At a press conference Monday, experts said the carving bears script typical of the Qin era. The engraved stone contains a total of 12 lines with 37 characters, most of which remain legible, according to Professor Li Ling of Peking University’s Department of Chinese Language and Literature in Beijing.
The rock, made of quartz sandstone, lies in the remote Gyaring Lake region of Qinghai. Archaeologists have identified at least 75 city ruins, ritual sites, and burial sites dating back roughly 2.5 million years ago within 150 kilometers of the stone.
