The tomb of the First Emperor, also known as the Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang, is the burial complex of Qin Shi Huang, the founder of the Qin Dynasty and the first ruler to unify China.
During his lifetime, Qin Shi Huang became obsessed with achieving immortality and pursued the elusive elixir of life. He dispatched expeditions in search of Mount Penglai, an island/mountain in Qin mythology, said to be home to immortals that guarded the secret to eternal life.
Qin Shi Huang’s obsession ultimately led to his downfall, as many historians believe he died from prolonged poisoning by consuming mercury based elixirs that impaired his central nervous system, causing significant brain and liver damage.
Qin Shi Huang was buried in the Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor, located in present-day Lintong District in the city of Xi’an, which according to historical accounts was constructed over 38 years using 700,000 workmen.
Most of what is known about the tomb’s interior comes from the Records of the Grand Historian by Sima Qian, who describes mercury being used to depict the hundred rivers, including the Yangtze, Yellow River, and the great sea, all beneath a representation of the celestial constellations.
In 2016, a study was conducted around the mausoleum to detect mercury levels. The results revealed elevated concentrations reaching up to 27 ng/m³, significantly exceeding the typical background levels of 5–10 ng/m³ in the area.
Recent archaeological surveys in Xunyang City, Ankang, have identified three ancient cinnabar sites—Shimiaogou, Chuantangping, and Guojiawan.
Cinnabar is the most common source ore for refining elemental mercury as it consists mainly of mercuric sulfide. According to Chen Shibin, deputy director of the Xunyang Cultural Relics Management Office, these discoveries offer crucial clues in tracing the source of the mercury used in the mausoleum.
The Shimiaogou site, located near the Xunyang Qingtonggou cinnabar mining area, revealed cultural relics from various periods, as well as evidence of cinnabar mining and processing in the pre-Qin and Han periods .
The Chuantangping and Guojiawan sites, situated along transportation routes outside the mining area, also yielded additional evidence of cinnabar mining, as well as objects associated with cinnabar transportation and trade from the same periods.
Hu Weifen, a member of the survey team, highlighted that historical records, such as Gu Zuyu’s Dushi Fangyu Jiyao from the early Qing Dynasty, mentions a “mercury mountain” in Xunyang County, confirming that large-scale mining operations were underway by at least the Ming Dynasty.
With the region holding about 20% of China’s total mercury reserves and located just 100 kilometres from the mausoleum, archaeologists strongly believe that the Xunyang area was a primary source of mercury for the Qin Shihuang Mausoleum.
Header Image Credit : Alamy (Under Copyright)
Sources : China Times
