China's National Cultural Heritage Administration announced on Monday that an engraved stone, discovered on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, is the only known Qin Dynasty (221 B.C.-207 B.C.) engraved stone still preserved at its original site and the one located at the highest altitude during the historic period.
The stone is situated on the northern shore of Gyaring Lake in Maduo County, northwest China's Qinghai Province, at an altitude of about 4,300 meters.
The inscription is carved on a wall surface with a total length of 82 centimeters and a maximum width of 33 centimeters. The carved character area covers about 0.16 square meters and is situated about 19 centimeters above the ground.
The entire text consists of 37 characters, arranged vertically from right to left in columns of two to four characters each. The script style belongs to Qin Zhuan (small seal script).
The finding holds significant historical, artistic and scientific value, according to the administration. Emperor Qinshihuang of the Qin Dynasty unified China for the first time.
China discovers highest-altitude Qin Dynasty engraved stone on Qinghai-Tibet Plateau
