Ancient DNA analysis reveals true appearance of ‘exotic’ 6th-century Chinese emperor


Researchers have reconstructed Emperor Wu’s face using DNA from his remains, revealing typical East Asian facial features. The study suggests that he died of a stroke at the age of 36 and points to a mixed marriage between Xianbei and Han. Future research will focus on the ancient city of Chang’an. Credit: Pianpian Wei

Researchers are using DNA of his remains, revealing his typical East Asian features and suggesting that his untimely death at the age of 36 may have been due to a stroke. The study provides insight into the migration and integration of the Xianbei people in ancient China.

What did the ancient Chinese emperor look like 1500 years ago? A team of researchers has reconstructed the face of Northern Zhou Chinese Emperor Wu using DNA extracted from his remains. The study, recently published in the journal Current biology, suggests that the emperor’s death at the age of 36 may have been related to a stroke. It also sheds light on the origins and migration patterns of the nomadic empire that once ruled parts of Northeast Asia.

Emperor Wu was the ruler of the Northern Zhou dynasty in ancient China. During his reign from 560 to 578 AD, Emperor Wu built a powerful army and unified the northern part of ancient China after defeating the Northern Qi dynasty.

Emperor Wu belonged to the Xianbei ethnic group, an ancient nomadic group that lived in present-day Mongolia and northern and northeastern China.

“Some researchers have said that Xianbei had an ‘exotic’ appearance, such as thick beards, high noses and yellow hair,” said Shaoqing Wen, one of the paper’s authors from Fudan University in Shanghai. “Our analysis shows that Emperor Wu had facial features typical of East or Northeast Asia,” he adds.

Reconstruction of Emperor Wu’s appearance

In 1996, archaeologists discovered the tomb of Emperor Wu in northwest China, where they found his bones, including a nearly complete skull. With the development of ancient DNA research in recent years, Wen and his team were able to recover more than a million single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) on his DNA, some of which contained information about Emperor Wu’s skin and hair color combined with Emperor Wu’s skull, the team reconstructed his face in 3D. The result shows that Emperor Wu had brown eyes, black hair, and dark to medium-dark skin, and his facial features were similar to those of today’s North and East Asians.

“Our work brought historical figures to life,” said Pianpian Wei, co-author of the paper at Fudan University. “Before, people had to rely on historical documents or wall paintings to imagine what ancient people looked like. We are able to directly detect the appearance of the Xianbei people.

Emperor Wu died at the age of 36, and his son also died very young for no apparent reason. Some archaeologists claim that Emperor Wu died of disease, while others claim that he was poisoned by his rivals. By analyzing Emperor Wu’s DNA, researchers found that the emperor was at increased risk of stroke, which may have contributed to his death. This finding is consistent with historical records describing the emperor as suffering from aphasia, drooping eyelids and an abnormal gait, potential symptoms of a stroke.

Genetic analysis shows that the Xianbei people intermarried with ethnic Han Chinese when they migrated south to northern China. “This is important information for understanding how ancient humans spread across Eurasia and how they integrated into the local population,” says Wen.

Next, the team plans to study the people of the ancient city of Chang’an in northwest China, studying their ancient DNA. Chang’an was the capital of many Chinese empires for thousands of years and the eastern terminus of the Silk Road, an important Eurasian trade network from the second century BC to the 15th century. Researchers hope that DNA analysis can reveal more information about how people migrated and exchanged cultures in ancient China.



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