Secret underground passageways discovered in ruins of 4,300-year-old city in China

BY ASPEN PFLUGHOEFT
DECEMBER 28, 2023 2:30 PM



Archaeologists excavating the ancient ruins of Houchengzui Stone City found six secret underground passageways used for defense, photos show. Photo from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the China Archaeology Network


Today, entering the ancient stone city of Houchengzui in northern China means walking carefully through the sprawling ruins. Four thousand years ago, however, entering the city meant getting through multiple defensive walls and overpowering the well-prepared occupants. Archaeologists have known about the imposing defenses of Houchengzui Stone City for decades — but the ancient city still held a secret.

Houchengzui Stone City is between 4,300 and 4,500 years old with ruins stretching across roughly 15 million square feet, according to a Dec. 28 news release from the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology via the Institute of Archaeology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the China Archaeology Network.

Archaeologists initially found the city in 2005 and began systematically excavating it in 2019, the release said. During the most recent excavations, archaeologists stumbled on a system of secret underground passageways. They found six intersecting tunnels that functioned as a hidden transportation network.



A partial map of the hidden passageways, the blue dotted lines, labeled TD1 and TD2. Photo from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the China Archaeology Network

A photo shows a partial map of the passageways. Other photos show a tunnel entrance and a view inside the well-preserved arched tunnels.



Archaeologists said the tunnels were between about 5 feet and about 20 feet down. Inside, the tunnels were between 3 feet and 6 feet tall and roughly 4 feet wide. Several tunnels passed under the city’s defensive walls and opened to the outside.



A view inside one of the underground passageways. Photo from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the China Archaeology Network

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