A Mysterious potion discovered in an ancient Chinese tomb was brewed to grant eternal life to whoever drank it.
Scientists say the "elixir of immortality" was hidden within a 2,000-year-old bronze pot lodged in a burial chamber in central China.
The tomb belonged to a noble family who lived in the country's Henan province during the Han dynasty (206 BC–220 AD), a time when China was merging into a regional superpower.
Ancient Taoist literature suggests the doomed family brewed it in an attempt to live forever, Xinhua news agency reports.
Chinese emperors and noblemen spent thousands of years searching for a recipe for an elixir of immortality, often to deadly effect.
Many were killed during their quest as they laced the concoctions with toxic metals and minerals such as mercury, lead and arsenic.
It's not clear, however, whether the ancient Henan family ever drank their potentially magical broth.
Around 3.5 litres of the liquid were found during excavations of their tomb in October.
Archaeologists initially thought it was liquor due to its strong alcoholic smell.
But lab tests revealed the potion is largely made up of potassium nitrate and alunite – which certainly aren't good for you in high quantities.
The unusual ingredients turned out to be those used to make an immortality medicine mentioned in an ancient Taoist text, according to Pan Fusheng, a top archaeologist on the project.
"It is the first time that mythical 'immortality medicines' have been found in China," said Shi Jiazhen, head of China's Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology in the Henan city of Luoyang.
"The liquid is of significant value for the study of ancient Chinese thoughts on achieving immortality and the evolution of Chinese civilisation," Shi added.
A large number of colour-painted clay pots, jadeware and bronze artifacts were also unearthed from the tomb, as well as the remains of the occupants.
"The tomb provides valuable material for study of the life of Western Han nobles as well as the funeral rituals and customs of the period," Pan said.
The find could shed light on China's ancient alchemy practices, which remain shrouded in mystery to this day.
Chinese alchemists began making immortality potions as early as 3,000 years ago.
Despite common knowledge that immortality potions could be deadly, chemists continued to make them until the 18th Century.
They were particularly popular during the Han dynasty, when Emperor Wu employed many alchemists who claimed to possess the highly sought after recipe.
In one famous case, elixir maker Wei Boyang tested his concoction on a dog, proclaiming: "If the dog can fly after taking it then it is edible for man; if the dog dies then it is not."
The dog keeled over and tragically died, but Wei and one of his disciples took the medicine anyway and immediately kicked the bucket themselves.
Scientists say the "elixir of immortality" was hidden within a 2,000-year-old bronze pot lodged in a burial chamber in central China.
The tomb belonged to a noble family who lived in the country's Henan province during the Han dynasty (206 BC–220 AD), a time when China was merging into a regional superpower.
Ancient Taoist literature suggests the doomed family brewed it in an attempt to live forever, Xinhua news agency reports.
Chinese emperors and noblemen spent thousands of years searching for a recipe for an elixir of immortality, often to deadly effect.
Many were killed during their quest as they laced the concoctions with toxic metals and minerals such as mercury, lead and arsenic.
It's not clear, however, whether the ancient Henan family ever drank their potentially magical broth.
Around 3.5 litres of the liquid were found during excavations of their tomb in October.
Archaeologists initially thought it was liquor due to its strong alcoholic smell.
But lab tests revealed the potion is largely made up of potassium nitrate and alunite – which certainly aren't good for you in high quantities.
The unusual ingredients turned out to be those used to make an immortality medicine mentioned in an ancient Taoist text, according to Pan Fusheng, a top archaeologist on the project.
"It is the first time that mythical 'immortality medicines' have been found in China," said Shi Jiazhen, head of China's Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology in the Henan city of Luoyang.
"The liquid is of significant value for the study of ancient Chinese thoughts on achieving immortality and the evolution of Chinese civilisation," Shi added.
A large number of colour-painted clay pots, jadeware and bronze artifacts were also unearthed from the tomb, as well as the remains of the occupants.
"The tomb provides valuable material for study of the life of Western Han nobles as well as the funeral rituals and customs of the period," Pan said.
The find could shed light on China's ancient alchemy practices, which remain shrouded in mystery to this day.
Chinese alchemists began making immortality potions as early as 3,000 years ago.
Despite common knowledge that immortality potions could be deadly, chemists continued to make them until the 18th Century.
They were particularly popular during the Han dynasty, when Emperor Wu employed many alchemists who claimed to possess the highly sought after recipe.
In one famous case, elixir maker Wei Boyang tested his concoction on a dog, proclaiming: "If the dog can fly after taking it then it is edible for man; if the dog dies then it is not."
The dog keeled over and tragically died, but Wei and one of his disciples took the medicine anyway and immediately kicked the bucket themselves.
Music: "Indore" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Source: The Sun, Xinhua , Reuters
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