The tomb is believed to be the third most important archeological discovery in Beijing, after the Ming Tombs and the Dabaotai Tomb.

The seven suspects were among the first to discover the tomb. A court in Beijing opened the trial last week.

They went out to the site at night and dug for the tomb's opening, putting the dirt in several mounds to avoid attention. They also studied books on antiques and archaeology.

The suspects spent seven months digging, but passersby later discovered the large amount of earth they had dug up and notified the police.

The men were arrested in December 1999 and confessed they had robbed the tomb on several occasions from May to November 1999. They face at least 10 years in prison if convicted of tomb robbery.

The tomb, dating back to the Western Han Dynasty (BC206-AD24), was excavated by archaeologists in March last year.

(Eastday.com 01/15/2001)