Genghis Khan's Palace Discovered

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Archeologists unearth Genghis Khan's palace

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Science/2004/10/06/658331-ap.html

By AUDREY MCAVOY

TOKYO (AP) - Archeologists have unearthed the site of Genghis

Khan's palace and believe the long-sought grave of the 13th-century

Mongolian warrior is somewhere nearby, the head of the excavation

team said Wednesday.

 

A Japanese and Mongolian research team found the complex on a grassy

steppe 240 kilometres east of the Mongolian capital of Ulan Bator,

said Shinpei Kato, professor emeritus at Tokyo's Kokugakuin

University.

 

Genghis Khan (c. 1162-1227) united warring tribes to become leader

of the Mongols in 1206. After his death, his descendants expanded

his empire until it stretched from China to Hungary.

 

Genghis Khan built the palace in the simple shape of a square tent

attached to wooden columns on the site around 1200, Kato said.

 

The researchers found porcelain buried among the ruins dated to the

warrior's era, helping identify the grounds, Kato said. A

description of the scenery around the palace by a messenger from

China's Southern Tang Dynasty in 1232 also matched the area, he

added.

 

Genghis Khan's tomb is believed to be nearby because ancient texts

say court officials commuted from the mausoleum later built on the

grounds to the burial site daily to conduct rituals for the dead.

 

Kato said his group was not aiming specifically to find the grave.

Still, he said finding it would help uncover the secrets of Genghis

Khan's power.

 

"Genghis Khan conquered Eurasia and built a massive empire. There

had to have been a great deal of interaction between east and west

at the time, in terms of culture and the exchange of goods," Kato

said in an interview. "If we find what items were buried with him,

we could write a new page for world history."

 

Genghis Khan's grave site is one of archeology's enduring mysteries.

According to legend, in order to keep it secret, his huge burial

party killed anyone who saw them en route to it; then servants and

soldiers who attended the funeral were massacred.

 

Kato said an ancient Chinese text says a baby camel was buried at

the grave in front of her mother so the parent could lead Khan's

family to the tomb when needed.

 

Archeologists have been forced to abandon their searches for Khan's

grave in the past, however, due to protests excavation would disturb

the site.

 

An American-financed expedition to find the tomb stopped work in

2002 after being accused by a prominent Mongolian politician of

desecrating traditional rulers' graves.

 

In 1993, Japanese archeologists terminated a search for the tomb

after a poll in Ulan Bator found the project unpopular.

 

According to Mongolian tradition, violating ancestral tombs destroys

the soul that serves as protector.

 

If researchers do find the tomb, they would also likely discover the

graves of Kublai Khan - Genghis' grandson who spread the Mongol

empire to southeast Asia and became the first emperor of China's

Yuan Dynasty - at the same time.

 

According to ancient texts, 13 or 14 Khan warriors, including

Genghis and Kublai, are buried in the same place.

 

Kato said he would step aside and leave the matter of how to proceed

up to his Mongolian colleagues if the team discovers the tombs.

 

"We will consult our Mongolian colleagues and decide what the best

next step would be - we may have to escape back to Japan," Kato

said, laughing.

 

"Excavation should be done by Mongolians - not by those of us from

other countries. It is up (to) Mongolians to decide."