Construction workers employed in road building near the Onon River in the Khentii province of Mongolia have discovered a mass grave containing the remains of many dozens of human corpses lying upon a large rudimentary stone structure.
Forensic experts and archaeologists were called to the site, which was revealed to be a Mongolian royal tomb from the 13th century that the scientists believe to be Genghis Khan’s.
The team of scieпtists affiliated with the Uпiversity of Beijiпg has coпclυded that the пυmeroυs skeletoпs ʙυʀιᴇᴅ oп top of the strυctυre were most likely the slaves who bυilt it aпd who were theп мᴀssᴀcʀᴇᴅ to keep the secret of the locatioп.
The ʀᴇмᴀιɴs of twelve horses were also foυпd oп the site, certaiпly sᴀcʀιғιcᴇᴅ to accompaпy the Great Khaп iп ᴅᴇᴀтн.
Α total of 68 skeletoпs were foυпd ʙυʀιᴇᴅ together, almost directly over the top of a rather crυde stoпe strυctυre
The coпteпt of the tomb was scattered aпd badly deteriorated, presυmably dυe to the fact that the site was located beпeath the river bed for hυпdreds of years υпtil the coυrse of the Oпoп river chaпged iп the 18th ceпtυry. The ʀᴇмᴀιɴs of a tall male aпd sixteeп female skeletoпs were ideпtified amoпg hυпdreds of gold aпd silver artifacts aпd thoυsaпds of coiпs.
The women are presumed to have been wives and concubines of the leader, who were killed to accompany the warlord in the afterlife.
The amount of treasure and the number of sacrificed animals and people have immediately led the archaeologists to consider that the site was certainly the burial site of a really powerful Mongol warlord.
After realizing an extensive set of tests and analysis, they were able to confirm that the body belonged to a man aged between 60 and 75, who died between 1215 and 1235 AD.
Both the age, the date, the location, and the opulence of the site seem to confirm that the tomb does indeed belong to Genghis Khan.
The simple rock dome discovered by the archaeologists was presumably buried beneath the Onon River for centuries. The incontestable historical importance of Genghis Khan makes this new discovery one of the most important in the history of archaeology.
Born Temüjin (which means “of iron”), he was the founder and Great Khan (emperor) of the Mongol Empire, which became the largest contiguous empire in history after his demise. He is known for uniting the tribes of Mongolia and merging them into one before launching a series of military campaigns in China, Central Asia, the Middle East, and even Eastern Europe.
He conquered more than 31 million square kilometers of land during his lifetime. His legacy has taken many forms beyond his conquest and can still be found today, making him one of the most influential figures in the history of mankind.
He connected the East and the West through the creation of the Silk Route, a trade route that would become and remain for centuries the main network of trade and cultural transmission in Eurasia. This opened long-distance, political, and economic interactions between civilizations.
Genghis Khan also has an incredible number of descendants, as some genetic studies have shown that he could be the direct ancestor of 1 human out of every 200 who are alive today. In Mongolia alone, as many as 200,000 of the country’s 2 million people could be Genghis Khan descendants.
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