南昌西汉海昏侯墓位于南昌市新建区大塘坪乡观西村老裘村民小组东北约500米的墎墩山。2011年至今的海昏侯墓考古工作，得到文化和旅游部、国家文物局和当地政府的高度重视，并以“一流的考古，一流的保护，一流的展示”为目标，按照申报世界文化遗产的标准进行。

一、全新理念下的海昏侯墓考古

首先，海昏侯墓考古工作，考古队没有按照惯例，直奔主题，集中力量发掘主墓。而是先进行顶层设计，确立以聚落考古、大遗址考古为思路的南昌海昏侯墓考古工作的技术路线。

在2011年先进行大面积的调查和勘探工作，发现了海昏侯墓园、紫金城城址及其周围庞大的墓葬群。这样就把海昏侯墓和海昏侯国都邑遗址联系起来，使整个海昏侯墓考古工作采用聚落考古、大遗址考古方法进行，使海昏侯国遗址的考古工作得以有计划、有步骤地实施和推进。

2012-2013年，实施墓园的考古发掘工作。2014—2015年，进行主墓发掘。2016—2017年，进行海昏侯刘贺墓主棺内棺、五号祔葬墓主棺的实验室考古工作；启动青铜器、玉器、金器、漆木器、简牍的文物保护和修复工作。2018年至今，进行海昏侯刘贺墓园2号墓的发掘。

第二，在考古工作的不同阶段，针对各个发掘对象，都要先期制定详细的发掘方案和预案，在报请国家文物局批复后，方能具体实施。同时依靠已发掘的汉代帝、王、侯陵墓的材料以及学术界已有的汉代研究成果，每一个阶段都有预判，从而保证整个发掘工作具有前瞻性、全局性和学术性。

比如，考古人员在清理主墓甬道两辆偶车时，发现了实用青铜錞于和青铜编铙，现场专家认为东汉画像石上经常出现诸侯王出行的鼓车题材，以山东长清孝堂山祠堂的“大王车出行图”为代表。并结合《周礼·地官·鼓人》：“以金錞和鼓”，《广雅》：“以金铙止鼓”的文献记载，推测除了有青铜錞于和编铙，应该还有鼓。考古人员按照这一思路，经过十分细致的清理，终于在靠近甬道入口的塌陷椁板边缘发现了木制鼓框残片和保存完好的髹漆木制鼓槌，给西汉列侯出行“金车、鼓车并用”的搭配组合找到了实物证据。

第三，海昏侯墓的考古发掘，本着“慎之又慎，确保文物万无一失”的原则，始终将文物的现场保护摆在首位。在提取遗物过程中，考古发掘人员和文物保护人员紧密合作，共同提出提取预案，共同参与到文物提取和保护工作中；广泛采用套箱提取进行实验室考古的方法，有效保护脆弱质文物和埋藏情况复杂的文物；提取出的文物都在考古工地的应急保护场所进行现场应急保护处置后，才进入工地文物保护工作用房，实施专门保护。

第四，此次发掘不是单纯地发掘墓葬本身而是将墓葬发掘与今后的展示利用、大遗址保护有机联系起来，为申报世界文化遗产创造条件。

比如墓内共出土铜钱约200万枚，重达10多吨，数量巨大，发掘过程中选取了摆放最清楚、排列最整齐、保存状况最好、约2吨重的一组进行套箱提取，就是为将来的展示服务。又比如对遗址进行了大规模的钻探，也是为大遗址保护和考古遗址公园的建设提供科学而充实的资料。

第五，海昏侯墓考古工作在国家文物局专家组的现场指导下，集全国各方面专家之力，特别是高校与科研单位的全面介入，并参与文物保护方案设计与实施，既强化对文物的现场提取和保护，也把合作延伸到实验室，取得了单纯依靠田野考古手段无法达到的效果。

第六、在整个考古和保护过程中，地球物理探测、GPS定位、电子全站仪布网测绘、地理信息系统（GIS系统）、航拍、三维扫描、延时摄影、数据库等数字化采集和记录手段，探伤、X光成像、红外扫描、高光谱、能谱分析等无损或微损分析检测技术，去离子水养护、泥土分离剂、薄荷醇、充氮保护和低氧气调链等文物提取和保护技术，蛋白质、孢粉、DNA基因等分析、检测技术均得到广泛运用，争取做到发掘精细化、资料影像化、信息数字化，保证考古发掘、文物保护、科学研究、展示利用的权威、规范和科学性。

如对整个海昏侯墓园进行了布网测绘，采用2米作为点距，5米作为线距，测控点多达9000多个，使海昏侯墓园内，任何一个地方，出土的任何一件遗物都有自己的三维坐标数据。又比如在主棺内棺未打开之前，运用X光成像技术了解内棺里遗骸和遗物的情况。采用能谱分析发现海昏侯刘贺遗骸下面是一张以铅钡为成分的包金丝缕琉璃席；北藏椁乐器库内的编磬是一架铁质编磬。采用红外扫描、高光谱技术获取和保留简牍、孔子衣镜上的文字、图像信息，为下一步的保护和释读、研究工作打下基础。《论语·知道》篇的篇名简，就是通过红外扫描技术发现的，从而初步判断海昏侯刘贺墓出土的竹书《论语》很可能就是失传1800年的齐论语；孔子衣镜上最早的孔子画像和最早的东王公形象也是通过高光谱技术获取的。充氮保护和低氧气调链技术的运用，就是一旦发现有机质的文物，包括尸体或者纺织品，就会放进低氧舱，无氧和低氧环境能够减缓文物被氧化破坏的过程，考古人员会带着氧气包在里面进行工作，这是中国在考古上首次使用航天科技手段，是文物保护技术上的一次全新尝试。再比如通过对浮选出的各类植物和树叶遗存的检测分析，发现西汉海昏侯刘贺墓园曾主要栽培侧柏和枫树营造墓园景观；木椁材质主要是松木、樟木、杉木和楠木；主棺材质为樟木；主椁室西室发现松烟墨；北藏椁粮库随葬粟、黍、稻、麻；西藏椁酒具库蒸煮器内残留物主要是芋头等等。

第七、长期以来，重大考古发现成果至少需要五六年后才举办展览与观众见面，而海昏侯墓考古发掘不仅在关键时间、关键节点进行电视直播，还尝试“边发掘、边保护、边展示”，让文物在确保安全的前提下第一时间呈现在公众眼前，为当代考古学走出“象牙塔”、迈向“公共考古”，提供了一条新思路。

专家认为，海昏侯墓的考古工作，理念先进、方法科学、计划周密、目标明确。发掘者始终重视文物的现场安全和文物信息的提取，重视展示利用与文物保护，注重多学科的介入，注重高科技手段的应用，考古发掘现场与文物保护井然有序，实验室考古及时细致、科学规范，是考古发掘与文物保护结合的成功范例，反映了我国田野考古的发展方向。

二、海昏侯墓考古的主要收获

到目前为止，海昏侯墓考古共勘探约400万平方米，发掘约1万平方米，出土各类文物1万余件（套），并通过种种证据证明墓主就是西汉海昏侯刘贺。

一、考古发现的南昌汉代海昏侯国遗址，真实、完整地展现了海昏侯国国都、历代海昏侯墓园、贵族和平民墓地的空间布局，是重要的国家级历史文化遗产，具有重大研究和展示利用价值。

紫金城城址东临赣江，北依鄱阳湖，平面呈曲尺形，总面积约3.6平方公里，为汉代海昏侯的都城。内城由东西两座小城组成，面积约12万平方米，发现大量高等级的建筑基址，为宫殿区，也就是宫城。城址特点鲜明。第一，城墙普遍保存完整，均为人工夯筑，为双重城墙，基宽约20米，局部高达20米，双重城墙间距达15米左右，四面城墙设置城门5处（含水门）。第二，城内交通网络水路与陆路并存，以水路为主，陆路为辅。在水路与陆路相接处，发现夯筑码头遗迹，岸上发现有大量的当时人活动的遗迹和遗物。

城址的西面和南面共发现花骨墩、祠堂岗、墎墩、舒家山4处有墓园的海昏侯墓葬区，与班固在《汉书》里记载的海昏侯国至少跨越了4代相印证。海昏侯的墓葬区外发现24处贵族和平民墓地。墓葬区总面积约1.4平方公里。

二、考古发现的第一代海昏侯刘贺墓园是我国迄今罕见的保存较完好、结构较完整、布局较清晰、拥有较完备祭祀遗存、内涵丰富的西汉列侯墓园。

海昏侯刘贺墓园呈梯形，以海昏侯刘贺及其夫人墓为中心建成，垣墙周长868米，共占地约4.6万平方米，由两座主墓、七座祔葬墓、一条外藏坑、祠堂、厢房和北、东门及其门阙等墓园的相关建筑构成，内有道路和排水遗存，其中祔葬墓不仅祔葬侯妾等女性家族成员，还祔葬有继承权的未成年男性，反映了西汉列侯的墓园制度，对研究西汉列侯墓园的园寝制度具有重大意义。

侯墓和侯夫人两座主墓东西并列，同茔异穴，共用一个东西长约100、南北宽约40米，总面积约4000平方米的礼制性高台建筑。该礼制性建筑由东西厢房、寝和祠堂构成，其中寝的基址平面呈方形，由4座平面呈“曲尺”形的夯土基址组成，边长约10米，面积约100平方米。祠堂为回廊形建筑，主体夯土基址呈“凹”形，其外围分布方形夯土基础，东西长约14、南北宽约10米，面积约140平方米。厢房分别位于高台建筑的东、西两侧，均为三开间的长方形回廊形建筑，每组长约27、宽约10米，面积约270平方米。

三、海昏侯刘贺墓由墓葬本体及车马坑构成，不仅是目前中国考古发掘的面积最大、保存最好、内涵最丰富，出土文物最多的汉代列侯墓葬，而且也是中国长江以南地区发现的唯一带有真车马陪葬坑的墓葬。

刘贺墓上有高达7米的覆斗形封土，下有坐北朝南的甲字形墓穴，墓穴内建有保存完好的、面积达400平方米的木构椁室。椁室由甬道、东西车库、藏椁、通道及主椁室构成。椁室中央为主椁室，东西长约7.4、南北宽约7、高约2.4、通高约3米，面积约51.8平方米，高出周围藏椁约0.6米。分成东、西室，中间有一门道。东室为“寝”，宽约4米，南部东、西两侧为窗，中间为门。西室为“堂”，宽约2.9米，南部西侧为窗，东侧为门，门宽约0.9米。主椁室北、东、西三面按功能区分环绕有藏椁，主椁室与藏椁之间辟有宽约0.7米的过道（为预留的“黄肠题凑”的位置，但下葬时未用，最终变为环绕主椁室的“徼道”），主椁室和墓道之间有甬道。甬道主要为乐车库，甬道东、西两侧为车马库，北藏椁自西向东为钱库、粮库、乐器库、酒具库，西藏椁从北往南为衣笥库、武库、文书档案库、娱乐用器库，东藏椁主要为厨具库（又称“食官”库）。墓室底部先用砂垫平，然后铺设枕木，枕木与枕木之间用砂、木碳、粘土进行填充、加固，在枕木之上铺设椁底板，主椁室底板为两层，椁室其它部分均一层底板，椁底板上一般都铺有一层竹席或草席。椁底板、承重的椁侧板均榫卯结构，椁侧板用木桩支护。椁侧板与墓壁之间的熟土二层台宽约1.2米，采用砂、木碳、粘土分层夯筑而成。椁顶板上面用木碳、砂、白胶泥封护，厚约0.7米。椁板上刻有工匠的姓氏、编号、尺寸等文字和记号。墓道南部与椁室相连区域用竹编铺底、护壁。椁室设计严密、结构复杂、建筑科学、功能清晰明确，呈居室化和宅院化特点，是考古发现的一座以“汉制”为代表的列侯标本墓，对于研究、认识西汉列侯等级葬制提供了难得的资料。

主棺位于主椁室东室的东北部，有内、外两重棺，放在下安4个木轮的棺床上，根据《仪礼·既夕礼》记载，推测为輁轴。外棺盖上放置3把玉具剑。内棺盖上彩绘漆画，并有纺织品痕迹。内、外棺之间的南部有大量金器、玉器和漆器。内棺内有墓主人遗骸痕迹，保存有牙齿。头部被镶玉璧的漆面罩覆盖，根据山东青岛土山屯147号汉墓发掘资料推测为“温明”。遗骸上整齐排列数块大小不等的玉璧，腰部有玉具剑、书刀各1把以及带钩、佩玉等。发现刻有“刘贺”名字的玉印1枚，并在刘贺腹部发现尚未消化的“香瓜子”。遗骸下有包金的丝缕琉璃席，琉璃席下等距放置20组金饼，每组5枚，约100枚。

车马坑东侧被主墓封土叠压，为主墓的外藏椁，使用真车马陪葬。平面呈长方形，坑北有一条不及坑底的斜坡道，总面积约80平方米。坑内木椁和加固木椁的柱子均腐朽殆尽，仅留有痕迹。从修建木椁时留下的熟土二层台和二层台上腐朽殆尽的椁顶板痕迹判断，椁室高约1米。出土实用高等级安车和轺车5辆，马匹约20匹。

四、迄今已出土的1万余件（套）文物，形象再现了西汉时期高等级贵族的奢华生活，具有极高的历史价值、艺术价值和科学价值。    

从发掘情况看，由于东晋时期的地震和南朝刘宋开始发生的鄱阳湖水南侵影响，椁室早年已坍塌，且充满着地下水，历次盗掘没有对墓葬造成大的破坏，遗物基本未被扰动，这在全国汉代高等级墓葬的发掘中是十分少见的。

第一，数千枚竹简和近百版木牍使多种古代文献二千年后重现，是我国简牍发现史上的又一次重大发现。5200多枚竹简涉及内容非常广泛，最主要的是儒家的经典，如《论语》、《易经》、《礼记》、《孝经》、《诗经》、《春秋》，同时还发现了最早的《六博棋谱》、当时作为《医书》的房中术以及《悼亡赋》。其中，《易经》的经文首先解释卦名的涵义，然后自《彖》传以下的内容与选择类《日书》类似，它虽然在排序上与传世《易经》相同，但又在内容上和传世《易经》差别较大。医书的内容与养生和房中术有关，它在马王堆帛书《天下至道谈》中记述的“八道”之上，增加“虚”“实”二道而成为“十道”，反映了房中术在西汉中期以后的发展。但在这所有竹简之中，最重要的发现是失传了1800多年的《齐论语》。

海昏侯墓出土的孔子屏风是一个双折式的屏风，由衣镜主屏和《衣镜赋》辅屏共同构成，上有孔子及其七位弟子的画像及传记。上面的孔子像，是目前我们能见到的、最早的孔子画像。上面的文字内容许多是抄录自司马迁的《史记》，是目前我们看到的有关《史记》的最早内容。同时，屏风的镜框上，我们还见到了最早的东王公形象。孔子屏风是海昏侯生前使用的实物，而不是冥器，是海昏侯刘贺“图史自镜”之物，它被随葬进海昏侯刘贺的墓葬，具有特殊意义。东汉的荀悦《申鉴》中有：“君子有三鉴：鉴乎前，鉴乎人，鉴乎镜。前惟训，人惟贤，镜惟明”。 唐太宗也曾说：“以铜为镜，可以正衣冠；以古为镜，可以知兴替；以人为镜，可以明得失”。孔子屏风上的衣镜可以“正衣冠”； 孔子及其弟子的圣迹贤语，能够“知兴替”； 孔子及其弟子的圣贤像，那就是人，从而“明得失”。

第二，出土的整套乐器，包括两架编钟、一架编磬、琴、瑟、排箫、笙和三十六尊伎乐木俑，形象再现了西汉列侯的用乐制度。特别是两架编钟、一架编磬和三十六尊伎乐俑反映了汉代继承《周礼》中规定“诸侯轩悬”（诸侯三面，缺南面，形似车舆，称为“轩悬”），乐舞“六佾”（36人）的乐悬、舞列制度。

第三，考古成功获得了汉代铜钱以1000文作为一个基础单位的重要信息，首次以考古方式证明“千钱一贯”的货币校量制度最迟起源于西汉中晚期，虽然它还处在初期和过渡阶段，并没有像唐宋以后那样确立为定制，但反映了西汉武帝之后储积钱币的制度。比如，出土的10余吨、约200万枚五铢钱，以1000枚为一串，每5串用木质封泥匣封缄，封泥钤印“昌邑”二字，匣上墨书“海昏侯家钱五仟”等文字。

第四，478件、重达115公斤的马蹄金、麟趾金、金饼和金板的出土是我国汉墓考古史上保存最完整、数量最集中的一次发现。马蹄金和麟趾金为西汉皇帝“协祥瑞”而制颁赐给诸侯王的纪念品，采用花丝镶嵌等细金工艺制作，有的分别带有“上”、“中”、“下”三字，有的还镶嵌琉璃。金饼和金板则是具有储藏功能的硬通货，它们作为墓主生前的储备黄金与西汉时期每年8月天子献酎饮酎祭祀宗庙时，诸侯王和列侯都要按封国人口数献黄金助祭，如所献黄金份量或成色不足，王削县，侯免国的酎金制度有关。

第五，大量工艺精湛的玉器和宝石（如透雕龙、虎、凤纹饰的韘形佩，玉璧，玉圭，玉环，玉剑具，玉舞人、玉珩、玉管组成的组玉佩，玉带钩，玉耳杯，玉印以及玛瑙、绿松石、琥珀等），错金银、包金、鎏金铜器（如车马器、编钟、博山炉、雁鱼灯、鼎、壶、樽、鋞、染炉、“火锅”、“蒸馏器”、铜镜、铜镇等），图案精美的漆器（如围棋盘、成套耳杯、扣银边的漆盘、贴金片的漆奁和漆樽、镶玉石和玛瑙的几案等），均显示出西汉时期手工业高超的工艺水平，是西汉列侯“事死如事生”的典型标本。诸多带有文字铭记的漆器和铜器，5辆实用安车、2辆偶乐车（可能与先秦时期的军乐有关）和大量车马器，反映了西汉时期的籍田、食官、车輿、出行、“物勒工名”等制度。

第六，骆驼形象的编钟笋簴，独角羊形象的银质当卢，双狼猎猪纹玉饰件，缠丝玛瑙（苏莱曼尼玛瑙），水晶以及马蹄金、麟趾金上镶嵌钠钙成分的琉璃等异域风格的文物，为研究汉代“丝绸之路”、中西文化交流提供了珍贵资料。

海昏侯刘贺墓虽然极尽奢华，具有王的规模，并带有皇帝的痕迹，但根据2006年湖北云梦睡虎地M77出土的西汉早期的《葬律》简的记载，他还是按列侯的规格下葬的，是汉武帝之后列侯葬制的典型代表。总之，海昏侯墓，不仅见证了西汉历史上第九个皇帝、第二代昌邑王、第一代海昏侯刘贺的传奇人生，而且也反映了西汉王朝繁荣灿烂的历史文化。

作者简介：

项目负责人杨军，为江西省文物考古研究院研究员，从事田野考古发掘与研究30多年。参加中美合作万年仙人洞–吊桶环遗址发掘；主持景德镇湖田窑址A、B、C、I、J、K、L区发掘，主持南昌西汉海昏侯墓、南昌火车站东晋墓、德安北宋壁画墓和李渡元代烧酒作坊遗址发掘。其中李渡元代烧酒作坊遗址获2002年全国十大考古发现、中国社会科学院六大考古发现和国家文物局田野考古三等奖，南昌西汉海昏侯墓获2015年全国十大考古发现、中国社会科学院六大考古发现、中国考古学会田野考古二等奖和首届中国考古大会考古资产保护金尊奖，南昌火车站东晋墓、德安北宋壁画墓入选2006年国家文物局重要考古发现。在国内外发表论文数十篇。

The cemetery of Western Han Marquis of Haihun is located in the Guodun Mountain, 500 meters northeast from the Laoqiu Village (a sub-group of the Guanxi Village) of the Datangping Town in the Xinjian District of Nanchang, China.

Since 2011, the excavation and protection of the Marquis of Haihun’s cemetery has been highly valued by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, National Cultural Heritage Administration of PRC, and local government. Aimed at carrying out the high-level excavation, protection, and exhibition, the project was conducted following the declaration standards for world cultural heritage.

Archaeology at the Cemetery of Western Han Marquis of Haihun: Innovative Approaches

First of all, the archeological work of the Marquis of Haihun’s cemetery did not follow the usual approach of concentrating the excavation on the main tomb. Instead, the researchers carried out a comprehensive settlement study of the mega-site.

In the process of the large-scale field survey of 2011, the Marquis of Haihun’s cemetery, the Zijin City site, and numerous graves in the surrounding areas were discovered, indicating the connection between the tomb of the Marquis of Haihun and the state under his control. By following the approaches of settlement archeology and large-site archaeology, the whole project could proceed systematically.

Between 2012 and 2013, researchers initiated the archaeological excavation at the cemetery. From 2014 to 2015, the excavation was carried out at the main tomb. In 2016 and 2017, archaeological laboratory work was conducted on materials from the inner coffin of the main coffin, and the main coffin of No. 5 affiliated tomb. Also, conservation and restoration work was conducted on bronze, jade, golden and, lacquer artifacts, and bamboo and wooden slips. Since 2018, the excavation work on the No. 2 tomb of the Marquis of Haihun cemetery has been in the process.

Second, at different stages of the work, detailed excavation plans were drawn-up in advance for each targeted excavation project, and were submitted to the NCHA for approval. Meanwhile, each stage of the work also relied on predictions based on excavation experience and existing research on other Han Dynasty tombs of emperors, kings, and marquises in order to assure that the work was conducted with foresight, integrity, and scholarship.

For example, when excavating the two miniature carriages along the passage of the main tomb, archaeologists discovered utilitarian bronze objects chun yu 錞于 cowry-jar-shaped vessels and a set of bronze nao bells. On-site experts believe that the drum-carriage theme often appeared on the carving stones in the Eastern Han Dynasty, represented by the stone carving King travelling by carriage at the ancestral hall on the Xiaotang Mountain in Changqing, Shandong. In combination with the written records in the Rites of Zhou and the Guangya, experts suggested that the chun yu and nao set should coexist with a drum. Following this clue, with delicate work, archaeologists finally revealed the remains of a wooden frame of a drum and well-preserved lacquered wooden drumsticks at the edge of the collapsed chamber plates near the entrance of the passage. The discovery provides solid evidence to the coexistence of the metal-adorned carriage and drum carriage when marquises went on inspection tours in the Western Han.

Third, the archeological excavation of the tomb has always followed the principle of “take steps carefully to ensure the safety of the cultural relics”, and the on-site protection of cultural relics has been prioritized. In the process of lifting artifacts, excavators and conservators collaborated in plan design and artifact collection and protection work. They utilized techniques of artifact block lifting for further lab analysis, to effectively protect fragile cultural relics and artifacts in complex contexts. All the collected relics went through damage-controlling protection in the emergency conservation facility before being sent to the conservation lab for further technical protection.

Fourth, rather than simply uncovering the tomb, this project systematically links the tomb excavation with future display and use, and the protection of large sites, creating conditions for the application for World Cultural Heritage.

For example, about 2 million copper coins were unearthed in the tomb, weighing more than 10 tons, and the quantity was huge. During excavation, a group of about 2 tons with the clearest arrangement, the most ordered alignment, and the most well-preserved condition was packed and lifted for exhibition in the future. Another example is the large-scale drilling survey of the site, in order to provide sufficient scientific information to protect the large sites and the construction of archeological sites park.

Fifth, under the on-site guidance of the NCHA’s expert team, the excavation involved experts in every field from across China, especially the full involvement of universities and scientific research institutes. They participated in the design and implementation of cultural relic protection, which not only secured the on-site artifact collection and protection, but also extended the collaboration between field work and laboratory analysis. The progress could not be achieved solely by field archaeological methods.

Sixth, in the process of excavation and conservation, a variety of digital data collection and recording technologies were applied, including geophysical prospecting, GPS positioning, electronic total station surveying and mapping, GIS, aerial photography, 3D scanning, and time-lapse photography. Non-invasive and micro-invasive analysis and testing technology include flaw detection, X-ray imaging, infrared scanning, hyperspectral imaging, and EDS. Relics collection and protection technologies included deionized water conservation, soil-separator, menthol, nitrogen-fill protection, and low-oxygen system. Protein, pollen, and DNA analyses were applied, too. All these methods made it possible for excavation refinement, data visualization, and information digitization, in order to ensure the authority, standard, and scientific integrity of archeological excavations, cultural relics protection, scientific research, and display and utilization.

For example, a GIS grid survey was established to map the entire cemetery, by deploying detection points every 2 meters and transect lines spaced 5 meters apart, with more than 9000 detection points in total. Archaeologists could then map every artifact in the cemetery by using the three-dimensional coordinate data from the survey. In another case, before opening the inner coffin of the Marquis of Haihun’s tomb, they applied X-ray imaging technique to understand the condition of the deceased and the remains. By EDS, a lead-barium glass mat with gold-wrapped thread was discovered under the deceased and a set of iron chime stones in the north chamber used for musical instrument storage. With infrared scanning and hyperspectral imaging, researchers were able to obtain and record the writing on bamboo and wooden slips and on the dressing mirror with an image of Confucius. All the information laid the foundation for future protection, deciphering, and research. By infrared scanning technique the title of Knowing the Way in the Analects was discovered, suggesting that the bamboo scripts of the Analects in the tomb are possibly the Analects of Qi, which has been missing for 1800 years. Hyperspectral imaging also helped us to obtain the earliest Confucius figure and the earliest King Father of the East image on the Confucius dressing mirror. The application of nitrogen-filled protection and low-oxygen system technology ensures that once organic relics are found, including corpses or textiles, they will be placed in a low-oxygen cabin. Anoxic and hypoxic environments can slow down the destruction of cultural relics through oxidation. Archaeologists bring oxygen bags to work inside. This is the first time that the aerospace technology is applied in archaeology in China, and it is a new attempt in the protection of cultural relics. The analysis on a variety of botanical remains through flotation showed that cedar and maple were the major plants in the cemetery. The materials of the wooden outer coffin chamber consisted mainly of pine, camphor, and Japanese cedar, and the main coffin was made of camphor wood. In the west room of the main chamber pine-soot inkstick was discovered, and in the northern food storage chamber, broomcorn and foxtail millet, rice, and hemp were found. Residues of taro in steaming vessels were found in a wine making storage in the western chamber.

Seventh, it usually takes five or six years for the public to have the chance of visiting the exhibitions with those major archaeological findings. The archaeological excavation of the Marquis of Haihun’s tomb was not only broadcast live on TV, but also an attempt was made to “examine, protect and display at the same time”, so that the cultural relics can be presented to the public as soon as possible under the premise of ensuring safety and provide a new idea for public archaeology.

Experts believe that the archeological work at the Marquis of Haihun’s tomb has advanced concepts and scientific methods thorough planning and clear goals. The excavators always attach great importance to the on-site safety of cultural relics and the extraction of artifact information, the display and protection of cultural relics, the interdisciplinary approaches, and the application of technological methods. The site excavation and the protection of cultural relics were in order. The laboratory archaeology was timely, meticulous, scientific, and standardized. It is a successful example of combining archeological excavations and cultural relics protection, which reflects the direction of field archaeology in China.

Important findings at the tomb of the Marquis of Haihun

So far, approximately 400 ha of area belonging to the tomb of the Marquis of Haihun has been surveyed. Archaeological excavation covered 1ha, yielding more than 10,000 pieces (sets) of various artifacts. All the evidence has proved that the owner of the tomb is the Western Han Marquis of Haihun Liu He.

First, the archaeological work revealed the Haihun Principality during the Han Dynasty, which truly and completely displayed the spatial layout of the capital, the tombs of several Marquises of Haihun, and cemeteries of aristocrats and commoners.

As the capital of the Haihun Principality, the Zijin City lies to the west of Gan River and south of Poyang Lake. It is L-shaped in plan, covering an area of 360 ha and consisted of an inner and outer city wall. The inner city was comprised of two walled areas, east and west, covering an area of around 12 ha. A large number of high-level building foundations were found, which is considered as the palace of the city. There are several distinctive features of the city: first, the walls overall are wholly preserved, completely made of rammed earth, and feature a double-walled construction. The width of the base is around 20 m and some parts are still preserved reaching 2 m in height. The distance between the double walls is approximately 15 m. There are five gates on the four sides of the wall (water gate included); second, water routes and roadways co-existed inside the city, with water as the mainstay and land as the supplement. There were large-sized rammed earth foundations at the points where the roadways connected to the water channels, which were perhaps the remains of piers. A large number of archaeological features and artifacts related to human activities were found along the bank.

To the west and south of the city, four cemeteries belonging to several generations of Marquises of Haihun were located at Huagudun, Citanggang, Guodun, and Sujiashan. This can be verified in the Book of Han written by Ban Gu, which recorded that the Haihun Principality covered at least four generations. Surrounding this area, there were 24 locations with tombs of nobility and numerous commoners’ cemeteries. The cemeteries cover an area of about 140 ha in total.

Second, the cemetery of the first generation of the Marquis of Haihun, Liu He, has so far been a well-preserved cemetery with a complete structure, a clear layout, and abundant sacrificial remains for the Western Han marquises.

The cemetery of the Marquis of Haihun is trapezoidal in plan with the tombs of the Marquis and his wife lying at the center. The perimeter of the rammed wall is 868 m, covering 4.6 ha. In the cemetery there are two main tombs, seven affiliated tombs, one external storage pit, ancestral halls, compartments, east and north gates and affiliated que towers, and remains of roads and drainages. It is suggested that the affiliated tombs were used for the concubines of the Marquis as well as the family members, which reflects the cemetery system of Western Han marquises. It will be of great significance to study the whole tomb system of marquises during this period.

The tombs of the Marquis of Haihun and his wife lay side by side east and west of each other. The two graves share a ritual platform complex, which is 100 m long, 40 m wide, and 4000 m2 in area and is comprised of an east compartment, a west compartment, a resting hall, and an ancestral hall. The plan of the resting hall is square with four L-shaped rammed foundations. The length of the sides of the resting hall is around 10 m and 100 m2 in area. The ancestral hall was a symmetrical, enclosed building complex with a corridor and its main rammed foundation is U-shaped, surrounded by square rammed foundations, which measures 14 by 10 m with an area of 140 m2 in total. The compartments, located on the west and the east side of the platform, are both rectangular building complexes with enclosed corridors and three cubicles. Each compartment is around 27 m long, 10 m wide, and 270 m2 in area.

Third, the burial of the Marquis of Haihun is composed of his tomb and a chariot pit. This burial has been the biggest, best-preserved and with the richest burial remains for Western Han Marquis in China so far, and also the only one with real horses in a chariot pit discovered in south China to date.

The top of the main tomb was covered by a seven-meter high pyramidal mound, and the burial pit is in a T-shape facing the south, with a square wooden chamber 400 m2 in area inside. The chamber is divided into the main outer coffin compartment, with passages, storage compartments, corridors, the east chariot storage and the west chariot storage. In the center of the wooden chamber is the main coffin compartment, which is 7.4 m long from east to west, 0.7 m wide from north to south, and about 3m high (0.6 m higher than the surrounding storage areas), covering an area of 51.8 m2. The main compartment of the outer coffin is then divided into east and the west rooms by wood plank walls, between which is a passageway. The east room is the resting hall, 4 m wide and the west chamber is the reception hall, 2.9 m wide. The south wall has a window on the west and a door on the east, which is about 0.9 m wide. The main compartment is surrounded on three sides, north, east, and west, with storage compartments with various functions. Between the main chamber and these storage compartments is a 0.7 m wide passage, which was prepared in the imperial burial chamber style of the Han Dynasty known as huang chang ti cou. It turned out that the passage was not used during the burying process and turned into a patrolling passage jiao dao surrounding the main chamber. Between the main chamber and the tomb ramp is a corridor. This corridor mainly served for the storage of music chariots, and on the east and the west side of the corridor are the storage areas for chariots and horses. Inside the north storage area, from west to east, are storage compartments for coins, grain, musical instruments, and wine vessels. In the west storage area, from north to south, lie storage compartments for cloth, weapons, documents, and objects for entertainments. The east storage compartment is mainly for cooking wares used by the Officer of Foods. The bottom of the chamber was first leveled using sand, and then the base timbers were laid on top of this. The base timbers and the spaces between them were padded and reinforced with sand, charcoal, and clay. On top of the base timbers were the floorboards of the outer coffin chamber, with the floor of the main chamber compartment having two layers, and the rest of the outer coffin floor having only one. A layer of bamboo or straw matting was lain across the floors. The floorboards and the boards of the sides, which were loadbearing, were all assembled using mortise and tenon joinery, with the side boards bolstered by wooden stakes. The secondary platform erected between the side boards and the pit wall is 1.2 m wide, with rammed layers of sand, charcoal, and clay. Charcoal, sand, and white clay grouting, which are 0.7 m thick, were used to seal the ceiling boards of the wooden chamber. Some words and markings, such as the artisans’ names, numbers, and sizes, are incised on the boards of the wooden chamber. The junction of the ramp and the wooden chamber has bamboo mats to cover the floor and the wall. The chamber was designed precisely, built scientifically, and functionalized clearly, characterized by the residence and courtyard styles. It is a cemetery for marquises under the “Han system”, which provides rare information for studying and understanding the burial system of Western Han marquises.

The east part of the chariot pit, overlaid by the main tomb’s mound, was used as the storage chamber with real chariot horses. The plan of the chariot pit is rectangular, covering 80 m2 in area. A passage is located at the north edge of the pit but does not reach the bottom of the pit. The wooden chamber and supporting pillars are all decayed, leaving only traces. Judging from the height of the worked soil second-level platform ercengtai and traces of the ceiling board of the chamber on top of it, the height of the pit is about 1 m. A total of five utilitarian high-ranking an che carriages and yao che carts, along with about twenty horses were discovered.

Fourth, more than 10,000 (sets) of artifacts unearthed to date have reproduced the luxurious life of high-class elites in the Western Han Dynasty, and have high historical, artistic and scientific value.

The information from the excavation at present shows that the coffin chamber of the tomb had collapsed in early years and filled with ground water due to the impact of an earthquake during the Eastern Jin and the southern transgression of the Poyang Lake during the Southern Dynasties and Liu Song period: because of this, several episodes of tomb robbing did no serious damage to the tomb. The objects generally remained unmoved, which is a rare case across China for excavations of high-ranking burials.

Thousands of bamboo slips and almost a hundred wooden slips bring several ancient texts to light, which is another huge discovery in the history of manuscripts. More than 5,200 bamboo slips covered a wide range of contents, the most important of which are Confucian classics, such as the Analects of Confucius, the Book of Changes, the Book of Rites, the Classic of Filial Piety, the Book of Songs, the Spring and Autumn Annals, as well as the earliest Manual for the Liu Bo Game, the Book of Medicine and the Rhapsody of Mourning the Death. The Book of Changes starts with the meaning of each name of the gua divinatory diagrams, and the content and selection after tuan is similar to that in the Day Book. Although its arrangement is the same as the received version, version discovered in the tomb of the Marquis of Haihun has different content. The content of the Book of Medicine is related to health regimens and sexual practices. The author added Xu and Shi into the Eight Ways in the Tian xia zhi dao tan discovered in the silk manuscripts of the Mawangdui and thus becomes the Ten Ways, which reflects the development of sexual practices after the middle of the Western Han. Among all the bamboo slips, the most important finding is the missing Analects of Qi.

The Confucius screen is a double-folding screen, composed of the dressing mirror and the affiliated screen. The Rhapsody of the Dressing Mirror painted on the affiliated screen depicted the stories of Confucius and his disciples. The figure on the mirror is the earliest figure of Confucius to date. The biographies written on the back of the Confucius dressing mirror are generally identical to the records in the Western Han history, Shi ji (The Records of the Grand Historian), which is the earliest record of it. On the frame of the screen was depicted the earliest pictorial and textual records of the King Father of the East. This screen was used by the Marquis of Haihun, not just a burial object. He utilized it for pictures and history to self-correct, tu shi zi jing. The Shen Jjian, by Xun Yue in the Eastern Han, states that “a gentleman has three references: refer to the past, to others, to mirror. Learning lessons from the past, virtuosity from others, and learning clarity from a mirror.” Tang Dynasty Emperor Taizong also pointed out that “by having bronze as a mirror, we can adjust our outfit; by having history as a mirror, we can learn from the past; and by having others as a mirror, we can understand right and wrong.” The smooth and clean bronze mirror body of the Confucius dressing mirror can be used to “adjust the outfit”; the biographies and stories on the back of the mirror can serve as “learning from the past”; and the figures of Confucius and his disciples can be used for “understanding right and wrong.”

The complete set of musical instruments, including two sets of bells, one set of chime stones, qing, se, pai xiao, and sheng, and 36 wooden figurines of musicians, visualized the music system of Western Han marquises. The bell sets, the chime stone set, and the musician figurines reflect the music and dance system that were inherited from the Rites of Zhou, which set up regulations such as “Marquises have suspended musical instruments of three sides” and “liu yi” in music and dances for marquises.

The excavation revealed that in the Han period, 1000 wen was a basic unit, which proves that the currency system of “1,000 qian equals 1 guan, qian qian yi guan” emerged at the latest before the middle of the Western Han, although it did not become a fixed regulation as in the Tang and Song Dynasties. The diversity indicates the system was in an early and transformative stage and also reflects the system of saving coins after the period of Western Han Emperor Wu. For instance, more than 10 tons, about 2 million pieces of wuzhu coins were discovered, with 1000 pieces as a string, every 5 strings sealed with a wooden sealing box, the word “Changyi” inscribed on the sealing box, and “HaihunHou jia qian wu qian” written on the box.

A total of 478 pieces of horse-hoof shaped and lin unicorn toe-shaped gold ingots, disk-shaped ingots, and gold plaques are the most complete and well-preserved, and the most concentrated such discovery in the history of Han tomb archaeology in China. The horse-hoof shaped and the lin-toe shaped ingots were the gifts bestowed by the Western Han emperors in order to “accord with an auspicious occasion”. Made with fine metal production techniques such as filigree inlaid, some pieces carried inscriptions of “shang”, “zhong”, and “xia” (upper, middle, and lower) and some have glass inlay. Disk-shaped ingots and gold plaques are value-stored hard currency. They were used as reserved wealth when the deceased was alive and for the sponsoring of worship when the emperor worshiped in the ancestral hall every August. Kings and marquises were required to sponsor the worship with ingots according to the population of their states. Records also show that kings and marquises would be degraded if the gold they presented had insufficient weight or purity.

All the grave goods represent the superb achievements of Western Han handicrafts and the luxurious lives of high-ranking aristocrats, and they are also the typical representation of the concept of “treating the dead as treating the living.” They include plentiful exquisitely-made jade objects, such as she-shaped (archer’s thumb ring shaped) plaques with openwork dragon, tiger, and phoenixes, bi disks, gui tablets, rings, swords, plaque sets, belt hooks, cups, seals; gems, such as agate, turquois, and amber; objects of gold and silver, inlaid, gold-wrapped, and gilded bronze objects, such as chariot and horse fittings, sets of bells, Boshan incense burners, goose and fish lamps, ding tripod, hu, and zun vessels, ran stoves, tripods for heating, distillers, mirrors, and weights; lacquer wares with refined paintings, chess board, cup sets, plates with silver rim, boxes and lacquered zun with gold foil attached, and a table inlaid with jade and agate. Some of the bronze and lacquer objects inscribed with texts, five usable an che carriages and two ou le carriages related to the military music of the Pre-Qin period reflect the name marking system in handicraft production inherited from the Eastern Zhou period.

Exotic style objects, such as the camel image on the hanger of a bronze bell, the silver horse mask in a single-horn goat shape, the jade ornament of tiger and bear combat, etched carnelian beads, agate, crystals, and the soda-lime glass inlaid on the horse-hoof and the lin-toe ingots, provide precious information for the study of cultural interaction between China and the west.

Although there are abundant grave goods and some gestures toward the status of being a king and an emperor, Liu He was still buried according to the scale of a marquis, which can be seen from the Law for Funeral Rites, discovered in Shuihudi tomb M77 discovered in Yunmeng, Hubei, in 2006 that dates to the early Western Han period. It is one of the typical burial system of marquises after Western Han Emperor Wu.

The tomb of the Marquis of Haihun not only bears witness to the legendary life of Liu He, who was the ninth emperor of Western Han, the second generation of the King of Changyi, and the first generation of the Marquis of Haihun, but also reflects the flourishing history and culture of the Western Han Dynasty.

Biographical Sketch

Yang Jun, researcher of Jiangxi Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, has conducted archaeological excavation and research for more than 30 years. He participated in the CHINA-US collaborative archaeological excavation at the sites of Xianrendong and Diaotonghuan in Wannian. He also held excavations at the A, B, C, I, J, K and L zones of the Hutian kiln site in Jingdezhen, at the Western Han tomb of the Marquis of Haihun in Nanchang, at the Eastern Jin tomb of the train station in Nanchang, at the Northern Song wall-painting tomb in De’an, and at the alcohol production workshop site of the Yuan Dynasty in Lidu. Among these excavations, the alcohol production workshop site in Lidu was awarded as the Top Six New Archaeological Discoveries of the year of 2002 organized by Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the 3rd-place fieldwork prize organized by the National Cultural Heritage Administration of China. The Western Han tomb of the Marquis of Haihun in Nanchang was awarded as the Top Ten New Archaeological Discoveries and the Top Six New Archaeological Discoveries of the year of 2015, the 2nd-place fieldwork prize organized by the Chinese Archaeological Society，the Golden Jue Prize for cultural heritage preservation organized by the First Chinese Archaeological Congress. The Eastern Jin tomb at the train station in Nanchang, the Northern Song wall-painting tomb in De’an were selected as the significant archaeological discoveries of the year of 2006 by the National Cultural Heritage Administration. In addition, Jun Yang has published many papers in Chinese and English.