Ancient weapon storehouse ruins discovered along China's Great Wall

BEIJING - Chinese archaeologists have unearthed 59 ancient stone grenades from the ruins of a building in the western section of the Badaling Great Wall, a Unesco World Heritage Site in Beijing, reported Xinhua.

Archaeologists believed that the building was a warehouse storing weapons along the Great Wall.

"It is the first time that such weapon storehouse has been found along the Great Wall,” said Shang Heng, a researcher from the municipal’s Institute of Archaeology.

Previously, archaeologists found more than 400 similar stone grenades, a primitive edition of ancient grenades, which are believed to be a common weapon for guards of the Great Wall during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

"These seemingly unremarkable stones have a round hole in the centre for gunpowder fillings. They can be sealed and thrown out, which not only hit the enemy but also cause an explosion,” explained Shang.

The Great Wall consists of many interconnected walls, some dating back 2,000 years. The existing sections have a total length of over 21,000 km.

From 2000 to 2022, more than 110 Great Wall protection projects have been carried out in Beijing, including those for its repair, renovation and research. - BERNAMA-XINHUA