When road workers accidentally stumbled across a pair of tombs in China, archaeologists could not have anticipated just how well preserved a corpse had been for 700 years
An extremely well-preserved female corpse was found on March 1, 2011 (Image: Keystone/Zuma/REX/Shutterstock)
The skin of a mummy discovered by accident had been perfectly preserved over 700 years.
Road workers stumbled upon a jaw-dropping corpse belonging to a high-ranking woman from China’s Ming Dynasty.
A ring survived 700 years on the woman’s finger (Image: Keystone/Zuma/REX/Shutterstock)
Chinese archaeologists were immediately called from the nearby Museum of Taizhou to inspect the body and were stunned by the condition of almost everything from the woman’s skin and hair right down to her eyelashes.
Experts claimed it was as though the diminutive 4’9 woman found swamped in a mysterious brown liquid, had only died recently.
The coffin contained a mysterious brown liquid (Image: Keystone/Zuma/REX/Shutterstock)
Previous findings sparked an interest in learning how corpses remained so well preserved from the Ming Dynasty and what rituals were involved in the mummification process.
Archaeologists from the Museum of Taizhou responded to the accidental discovery (Image: Top Photo Corporation/REX/Shutterstock)
The Ming Dynasty was responsible for building the Forbidden City and restoring the Great Wall. It was also the last in China and brought about an era of economic growth and cultural splendour which kickstarted trading with the West.