Astana Tombs


Situated 42 km southeast of Turpan (6 km to Gaochang), the graves are the cemetery of the ancient
Gaochang residents. 456 tombs have been excavated since 1950’s, and more than 10000 pieces of
archaeological finds were discovered here, such as the books, documents, murals, embroidery, clay
figurines and pottery, which became the priceless material for studying the history of Gaochang Kingdom.

The tomb complex is 5 km from east to west, and 2 km from north to south. Gravel boundaries separate the
tombs by family. The paternal family burial order was strictly followed, similar to the system in the Hexi
Corridor (today's Gansu Province), and even in central China.

It served as graveyard of the citizens of Gaochang from 273 in the Western Jin Dynasty to 778 in the Tang
Dynasty. The cemetery was separated by gravel based on family. Each tomb is entered via a slope of about 10 meters.

Nicknamed "underground museum", the Astana Grave Complex contains a total of over 500 tombs, the occupants of which include aristocrats,
officials and ordinary people from the early Western Jin Dynasty to the mid-Tang Dynasty. Due to the high terrain and hot and dry weather in the
area, the tomb chambers are naturally germ-free. As a result, mummies and burial objects inside are well preserved after thousands of years, and
a large number of historical relics are kept intact, including silk fabrics, murals, pottery ware, wooden ware, coins, terracotta figurines, tombstones,
tomb inscriptions etc. The most precious articles of all are the 2,700 or so ancient documents.

The tombs are mainly those of the Han people while those of ethnic groups such as the Cheshi, Turki, and Hun are also represented. Tomb
structure and placement indicate that while Han people were in the majority in the Gaochang, all nationalities enjoyed equality.

It is noteworthy that mummies here compare favorably with Egyptian mummies in both quantity and the
quality, providing precious specimens for anthropology, history, medicine, and ethnology.