The tomb of Emperor Sui Yangdi at Caozhuang in Yangzhou City, Jiangsu

AbstractIn March 2012, two brick-chamber tombs (numbered as 2013YCM1 and 2013YCM2) of the Sui and Tang Dynasties were found at Caozhuang Section of Situ Village in Xihu Town, Hanjiang District, Yangzhou City, Jiangsu. From March through November of that year, a joint archaeological team conducted detection and excavation to these tombs and the surrounding area, but no traces of graveyard were found. In M1, a stone epitaph with text of “Epitaph of the late Emperor Sui Yangdi” and so on was unearthed, the legible contents of which generally match the records in the historic literature. From the two tombs, the diexie belt decorated with 13 sets of jade plaques and gold plates, gilt bronze pushoudoorknockers, jade zhang-scepter, bronze chime bells and chime music stones and crown with phoenix design and other high-ranking and high quality grave goods were unearthed, as well as large amounts of elaborately and true-to-life made pottery human and animal figurines. The discoveries of the stone epitaph and the high-ranking and high quality grave goods fully proved that these two brick-chamber tombs found in Caozhuang are the final graves of Emperor Yangdi and Empress Xiao of the Sui Dynasty.