点击文章最下方的“阅读原文”（Read more）可链接到我们英文网站的原文页面。第一季《丝绸之路》，我们从丝路上的重要地点开始介绍，希望能对大家更好地认识丝路有所帮助；即使今年不能踏上路去面对面欣赏，也可在家先了解一下 ^-^
Buried deep beneath the earth, with only small heaps of sand to designate them, the Astana Cemetery is perhaps one of the humblest burial sites you’ll find in China. Amongst the colossal mausoleums, forests of steles[1], and entire clay armies dedicated to China’s many emperors, the rulers of Gaochang opted for a more modest way to inter their remains. Had it not been for the efforts of numerous archaeologists, we may still not know that these tombs even existed! They rest about 37 kilometres (23 mi) southeast of Turpan and 6 kilometres (4 mi) north of the Gaochang Ruins.This was once a public cemetery, where both aristocrats and commoners from the ancient city of Gaochang were buried. Of the 1,000 tombs that make up the complex, a staggering 456 have been excavated since its discovery, but none belonging to Gaochang’s rulers have as yet been found. Books found within the tombs suggest that the complex was established in 273, during the Jin Dynasty (265-420), and was abandoned around about 778, during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). After being used for over 500 years with no foreseeable retirement, you can see why the Astana Tombs chose to bury their heads in the sand!During the start of the 20th century, famed archaeologists such as Sergey Oldenburg, Albert von Le Coq, and Aurel Stein descended on the area and each vied for a chance to excavate the tombs. This mayhem led to many of the precious relics being stolen by said archaeologists and shipped back to their home countries for exhibition in their national museums. Talk about taking advantage of a country’s hospitality! It wasn’t until 1959 that Chinese archaeologists undertook excavations at Astana and Gaochang, and they miraculously managed to recover over 10,000 cultural relics, most of which are on display within Xinjiang Museum in Ürümqi.The tomb complex itself stretches for 5 kilometres (3 mi) from east to west and 2 kilometres (1 mi) from north to south. Simple gravel boundaries have been used to separate the tombs, which typically each belong to one family. Generally speaking husband and wife were buried together, although in some cases a few lotharios have been found accompanied by up to two or three women!A sloping passageway leads down to the tombs, which are each marked by a rock-cut entrance. They are only about 2 metres (6.5 ft.) high and some of them contain one or two antechambers that feature stone statues or “guardian beasts”. The bodies are often placed at the back of the room on a simple earthen or wooden bed, without any kind of coffin. They are normally clothed in silk, linen, or cotton, and have their heads resting on pillows, a cloth over their face, and a piece of wood clasped between their hands. Several of them were found with coins placed in their mouths, although the origin of this tradition is unclear.Next to each body was placed a funeral brick, which has the person’s name and information inscribed upon it. These bricks have been invaluable to researchers in terms of identifying the remains and finding out about the lifestyles of these ancient peoples. Around the remains are miniature replicas of carts, horses, musical instruments, chess sets, pens, and anything that could be deemed useful to the dead. The remains of real foodstuffs, desiccated but identifiable, have also been found, including grapes, pears, wheat, meat, and even jam tarts!
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