The tombs consist of sloping passageways leading downwards for 4 or 5m to a rockcut entrance, about a meter wide and over a meter high. A step then leads into a brick-lined chamber, square or oblong and measuring between two and four meters wide, three to four meters long and up to two meters high. Some tombs contain one or two narrow
antechambers in which there are niches on either side for guardian beasts in effigy. These figures show a variety of animal features, and some have human faces. In their exuberance they resemble the clay statues of
Guardian Kings similarly found at the entrance to
Buddhist temples. The body or bodies were shrouded in textiles. A silver oval shaped eye-mask and an oval piece of silk covered the face. Sometimes coins were used instead of these eye-masks. The origin of placing a coin inside the mouth is unclear: Stein saw parallels with the Greek custom of providing the deceased with the fare for the ferryman of Hades, but Chinese scholars have argued the same custom is seen in Chinese burials from the first millennium BC. The coins included
Byzantine, locally minted replica Byzantine, other locally minted replica Chinese coins and
Chinese coins. The bodies were originally placed inside wooden
coffins, propped up with bundles of paper, and with small articles of personal use and models of garments made from
paper and
silk—such as shoes and hats—placed alongside them. Other offerings were placed inside wooden or pottery vessels near the head of the coffin on a wooden pedestal. Many of the vessels were painted with a distinctive pattern of white dots and red lines. Remains of food, desiccated but identifiable, were found in some of the unrobbed tombs and included
grapes,
plums,
pears, pieces of
meat and
wheat. Several tombs contained well-preserved
pastries, including a
jam tart. According to Chinese beliefs, the
afterlife was very similar to the life from which they had departed, and the deceased were therefore buried with goods and money they would require. However, it was sufficient to bury models and not original objects. These include human figurines, animals, clothes, ornaments and musical instruments. They were listed on a written inventory, also placed inside the tomb. Many tombs also contained epitaph tablets for the dead and a funerary banner showing the Chinese mythological figures,
Fuxi and
Nüwa. There are various
Tang dynasty figurines and Chinese silk paintings found in the cemetery. A new pavilion has been built outside the cemetery the centerpiece of which is a large statue of Fuxi and Nüwa.
History of the area At the start of the first millennium this area was occupied by the
Jushi who offered allegiance to the Chinese Han court. According to the Chinese histories, the
Shiji and
Hanshu, the original inhabitants east of the
Tian Shan to the beginning of the first millennium AD, the Jushi, were a people who 'lived in felt-tents, kept moving in pursuit of water and grass for grazing, and had a fair knowledge of farming.' The Chinese rulers divided their territory in 60 BC and stationed a garrison and military colony there. Until 450 AD the main city was
Jiaohe, west of present-day Turfan. At times the Chinese lost control to the
Xiongnu and also withdrew when control in central China broke down. In the early 4th century an alternative
commandery was established in Gaochang to the east of present-day Turfan, and this area also fell in and out of Chinese and steppe control over the following centuries. ==Excavations==