China-Ancient Liquor

2,000-year-old liquor unearthed from ancient tomb in northwest China

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Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, northwest China - March 20, 2018 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of unearthed relics on table
2. Various of unearthed bronze kettle
3. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhang Yanglizheng, assistant research fellow, Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology:
"The kettle had its opening sealed with plants and natural fibers. Surprisingly, we found about 300 ml of liquor in it. The liquor was milky white when we found it, and was a little muddy. Later test showed that it was composed of high concentration amino acid substances and also small amounts of protein and fatty acids, which made it similar to yellow rice wine we drink nowadays."
4. Liquor found in unearthed kettle
5. Various of sealed liquor found in unearthed kettle
6. Various of unearthed bronze sword
7. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhang Yanglizheng, assistant research fellow, Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology:
"This copper sword should have been a combat weapon. There are obvious signs of wear on the sword, which suggests that it was used in a lot of wars by its owner."
8. Various of unearthed bronze sword

Storyline


Chinese archaeologists have unearthed a bronze kettle containing liquor dating back more than 2,000 years in northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

The kettle is a sacrificial vessel among 260 other items unearthed from a graveyard of commoners' tombs from the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BC).

Most of the relics were for worshiping rituals.

Zhang Yanglizheng, an assistant research fellow with the Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology, said about 300 ml of liquor was found in the kettle.

"The kettle had its opening sealed with plants and natural fibers. Surprisingly, we found about 300 ml of liquor in it. The liquor was milky white when we found it, and was a little muddy. Later test showed that it was composed of high concentration amino acid substances and also small amounts of protein and fatty acids, which made it similar to yellow rice wine we drink nowadays," said Zhang.

Archaeologists need to further study the liquor to better understand the brewing technology and wine drinking culture in Xianyang, the ancient capital of the Qin Dynasty.

Also found in the tombs was a bronze 60-centimeter long sword with octahedrons in the middle to increase the weapon's effectiveness.

"This copper sword should have been a combat weapon. There are obvious signs of wear on the sword, which suggests that it was used in a lot of wars by its owner," said Zhang.

Another important finding was a 14-centimeter long turtle plastron shell with a dozen punches inside the shell and burn marks on its edge suggesting that it was used by a fortune-teller for divination.

Archaeologists are trying to build up a picture of life in the capital of China's first empire by studying the relics.

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  • ID : 8076434
  • Dateline : March 20, 2018
  • Location : Xi'an,China
  • Category : arts, culture and entertainment
  • Duration : 2'01
  • Audio Language : Chinese/Nats
  • Source : China Central Television (CCTV)
  • Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland
  • Published : 2018-03-21 05:59
  • Last Modified : 2019-03-16 00:09:00
  • Version : 1
  • ID : 8076434
  • Dateline : 20 mars 2018
  • Location : Xi'an,Chine
  • Category : arts, culture and entertainment
  • Duration : 2'01
  • Audio Language : Chinois/Nats
  • Source : China Central Television (CCTV)
  • Restrictions : Pas d’accès dans la partie continentale de Chine
  • Published : 2018-03-21 17:48
  • Last Modified : 2019-03-16 00:09:00
  • Version : 1
  • ID : 8076434
  • Dateline : 20 mar. 2018
  • Location : Xi'an,China
  • Category : arts, culture and entertainment
  • Duration : 2'01
  • Audio Language : Chino/Nats
  • Source : China Central Television (CCTV)
  • Restrictions : No acceso a la parte continental de China
  • Published : 2018-03-21 17:04
  • Last Modified : 2019-03-16 00:09:00
  • Version : 1

China-Ancient Liquor

2,000-year-old liquor unearthed from ancient tomb in northwest China

Dateline : March 20, 2018

Location : Xi'an,China

Duration : 2'01

  • English
  • Français
  • Español


Xi'an City, Shaanxi Province, northwest China - March 20, 2018 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of unearthed relics on table
2. Various of unearthed bronze kettle
3. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhang Yanglizheng, assistant research fellow, Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology:
"The kettle had its opening sealed with plants and natural fibers. Surprisingly, we found about 300 ml of liquor in it. The liquor was milky white when we found it, and was a little muddy. Later test showed that it was composed of high concentration amino acid substances and also small amounts of protein and fatty acids, which made it similar to yellow rice wine we drink nowadays."
4. Liquor found in unearthed kettle
5. Various of sealed liquor found in unearthed kettle
6. Various of unearthed bronze sword
7. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Zhang Yanglizheng, assistant research fellow, Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology:
"This copper sword should have been a combat weapon. There are obvious signs of wear on the sword, which suggests that it was used in a lot of wars by its owner."
8. Various of unearthed bronze sword


Chinese archaeologists have unearthed a bronze kettle containing liquor dating back more than 2,000 years in northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

The kettle is a sacrificial vessel among 260 other items unearthed from a graveyard of commoners' tombs from the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BC).

Most of the relics were for worshiping rituals.

Zhang Yanglizheng, an assistant research fellow with the Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology, said about 300 ml of liquor was found in the kettle.

"The kettle had its opening sealed with plants and natural fibers. Surprisingly, we found about 300 ml of liquor in it. The liquor was milky white when we found it, and was a little muddy. Later test showed that it was composed of high concentration amino acid substances and also small amounts of protein and fatty acids, which made it similar to yellow rice wine we drink nowadays," said Zhang.

Archaeologists need to further study the liquor to better understand the brewing technology and wine drinking culture in Xianyang, the ancient capital of the Qin Dynasty.

Also found in the tombs was a bronze 60-centimeter long sword with octahedrons in the middle to increase the weapon's effectiveness.

"This copper sword should have been a combat weapon. There are obvious signs of wear on the sword, which suggests that it was used in a lot of wars by its owner," said Zhang.

Another important finding was a 14-centimeter long turtle plastron shell with a dozen punches inside the shell and burn marks on its edge suggesting that it was used by a fortune-teller for divination.

Archaeologists are trying to build up a picture of life in the capital of China's first empire by studying the relics.

ID : 8076434

Published : 2018-03-21 05:59

Last Modified : 2019-03-16 00:09:00

Source : China Central Television (CCTV)

Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland

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