近日河南省文物局向外公布西高穴墓為曹操高陵后，引起了各方媒體的關注(見本報昨日報道)，一代梟雄曹操之墓的傳說多多，其中72座疑冢的傳說流傳最廣，相關專家稱此次發現可以否定該傳說，并確定了曹操墓主身份。然而，學術界一些專家對“曹操墓在安陽”的結論提出質疑。

Doubts over Cao tomb's authenticity

This week, an excavation team in Henan Province, announced they'd uncovered the tomb of Cao Cao, a famous warlord who ruled northern China during the Three Kingdoms period. But, scholars and experts rose quickly to question the authenticity of the find, dismissing the evidence as unreliable.

A few years ago, local workers accidently unearthed the tomb while they were digging mud to make bricks. But they didn't report the find to authorities. Since then, the tomb has been raided several times.

No one knew the owner of the tomb until local authorities seized some stone tablets reportedly from tomb raiders. The tablets bear inscriptions of "King Wu of Wei," Cao Cao's title after his death nearly 18-hundred years ago.

However, scholars in Beijing are questioning the authenticity of the relics.

Yuan Jixi, Vice Director of Renmin University, said, "It doesn't make sense. Historical records say that the tomb is protected by 72 decoys, so where are the rest?"

Cao Cao is known for his Machiavellian nature, distrusting those around him. During his ascension to power, he made many enemies. Fearing the tomb could be desecrated, Cao Cao decided to set up decoys. That's why most skeptics are arguing the warlord would never allow anyone to locate his grave by simply reading the inscriptions of tablets.

However, an archeologist who has studied the relics at the site, dismissed the doubts.

Liu Qingzhu, archeologist, said, "History is written by people and therefore is inevitably subjective. However, we found another person buried over one hundred years later in Anyang. The inscriptions of that person say he was buried near Cao Cao's tomb. This is clear evidence, and is much more accurate."

The excavation team found the remains of a man in his sixties, and the bones of two women in their fifties and twenties, believed to be Cao Cao, his wife, and their female servant.

However, final results remain to be seen until DNA samples retrieved from the skeletons are compared with Cao Cao's descendants in his hometown.