The Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang was built underground. Without air circulation, would Qin Shi Huang’s body rot?

Qin Shihuang’s body will not rot.

Decomposition of corpses is a normal phenomenon, and of course, it is no exception underground. "The Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang was built underground and there is no air circulation. Will Qin Shi Huang's body rot?" Regarding this issue, it is actually very controversial. Some people think that the body will definitely rot if it is not embalmed. Some people's opinions On the contrary, maybe its body was embalmed and turned into something like a mummy. There are different opinions, and I also have my own opinion on this issue. I think Qin Shihuang’s body will not rot. Now, listen to me. Let’s talk.

Qin Shihuang is the founder of feudal society. Since the Three Yellow Emperors and no emperors, Qin Shihuang’s achievements can be said to be unprecedented and unprecedented. Therefore, we have reason to believe that Qin Shihuang wanted to be remembered forever by future generations. His own merit is to make his body into something that will last for a long time after his death. Of course, this is our speculation based on common sense. We will only get the answer when the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang is opened. In the West, the once civilized pharaohs were made into mummies that can survive to this day, and our embalming technology in China is no worse than theirs.

The Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang has not been excavated so far because there is deep mercury under the mausoleum. In order to protect the mausoleum, the wisdom of ancient people can be said to be infinite. From the side, Qin Shi Huang’s body will not rot .

Technically speaking, anti-corrosion technology has been proven to be true in many archaeological discoveries. This anti-corrosion technology is more advanced than modern anti-corrosion technology. Some cultural relics have been sleeping underground for thousands of years. , can still shine brightly, which also proves the intelligence and wisdom of ancient Chinese people.

Historical records record: "The carriage smelled bad, so the officials ordered the carriage to carry a stone of abalone to disturb the smell."

We know that most emperors would wrap their corpses in gold and silver, which to a certain extent could reduce the decay time of their corpses. As time goes by, the corpses will also decay underground. Oxidation, decay is normal for ordinary emperors.

But please remember, he is Qin Shihuang. Qin Shihuang claimed to be the emperor for eternity. Although Qin Shihuang's mausoleum has been buried underground for nearly a thousand years, we don't know what the result will be. From this point of view, we can say that Qin Shihuang will definitely not let his body rot.

What are your thoughts on this issue? Welcome to leave a message.

I think Qin Shihuang’s body has decomposed, at least it is highly decomposed.

First of all, everyone needs to know the reasons why corpses rot.

After death, it usually takes more than a day and night for the body to begin to decay.

Under the influence of bacteria, putrid green spots and putrid blisters appear on the skin surface of corpses, and a venous blood vessel network can be formed in the venous plexus. At this time, the muscles and subcutaneous tissue appear emphysema due to the production of putrefactive gas, and the body swells and deforms. Due to the continuous production of putrefactive gas, putrefactive blood and water may appear in the mouth and nose under the pressure of the gas, the stomach contents are pushed out by the gas (called "post-mortem vomiting"), the eyeballs are extruded, the lips are everted, the tongue protrudes, and the uterus prolapses. For pregnant women, the fetus may be pushed out by gas (called "postmortem delivery"), feces may leak out, etc.

Decomposition of corpses can destroy antemortem injuries and make autopsy examination difficult, but it can make sunken corpses float.

The main conditions affecting spoilage are temperature, humidity and airflow. The environment of 25℃-35℃ is suitable condition for the development of corruption. The low temperature of 0℃-1℃ or the high temperature of 45℃-55℃ can slow down or stop the corruption.

Corpse putrefaction refers to the process of decomposition of tissue proteins after death due to the action of putrefactive bacteria. It is a continuation of the early cadaver phenomenon and is the most common late cadaver phenomenon. Corpse decomposition usually begins to appear in the 24th, 48th, or 72nd hour after death, but it takes longer to fully develop, sometimes a year or even longer. The result of the progression of corpse decay is that the corpse is destroyed until only the bones remain.

In the thirty-seventh year of Qin Shi Huang (210 BC), Qin Shi Huang died in the Sand Dune Palace (today’s Guangzong, Hebei Province) on his fifth eastward tour. In order to continue to deceive his subjects, the convoy did not dare to take a shortcut back to Xianyang. Instead, they assumed a posture of continuing their patrol and took a detour back to Xianyang. Due to the high temperature in the summer, Qin Shihuang's body had rotted and smelled. In order to cover people's ears and eyes, Hu Hai and his party ordered people to buy a lot of abalone and load it in the car. The smell of abalone masked the putrid smell of the corpse and confused everyone.

Looking back at the previous analysis of corpse decomposition time, even if we do not calculate the distance from the sand dunes to Luoyang, looking at the phenomenon of corpse decomposition alone, Qin Shihuang had been dead for at least three days before returning to Luoyang, and the bacteria in the human body had become widespread. Proliferation, giant view appears!

Everyone should know a lot about the role of mercury. Whether in ancient India or ancient China, there are examples of corpse preservation using mercury.

According to scientific research, the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang used mercury on a large scale, and even built mercury banks to prevent insects and rats underneath from invading the mausoleum. However, because the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang has not been fully developed yet, there is no question as to whether Qin Shihuang used water. Silver's ability to preserve the human body from decay is still a mystery, and we can only make a hypothesis now.

So I think that Qin Shihuang’s body has rotted, or is highly decomposed.

Before talking about this issue, let’s talk about the phenomenon of late corpses. Forensic medicine is generally divided into two categories. One is the phenomenon of destroyed corpses. We all know that corpses generally decay under natural conditions, which is caused by the action of putrefactive bacteria. Generally speaking, when a corpse begins to decay, there will be corpse odor, green corpse, blisters and decay bubbles, "giant view" and other phenomena. After the soft tissue disintegrates, it will turn into white bones. The optimum temperature for spoilage bacteria to proliferate is between 25 degrees and 35 degrees, and air circulation with appropriate humidity will accelerate the spoilage process. When the temperature is below 5 degrees Celsius, corruption almost stops.

Another type is the phenomenon of preserved corpses. Some corpses can interrupt the putrefaction process due to the influence of internal and external factors, and the soft tissues do not disintegrate and liquefy, leaving part or all of the corpse preserved. This is called a preserved corpse. For example, Mrs. Xin Zhui in Mawangdui, Changsha, her body originally began to decay, but due to the influence of some factors, the decay was interrupted and preserved. There is also a well-known mummy, which has a high-end and high-end name in "The Collection of Abandoned Wrongs": "White Zombie and Exhausted Corpse". There is also corpse wax, which is a rare preservation phenomenon of corpses formed after being soaked in water with insufficient air for a long time, or in moist soil with insufficient air. In particular, complete corpse wax is even more rare.

"Historical Records" records that Qin Shi Huang died of illness in the sand dunes in July and was buried in Lishan Mausoleum in September. And because of the "heat", which caused "the stink of the carriage", stone abalone had to be used to "disorder the stink". It can be seen that Qin Shihuang's body had already developed advanced corpse phenomena on the way back to Xianyang, that is, it began to decay. Therefore, it is said that Qin Shihuang's body had already begun to decay before it was buried, but the extent of the decay was not known.

It also takes time for the corpse to begin to decay and become skeletal, and the decay process may be interrupted for various reasons. Therefore, the remains of Qin Shihuang may be similar to Xin Zhui of Mawangdui. Maybe, in short, it should be certain that Qin Shihuang's body was corrupted, but whether the corruption process was interrupted is currently unknown.

Judging from Qin Shihuang's pursuit of immortality during his lifetime, and coupled with the emergence of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses, Qin Shihuang probably did not have much interest in resurrection after death, otherwise he would not have made his last trip to avoid death. The concept of the Han Dynasty after the Qin Dynasty was that the immortality of the body was the key to resurrection after death. Since Qin Shihuang did not care about resurrection after death, it is likely that Qin Shihuang also did not pay attention to the preservation of the body, so the degree of corruption of Qin Shihuang's body may not be small. However, there are always accidental factors that may interrupt the decay process of the body, so it is also possible that Qin Shihuang's body was not completely decayed.

I am Uncle Cat, and I am honored to answer your question.

As to whether Qin Shihuang’s body will be well preserved, this question must be very controversial. After all, Qin Shihuang’s mausoleum has not been opened, and everyone can only rely on speculation and conjecture to imagine the answer. In this case, I also put it Let me share my thoughts with you. Please bear with me if there are any inaccuracies.

Regarding the preservation of Qin Shihuang’s body, I think his body has rotted, at least most of it. Why? I have the following reasons.

First, if "Historical Records" is to be believed, Qin Shihuang's body was highly decomposed before being buried.

According to records, Qin Shihuang died of illness in the Sand Dune Palace in Hebei during his fifth eastward tour, which is now the area of ??Xingtai City, Hebei Province. After the death of Qin Shihuang, Zhao Gao and Li Si chose not to announce the funeral secretly in order to stabilize the situation and avoid arousing suspicion from those around them. Not only that, they also arranged for the convoy to continue patrolling and made a long circuit before returning to Xianyang. Let’s talk about going in circles. Even if we don’t go in circles, look at the map. Xingtai is so far away from Xianyang. What’s more, the means of transportation at that time was horse-drawn carriages, and the army had to stop and go. What’s terrible is that it was still hot at the time, and the corpses would definitely rot. smell.

In order not to arouse others' suspicion, Zhao Gao arranged a lot of abalones around him, which was so stinky. Needless to say, how Qin Shihuang's body had rotted in the past few months. , can you imagine?

Secondly, although the air in the tomb is not circulated, it takes a certain amount of time to form a non-corrosive environment. Some friends are probably curious about the matter of corpses not decaying. I am not talented, but I am an archaeologist. Although I am not good at academics, I still know a thing or two. Under normal circumstances, the conditions for the formation of an incorruptible environment are relatively harsh, and it is purely a probabilistic event. The microorganisms inside need to form a relatively stable state to make the corpse incorruptible. As for whether such an environment will form in the tomb of Qin Shihuang's mausoleum, no one dares to say for sure. However, even if such a stable environment is formed, it will take a certain amount of time. Since Qin Shi Huang's body was highly decomposed when he was buried, the probability that Qin Shi Huang's body was completely decomposed is higher.

Thirdly, if mercury really exists and is in huge amounts, Qin Shihuang’s tomb may be better preserved. According to historical records, there is a large amount of mercury in the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang. I am not sure whether this is true. Some people say that the mercury content in the soil of Mount Li is very high. It is very likely that the historical records are true, but I may have an occupational disease. I will not open it. Tomb chamber, I dare not completely say that this is true.

If there is really a large amount of mercury in the tomb, then the well-preserved degree of the tomb is still exciting. After all, the volatilization of mercury will form a highly toxic environment, and many microorganisms will be killed. The tomb will form a relatively constant environment, which is very important for the preservation of cultural relics. There are great benefits.

Although the presence of mercury will be beneficial to the preservation of corpses, I still say the same thing. If Qin Shihuang's corpse was already highly decomposed before entering the tomb, mercury would not be able to save him. Therefore, there should be no surprises about the completeness of the body.

Okay, the above is my rough knowledge. If you have other opinions or additional comments, please leave a message for discussion, but verbal attacks are prohibited.

In the thirty-seventh year of the First Emperor's reign (210 BC), Qin Shi Huang went on his fifth tour and fell ill in Pingyuanjin (near today's Shandong Plain). "Historical Records: The Chronicles of the First Emperor of Qin": He fell ill in Pingyuanjin. The First Emperor spoke harshly of death, but none of the ministers dared to talk about death. He recovered from his illness, so he wrote a seal to Prince Fusu, saying: "I will be buried in Xianyang with the funeral party." The letter was sealed, and Zhao Gaoxing was ordered to Fu Xi Office in Zhongche Mansion, but no envoy was given. On Bingyin in the seventh month, the First Emperor collapsed on the sand dune platform. The Prime Minister, who was the superior, died outside. He was afraid that there would be changes among the princes and the world, so he kept it secret and did not announce his mourning. The coffin was carried in a carriage, so the eunuchs who were lucky enough to ride in it were given the best food. "After the death of Qin Shihuang, Zhao Gao and Li Si conspired to keep the funeral secret and used abalone to cover up the stench from the corpse. By the time they returned to Xianyang, more than two months had passed since Qin Shihuang's death, and the first emperor's body had already rotted.

In the ninth month, the First Emperor was buried in Lishan. When the First Emperor first came to the throne, he passed through Lishan and conquered the world. More than 700,000 people from all over the world were sent to visit him. They passed through three springs and lowered the copper into the coffin. There were hundreds of palaces. Zang was full of rare treasures and ordered craftsmen to make crossbow arrows, which he shot at those who came close. He used mercury as a symbol for the rivers and seas, and used astronomy on the top and geography on the bottom. Those who are immortal will last for a long time. The Second Emperor said: "It is not appropriate for the emperor to leave the harem unless he has a son." "They were all ordered to die, and there were many dead. After the burial was carried out, or the craftsmen were the reason, all the Zangs knew it, and the Zang's weight was immediately released. After the important event was completed, Zang closed the Zhongxian, went down to the outer Xian gate, and closed all the craftsmen's Zang, There is no comeback. The trees and grass are like mountains.

People die like lamps. Qin Shihuang was so high-spirited when he was alive, but he couldn't even save his body after death.

(Network invasion). (Deleted)

The First Emperor has always been a very controversial figure. I won’t talk about what happened during his lifetime, but what happened after his death has always puzzled us. Before starting to visit the Emperor’s Mausoleum, everything was just speculation, but for It is relatively certain whether the body of the First Emperor was decayed, and it was probably highly decomposed!

The First Emperor died suddenly during his fifth tour of the world, and we don’t know how he died suddenly. At that time, the First Emperor happened to be patrolling in Xingtai, Hebei Province, and Zhao Gao and Li Si chose to "keep it secret" for their own benefit because the First Emperor at that time did not set up a prince and was dedicated to chasing immortals!

After Zhao Gao and Li Si discovered that the First Emperor died suddenly, they jointly chose to hide the news of the First Emperor's death in order not to attract the attention of the princes far away in Xianyang. But how did they hide it, pretending that the First Emperor was unwell, and continued to do so? Not only that, but they also continued to complete the parade. It was during the sweltering heat! In the end, the carriage stinked and had to be covered with a lot of seafood.

After arriving in Xianyang, Zhao Gao and Li Si jointly elected Hu Hai as the second emperor of the Qin Dynasty. After the first emperor traveled for several months, even though he had excellent anti-corrosion technology at the time, he faced the situation that had been left for several months. The remains of the First Emperor would feel helpless.

However, although Hu Hai's method of inheriting the throne may not be so glorious, in order to declare to the world the legitimacy of his throne, Hu Hai also placed a corpse in the Mausoleum of the First Emperor. There are a lot of treasures, which makes the Mausoleum of the First Emperor of the Qin Dynasty even more mysterious. I hope that one day when the technology arrives, the tomb of this eternal emperor can be opened

It is said that there is a lot of confusion about whether Qin Shihuang's whole body has decayed. During the war at that time, the conditions were harsher than now and it was really difficult to survive, let alone the war. He died on the front line of the battlefield, and now he is the headquarters. He was pulled by vehicle to Xianyang. Not to mention the hot weather, if At that time, it was possible to keep the corpse from decaying in the cemetery, because in ancient times there were ways to protect the corpse better than in the current period. In ancient times, corpses that were a thousand years old were as intact as those who had just died. For example, the corpse of Mrs. Xin Zhui of Changsha was more than a thousand years old. It has been well preserved. Before Qin Shihuang died, he built an extremely luxurious palace. From ancient times to the present, there was no emperor who planned funeral affairs better than him. There were many living people in the cemetery he built, and there were things for daily use in them that could not be born. There are only a limited number of things to eat and you will die inside. During the construction, there were many mechanisms unless you died inside. The body of Qin Shihuang remained unchanged after being buried.

According to historical records, Qin Shihuang has been keen on the art of immortality since he was in his twenties. To this end, he recruited capable warlocks from all over the country to refine the elixir for him, and sent Xu Fu to lead three thousand boys and girls out to sea to find the elixir. In order not to die, Qin Shihuang really took great pains. In the end, it was not discovered that Lu Sheng and Hou Sheng had been deceived, and someone had carved words on stones to curse the First Emperor's death. In a rage, he killed hundreds of Confucian scholars to vent his anger, blocking everyone's speech.

We know that this emperor who pursued immortality finally died. On the way to his fifth eastward tour, he suddenly fell ill and died in the Sand Dune Palace. Sima Qian described it in "Historical Records": "The carriage smelled bad, so he ordered the officials to carry a stone of abalone on the carriage to disturb the smell." Before Qin Shihuang died, he had written a will, announcing that Fusu would hand over the general power to Meng Tian and then return to Beijing to handle his own affairs. This shows that Qin Shihuang took his own affairs very seriously. The ancients believed that life is death, and death is another kind of life. However, after the death of Qin Shihuang, the treacherous eunuch Zhao Gao beside him did not act in accordance with the emperor's will. Regarding Qin Shihuang's death, he kept the funeral secret, persuaded the Shihuang's youngest son Hu Hai to succeed him, and threatened Prime Minister Li Si to announce a false edict with him to kill Fusu. In this way, Fusu committed suicide, Mengtian committed suicide, and almost everyone loyal to the First Emperor was killed.

It was the hot summer season at that time. Because Zhao Gao kept silent about the death of the First Emperor, he secretly handled the First Emperor’s death. Only after the news of Fusu’s suicide came, they started to pull him together. The First Emperor's body was returned to Beijing for funeral arrangements. The sentence mentioned in Sima Qian's Historical Records describes how Zhao Gao and others emitted bursts of stench on the way to bring the First Emperor's body back to the capital. Hu Hai was afraid that the matter would be exposed, so he found baskets of abalone and put them on the carriage. to cover up the original stench. The discovery of the female corpse "Xin Zhui" in Mawangdui shocked China and foreign countries. Ancient China's preservation technology of corpses was already so superb during the Western Han Dynasty. People can't help but wonder whether the Qin Dynasty, not far from the Western Han Dynasty, could also prevent corpses from rotting, so they are even more curious about whether Qin Shihuang's corpse in Qin Shihuang's mausoleum rotted. According to historical data, Qin Shihuang is fully capable of preserving his body completely without decay.

Although we have only mined more than 400 burial pits and tombs in Qin Shi Huang’s Mausoleum so far, through modern scientific and technological surveys of Qin Shi Huang’s Mausoleum, archaeologists have discovered that the underground palace of Qin Shi Huang’s Mausoleum contains a large amount of mercury. Mercury can insulate, waterproof and prevent corrosion, and can also release toxic mercury vapor, so there is no need to worry about the invasion of tomb robbers.

It can be seen that Qin Shihuang handled the tomb after his death very carefully. This can be seen from the fact that the Qin Shihuang Mausoleum was built for 38 years. It is said that when the wall of the Qin Shihuang Mausoleum was being built, After it was built, soldiers were required to shoot arrows. All unqualified walls had to be torn down and rebuilt. Pursuing perfection in every aspect, Qin Shihuang has stood at a height that neither his predecessors nor future generations can reach. The Qin Shihuang Mausoleum he built is the largest imperial mausoleum in the world, and its historical value is comparable to that of the pyramids. He has the technology and ability to make corpses incorruptible, but after more than fifty days of turbulence, can Qin Shihuang's corpse really be well preserved in the hot summer season? As for Sima Qian's account, we can only guess at it. Specifically, does the "stinky" he meant refer to the stench emitted by Qin Shihuang's decaying corpse?

Li Si, the prime minister next to Qin Shihuang, was a student of Xunzi, and he always respected his teacher. Xunzi often mentioned to Li Si that after death, especially those with higher status, they must be buried well. As the prime minister, Li Si had followed Qin Shi Huang for many years and was responsible for the construction of Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum. He was loyal to the First Emperor, so how could he watch Qin Shi Huang's corpse rot without doing anything to deal with it? As for who was buried in Qin Shi Huang's Mausoleum, that's it. We have to wait for the day when the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang is actually opened to find out.

I don’t know if you know how Qin Shihuang died. He died suddenly while he was touring the world. When he returned to Xianyang, his body was already smelly. Think about it, Qin Shihuang’s body was all smelly at that time. As well as deterioration, after a few days of sacrificial rituals, Qin Shihuang's body should have been rotted into a state of disgrace. So I personally think that the corpses in Qin Shihuang's mausoleum should only be a pile of skeletons when they were excavated.