes. These things were prepared for the residents to enjoy in another world. The back walls of some chambers were decorated with paintings of figures, birds, animals, flowers and landscapes.

*You can download the bilingual note to show it to a taxi driver or someone else to find your way to Astana Tombs if you plan to visit Astana Tombs and have language problems.

   

Location:Turpan, Xinjiang Province
Address:in the Gobi Desert in the north of Gaochang, 40 kilometers away from Turpan city
Prices:20