Archaeologists reconstruct grassroots official over 2,200 year ago

This photo taken on March 25, 2024 shows the reconstructed statue of an ancient local official at the Hubei provincial museum in Wuhan, central China's Hubei Province. (Xinhua/Xiao Yijiu)

WUHAN, March 26 (Xinhua) -- Based on skeleton remains and burial objects, archaeologists have reconstructed the face of a local official back in the Qin Dynasty (221 BC-207 BC).

The official is believed to have diligently recorded documents on over 1,100 bamboo slips that formed one of China's earliest encyclopedias.

The official, aged 45 to 50 upon his death, was owner of bamboo slips with over 40,000-characters preserved in his tomb.

The documents serve to provide valuable insight into the legal and administrative system, medical manuals and a rich chronicle of some events, according to the researchers.

The ancient official now has his face reconstructed thanks to modern technologies including 3D scanning of his skull. The public is expected to see the restored official and learn about the living conditions of his time in the museum within this year.

The bone remains and bamboo slips were all first unearthed in 1975 at a tomb site in Shuihudi, Yunmeng County of Hubei Province. Researchers from the Hubei provincial museum, the provincial cultural relics and archaeology institute teamed up with Jilin University to carry out the facial restoration work in 2019.