The artifact was discovered in Changzhou city at the excavation site of one of the tombs. The ceremonial stone axe is recognized as the largest of all previously found in China and the best preserved.
Initially, axes of this kind were used as weapons, but in the Bronze Age they began to be used during rituals, according to archaeologists. These products are called "yue" in China.
According to Li Mozhan, a researcher from the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, a stone knife, a smaller axe and over 20 lower jaws of domestic pigs were also found at the excavation site. In his opinion, such a find suggests that 6 thousand years ago axes were no longer weapons, but served as a symbol of power and status.
