Cao Cao Mausoleum

[1] In 2013, the tomb became part of the seventh batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level in China.

According to his official biography in the Records of the Three Kingdoms (Sanguozhi), he was interred in the Gaoling (高陵; literally "high mausoleum") about one month after his death.

[1][5][7] The tomb, made of bricks, faced east and formed a shape resembling the Chinese character jia (甲; jiǎ) when viewed from above.

Yuan also noted that the most important pieces of evidence – namely the artefacts bearing the inscription 'King Wu of Wei' – may have been deliberately placed in the tomb for deceptive purposes.

[9] On 31 December 2009, the Henan Provincial Institute of Archaeology invited experts from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences's Institute of Archaeology, Zhengzhou University, and Henan University to join its researchers in a seminar to discuss the findings from the tomb and respond to queries from the press.

The most popular topics discussed at the seminar include: In early January 2010, in light of the controversy over the authenticity of the tomb, Han Fuzheng, a lawyer from Cangzhou, made a freedom of information (FOI) request to the State Administration of Cultural Heritage (SACH) for the disclosure of the information and assessment standards used in confirming the tomb.

[11] In August 2010, 23 experts and scholars presented evidence at the National High-Level Forum on Culture of the Three Kingdoms Period held in Suzhou, Jiangsu to argue that the findings and the artefacts of the tomb are fake.

[16] Fang Beichen, a Sichuan University history professor who specialises in the Three Kingdoms period, published an essay on his personal blog about the findings from the Xigaoxue tomb and the pieces of evidence which point out that the tombs are actually the mausoleums of Cao Huan and Cao Yu.

[17] In 2010, the tomb became part of the fifth batch of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level in China.

[2] The excavation of the two tombs was completed by the end of 2010, with over 400 artefacts unearthed and 100 damaged relics restored by the provincial archaeologist team.

[20] Media reports from 2018 describe the tomb complex as having an outer rammed earth foundation, a spirit way, and structures on the east and south sides.

This indirectly confirms historical records that Cao Pi had ordered the monuments on the surface to be systematically dismantled to honour his father's wishes to be buried in a simple manner in a concealed location, as well as to prevent tomb robbers from finding and looting the tomb.