Nearly 500 valuable cultural relics were unearthed Sunday from a tomb dating back to the Warring States Period (475 BC-221 BC) in Zaoyang City of Hubei Province.

Ritual vessels such as chimes, tripods, cauldrons and carriages which were buried with the dead in the Chu State, which was located in the province more than 2,000 years ago, were among the items found in the Jiuliandun Tomb.

Archaeologists say the newly-unearthed bronze ritual vessels are in sound condition, which is unusual for findings from that period.

A rectangular bronze jar with dragon designs, which was used exclusively by aristocrats, was excavated Sunday. Similar jars have been found in other parts of China, but with different shapes and patterns.

A cauldron measuring 93 centimeters in height and 82 centimeters in diameter was also found. It is the largest cauldron excavated from the Chu tombs to date.

Another exciting finding is a bronze lamp which features a man holding the lamp in one hand and a bird in the other. The depiction of a man and an animal together on a lamp is a rare occurrence in the Chu tombs, according to archaeologists.

The country's largest and best-preserved Chu collections consisting of 33 carriages and 72 horses, which were buried with the dead, were also found in one of the tomb's tunnels.

(Xinhua News Agency December 23, 2002)