(Ecns.cn)--Over 50 rare cultural relics, mainly made of ceramic and iron, have been recently discovered in an ancient tomb group in Yilizhou, in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, according to reports Thursday.
Starting in May, archaeologists in Xinjiang began a series of relic exploration activities near a hydropower station in Yilizhou, home to more than 200 ancient tombs. The exploration activities have since finished.
The tombs stretch for about four kilometers and most of them are stone, dating back to the early Iron Age. The 50 relics found are mostly ceramic and iron, but other pieces include bronze, stone, bone, and gold.
The Yili River valley has a long history, and many cultural relics have been scattered around. On the upstream of the Yili River, archeologists have found over a thousand tombs and this exploration was another important undertaking for archeologists.
The areas surrounding the Yili River were an ideal habitation for ancient nomadic people in Xinjiang. This is the reason why so many tombs have been found near the river.
The recently found cultural relics will provide archeologists with an assortment of materials to research the communication between the East and the West during ancient times, and will help them to recreate ancient objects used in Yilizhou and the whole of Xinjiang.
