Photo: Xinhua

 
Archaeologists have unearthed a 2.5-kilometer-long avenue dating back nearly 2,000 years on the site of the ancient capital of Luoyang in Central China's Henan Province.

The road, about 34 meters wide, was a major east-west avenue extending between the relic sites of Ximingmen and Qingyangmen in the southern part of Luoyang. The avenue was built in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220) and continued in use until the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534), a period of around 500 years.

The discovery was made during excavations that started in 2020, led by the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Researchers conducting the excavation at the site were able to obtain information on the location, direction and structure of the avenue, as well as the condition of various underground relics, explained Liu Tao, a researcher with the institute.

The road section shows different soil layers from various time periods, with signs of wheel ruts on many different layers, according to the archaeologists.

Graves from the Han Dynasty and a large number of coins from the Xin Dynasty (9-23) were found on the lower layers of the road sections.

"More than 500 years of the capital city's history are reflected in the road sections," said Guo Xiaotao, another researcher with the institute.

At the bottom of an excavation site, the archaeologists also discovered some brick structures, measuring about 1.5 meters to 1.6 meters wide, which were likely used for water drainage.  

Xinhua