Jilin ruins among top ten archaeological discoveries in China

The ruins of the town of Baoma, on Changbai Mountain in Antu county, NE China's Jilin province, have been selected as one of China's top ten archaeological discoveries in 2017.

The Baoma Town Ruins have been shown to be the oldest temple used by the royal family in the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234) for worship at Changbai Mountain.

Shrine relics on Changbai Mountain in Antu, Jilin province -- Jin Dynasty [Photo provided to China Daily]

After the fourth excavation and research in 2017, archaeologists figured out the layout of the main buildings and the drainage ditches in the town.

The ruins are among the best preserved and most important architectural remains of the Jin Dynasty.

The research will also help people learn about the architecture and temple designs in the Jin Dynasty and the cultural exchanges between Northern and Southern nations at that time.

The surveyed map of the Baoma Town Ruins [Photo provided to ejilin.gov.cn]

New unearthing projects, which will focus on the water supply system in the town, will start in 2018.

The other nine discoveries are Battlefield relics in Meishan, Sichuan province; Grand Shangqing Taoist Palace relics in Yingtan, Jiangxi province; Eastern Han Dynasty emperors' tombs in Luoyang and Xinzheng ancient city relics of the Han and Zheng states in Xinzheng, both in Henan province; Yueyang city relics and Yangguanzhai relics in Xi'an, Shaanxi province; Yaoheyuan relics in Pengyang, Ningxia Hui autonomous region; Jiaojia relics in Jinan, Shandong province; and The Tongtiandong relics in Jeminay, the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.