How many corpses are there in the tomb of Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty? Have dragon and phoenix rings been unearthed in the tomb?

The specific location of the Xiaoling Mausoleum of Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, Yu Wenyong, is unknown in historical records, and there is no seal on the ground. It happened that the archaeological department did not officially conduct excavations until it was stolen successively in 1993 and 1994. Based on the unearthed memorial stone of Xiaoling Mausoleum of Emperor Wu, remains of the coffin and coffin in the tomb, the memorial stone of Empress Wu De and the golden seal of Empress Dowager Tianyuan, it was determined that this tomb is indeed the Xiaoling Mausoleum where Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and Empress Ashina were buried together. Xiaoling Tomb is located about 1,000 meters southeast of Chenma Village, Dizhang Town, Weicheng District, Xianyang City, and about 1,500 meters west of Tang Shun Tomb. The tomb is generally oriented from north to south, with a total length of 68.4 meters. It consists of a slope tomb passage, 5 patios, 5 passage holes, 4 niches and corridors, and an earth cave-style single tomb chamber. This shape is roughly the same as the large and medium-sized tombs of the royal family, nobles and ministers of the Northern Zhou Dynasty that have been discovered. Although Xiaoling Mausoleum has been robbed many times, the unearthed objects are still very rich. According to incomplete statistics, there are hundreds of items. Among them are more than 150 pieces of pottery figurines of various types, nearly 40 pieces of ceramics, 8 pieces of jade, 1 set of copper belts, 21 pieces of gold and 2 pieces of stone. Among the gold items, the "Empress Dowager Tianyuan's Seal" is particularly precious. It is pure gold, weighs 802.56 grams, has a Xie * button, a square seal surface, a side length of 4.45 cm, a width of 4.55 cm, and a button height of 4.7 cm. On the surface of the seal, the seal script is engraved with the six characters "Seal of the Empress Dowager Tianyuan". The composition is unique and rare in the world. Two commemorative stones, one is "Xiaoling Mausoleum of Emperor Wu, Emperor Gaozu of the Great Zhou Dynasty"; the other is "Zhi Ming of Empress Wude of Zhou Dynasty". On the side of the ambition stone is inscribed "Jia Xushuo, the 23rd day of Renyin, the second year of Kaihuang's reign in the Sui Dynasty". In the late Zhou Dynasty, Empress Wu of Emperor Ashina's ancestral posthumous title was Empress Wude. On the 29th of the lunar month, Renyin was buried together in Xiaoling." It has been proven that it is the Xiaoling Mausoleum where Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and Queen Ashina were buried together.

In the Xianyang Museum of Shaanxi Province, there is a rare national treasure - "The Seal of the Empress Dowager Tianyuan". This seal, which has been designated as a national first-class collection and a national treasure by the Shaanxi Provincial Cultural Relics Appraisal Committee, weighs more than 800 grams. It is made of two parts, the seal pad and the seal button, which are molded together and then inlaid with mortise and tenon joints.

The "Empress Dowager Tianyuan's Seal" was originally a burial object in the Xiaoling Mausoleum of Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. It was stolen and disappeared in 1993. It was not until the severe crackdown in 1996 that the Weicheng District Public Security Bureau of Xianyang City learned of the clues and immediately launched a special investigation by the Cultural Relics Police Station. After 13 days of continuous operations, this rare treasure was returned to the state intact.

Historical records indicate that the "Empress Dowager Tianyuan" was the queen of Yuwen Yong, Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. Her ancestral surname is Ashina. She is the daughter of the Turk Qijin Khan. She is beautiful and virtuous. In 560 AD, Yuwen Yong ascended the throne and sent envoys many times to propose marriage, but all failed. It was not until eight years later that Yu Wenyong got his wish, married Ashina and named her queen. After the death of Yu Wenyong, Ashina was successively honored by his descendants as the Empress Dowager Tianyuan, the Empress Dowager Tianyuan, and the Empress Dowager Tai. "Empress Dowager Tianyuan's Seal" is the seal used when Ashina was honored as "Empress Dowager Tianyuan". Because of her special identity and status, this empress who lived through three dynasties was buried in the Xiaoling Mausoleum with Emperor Wu in the year of her death. The golden seal of the "Tianyuan Empress Dowager's Seal" that she enjoyed during her lifetime was also buried with her. As a result, it is known as the "national treasure" today and there are many stories about it.

However, the "Empress Dowager Tianyuan's Seal" is only one of the many precious ancient seals in our country. According to ancient documents, the origin of my country's ancient seals can be traced back to the mid-Spring and Autumn Period. Before Qin Shihuang unified the six kingdoms, both official and private seals were called seals. After Qin Shihuang unified the country, he stipulated that only the emperor's seal could be called a seal, and all other seals were called "seals". He also made strict regulations on official seals, using different seal buttons, shapes and textures to represent different official ranks. . By the Han Dynasty, the seal system had gradually become looser, and the seals of the queen, kings, and queen mothers could also be called seals. Although it was still stipulated that the emperor used jade seals to mark tiger buttons, and queens used gold seals to mark tiger buttons. The seal just complies with the requirement that the Queen's Seal should be made of gold. But not all seals are like this. For example, the "Seal of the Queen Mother Shuoning" unearthed in Lueyang, Shaanxi in 1954 is made of gold and has turtle buttons; the "Queen's Seal" unearthed in Xianyang, Shaanxi in 1968 is made of white jade and has tiger buttons, etc. .

The "Tianyuan Empress Dowager's Seal" is the earliest gold seal of the Empress Dowager discovered in my country. It solves the mystery of the royal funeral system of the Northern Zhou Dynasty and fills the archaeological gap of this historical period.

Discover the historical significance of Xiaoling Mausoleum. Starting from Emperor Xiaomin Yuwenjue of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, there were five emperors, Emperor Ming Yuwenyu, Emperor Wu Yuwenyong, Emperor Xuan Yuwenyun, and Emperor Jingyu Wenchan, who died in 25 years. "History of the North" and "Book of Zhou" have very simple records about the imperial tombs of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. It is only known that Emperor Xiaomin was buried in Jingling, Emperor Ming was buried in Zhaoling, Emperor Wu was buried in Xiaoling, Emperor Xuan was buried in Dingling, and Emperor Jing was buried in Gongling. However, the specific location is unknown. In addition, the imperial mausoleum of the Northern Zhou Dynasty is not sealed or planted. There are no signs on the ground, and there are no stone carvings, ritual guards, cemetery buildings, etc. As time goes by, later generations have no trace of it. The excavation and discovery of the Xiaoling Tomb provided important clues for us to find the other four imperial tombs of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. Judging from the location of Emperor Wu's Xiaoling Mausoleum, all Northern Zhou emperors' tombs should be near Xiaoling Mausoleum, which is the area around today's Dizhang Town.