90% of Bamboo and Wooden Slips of Wu Kingdom Unearthed in Changsha Readable

DATE:02-07-2012

Unearthed in 1996 in Changsha, the 140,000 bamboo and wooden slips of the Wu Kingdom (229- 280AD) of the Three Kingdoms Period (220-280AD) were well protected through washing, splitting and dehydration.

These bamboo and wooden slips, with its volume outnumbering the sum of those previously-unearthed, were recognized as the biggest archeological discovery in China in the 20th century.

Ninety percent of the 80,000 bamboo and wooden slips with characters have been readable now. The contents reveal such aspects as the operation of elementary-level government, the degree of taxes and fees, the punishment towards corruption and the constitution of family members in the Wu Kingdom, making it supplementary to history records.

 At present, domestic and overseas scholars are doing research on the bamboo and wooden slips, with 400 articles on different subjects issued and over 20 MA students and 3 doctoral students developed in this field graduated. A Changsha-Japan research association was established in Japan to conduct regular academic exchanges with Changsha Bamboo Slips Museum.

Translator: Wang Bilian

Source: enghunan.gov.cn