| |
 |
‘China's Pompeii' in danger
|
DISCOVERED in the spring of 1900, the sensation the ancient kingdom of Loulan made was instant. Sven Hedin, a Swedish explorer who found this ancient city during his desert exploration to Lop Nur, was overwhelmed with joy, calling the site “China's Pompeii in the desert".
The ancient kingdom was located on the eastern tip of the Taklimakan Desert in the southern part of Xinjiang. Before it disappeared nearly 2,000 years ago, Loulan was one of the busiest commercial centres on the Silk Road and an important contributor to the flow of goods to the West, according to historical records.
No one knows for sure when the ancient Loulan city was abandoned and how it mysteriously disappeared. Currently, the most widely accepted explanation is that Loulan was abandoned in the year after the 30's of the 4th century because of diminishing water resources.
At the beginning of 1980s, a Chinese archaeological team formally carried on archaeological investigations and unearthing work at the ancient city of Loulan. They found a great number of historical relics in the ancient city and also some historical remains of ancient waterways, farmlands, Buddhist pagodas and graves.
Since thorough excavation of the site is “for the time being" impossible, the ancient city of Loulan has been declared a "forbidden zone for cultural relics". Those who intend to pay a visit to the ruins must apply first and pay a large sum of money before they can set foot in the ancient city.
Illicit excavation
Adverse weather and fierce desert conditions have for years hindered explorers and archaeologists hoping to examine the lost civilization. However, those conditions turned out to be not much of an obstacle to tomb robbers. Illicit excavations and antiques trafficking are right now the most serious threat the ancient city of Loulan is facing, State media reported recently.
Early this month, a group of archaeologists and reporters made a research trip to the Loulan Ruins. Upon arrival, they were shocked by what they saw: the mess left over by illicit excavation was everywhere to be seen.
In one place, the team found four large freshly-dug pits, each measuring one metre deep and two metres wide. The diggings were made close to the “three-roomed houses" and the residential quarters of the common people. The “three-roomed houses" were believed to be the official residence in the ancient city.
The 10-metre-high Buddhist pagoda is the tallest construction in the ancient city. Though a “No climbing" sign stands nearby, a zigzag trail was spotted snaking from the bottom to the top of the pagoda, obviously left over by illicit excavators. The top of the pagoda has almost totally caved in.
‘Easy' access
Adverse environment has never deterred illicit excavation. On the contrary, it makes the tomb robbers believe that they are free to do whatever they want in this “depopulated zone" since no one is there to bar the way. And the fact is, all it takes to enter the “forbidden zone" for those tomb robbers is plenty of water, food and fuel. Following the deep ruts left by the bulldozers during past oil explorations, they can easily drive their cars wherever they like in the ancient city.
Bold robbers
The owner of a roadside restaurant told reporters that tomb robbers often descend on the site in groups. They never try to cover up the purpose of their arrival at the ancient city, he said. At one time, the tomb robbers even told him that they were there to dig for colour coffins. Foreign collectors were keen on getting these coffins, they said.
Local relics protection officials were sometimes spotted to be with the tomb robber, according to the restaurant owner.
The officials with the local cultural relics protection administration told reporters that the windy weather was the major destructive force the Loulan Ruins faced in the past. Now, the artificially imposed destruction has outweigh the natural destruction.
In the face of the rampant illicit excavation, archaeologists are wondering: the ancient city of Loulan is still in existence today, but will it tomorrow?
Loulan: lost city
The ancient city of Loulan had been a bustling town on the Silk Road located northwest of Lop Nur Lake. It thrived for over 800 years, from 200 BC to 700 AD, but then it mysteriously disappeared.
Then in the spring of 1900, when Sven Hedin, the Swedish explorer, was digging in the Lop Nur Lake, his Uygur guide Aldik went in search of his hoe which had been lost in a windstorm, and quite accidentally discovered tall stupas, ruins, and wooden carvings and coins.
Later on it was proved that the site was Loulan which had disappeared over a thousand years ago.
In the diggings later on, most of the city walls were discovered to be weathered and the ruins covered an area of over 100,000 square metres with residences, temples and official buildings. Unearthed artifacts include Han Dynasty five-zhu coins, and on the northeastern corner of the city were discovered 970 pieces of coins which were circulating money of the early days of the Tang Dynasty. There were also documents on wooden tablets written in both Chinese and Tocharian, copperware, clay pots, lacquer, fabric, and glassware, building materials and other things. From the tombs on the town outskirts were uncovered a large amount of fine-woven silks, brocades, and coloured woollen fabric. These finds have been especially valuable in the study of Orient-Occident economic and cultural exchange of that time in history and the historical connection between the Chinese border regions and the country's interior.
Captions:
1. Unearthly site: Remains of a Buddhist pagoda in the ancient city of Loulan.
2. Dry corpses and human skulls are scattered on the sand dunes.
3. Boat-shaped wooden structures in the sand.
4. Ruins of an ancient grave.
|
|
|
|
