Crossroads Roundup: Chinese Archaeological Discoveries, an 11th Century Astrolabe, and Gabriel García Márquez's Final Novel

Our favorite stories on art, archaeology, folklore, and more from this past week.

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© Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology

This week, archaeologists unveiled two particularly exciting discoveries in China.

First, from the Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology and the Xinzhou Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics, comes the discovery of a major Ming dynasty tomb that includes a main burial chamber, antechamber, and several smaller spaces and passageways. Researchers also discovered an epitaph with the inscription “Epitaph of the Prince of Ming Ru Hou’an,” providing a possible name for one of the two people buried there. (They found two coffins.)

The Ming dynasty ruled China from 1368 to 1644 after the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty collapsed. During the Ming dynasty, China experienced an enormous surge in maritime trade and the growth of a monetized economy. With a larger consumer base, the market for luxury goods expanded—in particular, the blue and white porcelain for which the Ming dynasty is famous.