Scientists discover ancient wells in China with 10,000 bamboo slips that offer insights into governance from 1,800 years ago
- Bamboo slips were found in two wells, with one being in much better shape
- Mostly contained tax information, which can be deeply insightful
Archaeologists in China hope that around 10,000 bamboo slips discovered in a 1,700-year-old well can help them unlock certain mysteries about life and governance during the Three Kingdoms (220-280) period.
The artefacts found in central China’s Hunan province are a series of bureaucratic updates about how the town of Dutou city operated day to day.
Dutou was the head of government for the county, which was ruled by the state of Wu, and the discovery of the slips should illuminate how the region was governed.
They included information about household registration, taxation, farming, mining and other economic activities in the town, according to a press release from the Institute of Archaeology from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
Bamboo slips, called jiandu in Chinese, were the primary medium for writing for thousands of years, and their excavation has proven to be an invaluable source for understanding the history of China. Archaeologists have found more than 300,000 bamboo slips to date.
The slips were found in two wells, one of which was far better preserved than the other.
