And lastly, and pretty interestingly enough, since we are talking about liquid concoctions, China’s Henan province previously revealed almost 9,000-year-old residues of what must have been a fascinating brew of rice, honey, and fruit (both hawthorne and grapes). The liquid is of significant value for the study of ancient Chinese thoughts on achieving immortality and the evolution of Chinese civilization.Īdditionally, the archaeologists have found color-painted clay pots, jadeware and bronze objects from the ancient tomb site, complemented by the preserved remains of the tomb occupants. It is the first time that mythical ‘immortality medicines’ have been found in China. Shi Jiazhen, head of the Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology in Luoyang, further added – To that end, the liquid, as noted by Pan Fusheng (leading archaeologist of the excavation project), was found to be a concoction containing compounds like potassium nitrate and alunite – the main ingredients of the ‘elixir of immortality’ prescribed in the ancient Taoist text. And while the fascinating discovery was made in October of last year, with initial assessment hypothesizing how the liquid was possibly an ancient liquor (because of its alcoholic smell), further lab analysis has revealed something arguably far more interesting. The site in question here entails a 210 sq m (2,260 sq ft) tomb of a noble family located in proximity to the city of Luoyang. This object with the brew is dated from some time between 202 BC – 8 AD, corresponding to the Western Han period. It pertains to 3.5 liters of a liquid with an ‘alcoholic’ aroma contained within a bronze pot. According to reports published in the Xinhua News Agency, archaeologists have found a mysterious concoction at a site in China’s Henan province.
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