Centuries-old gravestone discovered in north China

SHIJIAZHUANG, June 9 (Xinhua) -- A gravestone dating back 398 years was discovered in north China's Hebei Province earlier this month, providing evidence of social changes in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

The gravestone was found in the Xihan Village of Guangping County, which was erected in March 1625 and stood at 110 cm long, 40 cm wide and 15 cm thick. According to inscriptions on the stone, an ancestor of Gao's family was buried in the grave.

Ren Zhenchao, head of the cultural relics protection and management office in Guangping, said that the inscriptions also detailed the migration of Gao's family from east China's Jiangsu Province to Hebei when the Ming Emperor Zhu Di fought in north China. Emperor Zhu Di moved the country's capital from Nanjing, now capital city of Jiangsu, to Beijing during his reign.

"The gravestone provided evidence for studying the military, political and the economic aspects of the Ming Dynasty," said Ren.