Chinanews, Xi'an, Sept. 15 – Precious cultural relics in ancient graves that built in the Western (C.1100-771 B.C.) and Eastern Zhou (770-256 B.C.) dynasties found robbed under tight security August 31, 2006. This case has not been cracked yet, and people still wonder how those robbers could can commit such a crime.

 

These ancient graves, located in Liangdai Village, Hancheng, Shaanxi Province, were discovered in 2005, and were then listed as nationally protected cultural relics. Robbers dug a hole with a diameter of one meter and a depth of nine meters. In a hurry, they left a hop-pocket they used to contain the earth they dug out.

 

It is reported that the ancient graves in Liangdai are considered as the most important archeological discovery in Shaanxi since the terra-cotta warriors and horses of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 B.C.) were discovered in 1974. These tombs had never been robbed previously.

 

In those graves that had already been excavated by local cultural relic bureau, a large number of bronze ceremonial vessels and horses, gold wares, musical instruments and jade articles have been found.