Over 1,300-year-old gravestone found in north China

SHIJIAZHUANG, June 21 (Xinhua) -- A gravestone dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907) has been found in Daming County, north China's Hebei Province, during a recent cultural heritage survey.

The gravestone, which is 1,329 years old, stands 46 cm long, 46 cm wide and 9.5 cm thick. According to the 280-word inscription on the stone, its owner was an official at the time.

Wang Jianping, deputy director of the county's cultural relic protection center, said the gravestone is well preserved and the epigraph is clear, providing a reference point for the study of the local political and economic development in the Tang Dynasty.

It also provides important evidence to assist research on reforms in the local administrative divisions, Wang added.