Animal Remains Unearthed Near Tomb of China’s Emperor Wen

XI’AN, CHINA—Live Science reports that a team of researchers led by Songmei Hu of the Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology has identified the remains of a giant panda and a tapir among the bones recovered from sacrificial pits found near the tomb of Emperor Wen of the Han Dynasty, who ruled from about 180 to 157 B.C. It had been previously thought that tapirs did not live in northwestern China at this time, although depictions of animals that might be tapirs have been found in ancient Chinese art. Remains of gaurs (a species of bison), tigers, green peafowl, yaks, golden snub-nosed monkeys, and a goat-like creature called a takin were also discovered in the sacrificial pits. To read about plant remains recovered from Han Dynasty tombs in Xi'an, go to "The Price of Tea in China."