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Mysterious pyramid-shaped tomb discovered under Chinese construction site

Experts believe chamber could be burial site thousands-of-years old

Tom Embury-Dennis
Friday 17 March 2017 01:45 GMT
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Chinese archaeologist investigates a tomb in the shape of a pyramid
Chinese archaeologist investigates a tomb in the shape of a pyramid (Imaginechina/REX)

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A mysterious pyramid-shaped tomb has been uncovered by archaeologists under a construction site in China.

The structure was discovered in a chamber alongside a similar cylinder-shaped coffin in Zhengzhou, Henan Province.

Experts believe the chamber is a burial site, and could hail from the Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD), China’s so-called “golden age”.

Who was buried there and why remains a mystery, though the site is currently under investigation, reports the Daily Mail.

Chinese media have nicknamed it the “pyramid of Zhengzhou”, though at six feet tall it is unlikely to draw as many tourists as the real things in Egypt.

The area used to be a village, reports local media, but work was underway to build a new residential compound when the discovery was made.

Evacuation site of a coffin chamber containing two tombs
Evacuation site of a coffin chamber containing two tombs (Imaginechina/REX)

The chamber, which is 30 metres long and eight metres wide, was described by a local as “truly magical”.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” he added.

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