Cave tombs discovered in Xinjiang

[Photo/ts.cn]

Chinese archaeologists have identified a cliff cave burial site in Tashkurgan Tajik Autonomous County on the Pamirs Plateau in farwest Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Three cave tombs were found in high cliffs in the county after a region-wide heritage survey in 2014, said Ai Tao from the Xinjiang Archaeological Institute.

Besides human bones, infant corpses were found sealed inside niches in the walls and covered by rocks or earth.

Ai said such a custom was rare in China, but local Tashkurgans did bury stillborn babies in this way until a few decades ago.

A cluster of 102 tombs, 40 percent of which were made for infants, were unearthed in nearby Kezilesu Kirgiz Autonomous Prefecture in 2013.

It is believed that cave burial, which can also be found in China's southwestern provinces of Yunnan and Guizhou, was practiced as far back as 4,000 years ago.