A priceless gem from Cao Cao's tomb

Chengdu Business News, June 11, 2010

When the World Cup opens this evening (Beijing time), football fans stuck at home in Chengdu can watch the event in style at Chengdu Stadium, reports the Chengdu Business News in a front-page feature that feels a little like an advertisement.

The most interesting headline on the front page teases an exclusive story: a jadeite bead was discovered in Cao Cao's tomb in Anyang, Henan Province, and experts believe it was from the mouth of Cao Cao himself:

Previously, media reports had called Cao Cao's tomb an "abandoned pit," the term used among grave robbers. "Even though Cao Cao's tomb has been robbed several times, almost 300 intact objects were uncovered." A knowledgeable source told the paper that the most priceless finds included a jadeite bead plucked from the dust in the tomb. Oblong and about two centimeters long, it is moist-feeling and strikingly luminescent under the light. An expert appraised it at 10 million yuan. The head of the China Association of Collectors, who came especially to observe, found that this gem was unique: "It is only seen in records from after the Tang Dynasty, but never the actual object itself."

"This jadeite bead was held in Cao Cao's mouth," said the source...Why was this bead held in Cao Cao's mouth? The source explained that other beads found in the tomb all had holes but this one did not. Experts deduced that the other beads had been used as decorations, but this bead had been placed in Cao Cao's mouth at his burial.