Towering discoveries

New archaeological findings in Northwest China cast fresh light on the cultures that thrived along the Silk Road, Wang Kaihao reports.

In popular culture, there is an unusual expression: "nine-story tower haunted by ghosts." And an online novel that spawned a raft of screen thrillers on the theme of this "haunted tower" on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau has grabbed people's imagination in recent years.

It is perhaps hard to tell whether it is a spotlight or a gloomy shadow that has been cast over the Reshui graveyard, an archaeological site of around 300 tombs dating back to between the 6th and 8th centuries, in Dulan county, Qinghai province.

Having gained fame in recent years, continuous robberies have led to many treasures being taken from the burial site. However, in March, 2018, a nationwide legal-enforcement campaign was set up to combat tomb-raiding and retrieve lost artifacts to put an end to that chaos.