Chinese archaeologists once made headlines when they discovered an ancient tomb containing a remarkably preserved female corpse, with skin that still retained elasticity as if she were alive. Even more shocking was the fact that this female corpse was adorned with a dragon robe embellished with thousands of pearls, indicating the noble status of the tomb’s owner.
In 1972, an archaeologist uncovered an ancient tomb in Inner Mongolia. During the excavation of this tomb, experts found a female corpse still wearing a dragon robe. However, what was even more remarkable was that there were still some strange bloodstains on the thigh of this corpse.
The ancient tomb measures approximately 45 meters wide and 105 meters long, covering an area of around 5,000 square meters. To the south of the tomb is a large gate, and to the north stands a square stone tablet measuring 15×15 meters. The western space is designated for sacrificial items. Additionally, the tomb contains many rooms with an extremely complex design. This tomb holds numerous valuable cultural relics, making it significant for historical collection and research.
Upon opening the coffin within the ancient tomb, experts were quite surprised to find a female corpse that was nearly intact, with skin still exhibiting elasticity as if she were alive. Based on the corpse, they estimated that this woman was about 1.5 to 1.6 meters tall, with long black hair measuring 75 cm. It was evident that she must have been an attractive person in her lifetime. Furthermore, the tomb’s owner wore a gold bracelet and a gold ring on her hands, and her feet were adorned with a pair of red embroidered shoes.
The head of the corpse faced south, while the feet pointed north, and she wore a phoenix crown (a crown shaped like a phoenix worn by queens and concubines in ancient times) made of gold. This individual also wore a gold ring on her hand and red embroidered shoes. Her body was draped in multiple layers of clothing, with the outermost being a dragon robe covered in pearls. This dragon robe shocked many, as historically, no female corpse adorned in a dragon robe had ever been found before.
The dragon robe draped over the female corpse.
As we know, the dragon robe was exclusively reserved for ancient emperors, symbolizing the majesty and power of the nation’s leader. Anyone who dared to wear this robe without permission would face severe punishment, even being condemned to death along with their entire family.
During the Qing Dynasty, there were no empresses, only the Dowager Empress Cixi, who observed political affairs from behind the curtains. Prior to her, the only female emperor in Chinese history was Wu Zetian. This raises questions among experts about the identity of this female corpse—could there have been another empress in history who was not recorded in the annals?
Following the clues found in the ancient tomb and the information previously uncovered, archaeologists quickly identified the identity of the female corpse. She was the fourth daughter of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty: Princess Yongxian. Her biological mother was Lady Ma, a favored concubine of Emperor Kangxi and one of his first consorts.
Lady Ma was favored by Emperor Kangxi since her entry into the palace and bore him three sons and three daughters. Unfortunately, two of the three daughters died at a young age, and Princess Yongxian was the only one who survived, cherished by her father. Upon reaching adulthood, Princess Yongxian was granted the title of Hohhot Yongxian Princess; she later married Oirat (the son of the Ba Lam Duke, Yaqi Er).
Princess Yongxian passed away at the age of 56, having lived a happy life. At the time of her death, the emperor rewarded her with a dragon robe. Princess Yongxian was the first person in history to receive a dragon robe, which sufficiently demonstrates her high status.
The corpse in the ancient tomb is the fourth daughter of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty: Princess Yongxian. (Illustrative image).
However, after removing the dragon robe from the corpse, archaeologists discovered another strange mark: some bloodstains on the thigh. The identity of Princess Yongxian is indeed very special and cannot be dishonored by others.
Because of this, some speculate that this could be menstrual blood. The deceased was not fully “drained” of menstrual blood before burial. However, this view was immediately rejected because at the time of her death, Princess Yongxian was 56 years old, making it impossible for her to still have a menstrual cycle like younger individuals.
Many hypotheses have been proposed, but experts continuously refute them. To this day, the bloodstains on Princess Yongxian’s body remain an unsolved mystery.
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