# The eight pits of the sacrificial area

> Rectangular pits packed with broken and burned bronzes, gold, jade and ivory; their layout, fill and the order of deposition are the evidence for and…

Source: https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/sanxingdui/artifacts/ART0D73A5F61VEP/the-eight-pits-of-the-sacrificial-area  
Publisher: Mysteries Department  
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (credit Mysteries Department and link the page)  

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[Mysteries](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries)[Sanxingdui and its sacrificial pits](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/sanxingdui)[Artifacts](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/sanxingdui#artifacts)The eight pits of the sacrificial area

**ART** 0D73A5F61VEP·Artifact · object

# The eight pits of the sacrificial area

PhotographCC BY-SA 4.0Filled about 3200–3000 BP; Pits 1 and 2 excavated 1986, Pits 3 to 8 from 2019 to 2022

[Cite][Download](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/d/b3903d3d678fe23f3f86d01e0642641f598d95021dc3bb1aeaa5b059c3029617)

[![The eight pits of the sacrificial area: photo](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/b3903d3d678fe23f3f86d01e0642641f598d95021dc3bb1aeaa5b059c3029617/w800)](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/b3903d3d678fe23f3f86d01e0642641f598d95021dc3bb1aeaa5b059c3029617.jpg)

The eight pits of the sacrificial area: photo

[![The eight pits of the sacrificial area: photo](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/b3903d3d678fe23f3f86d01e0642641f598d95021dc3bb1aeaa5b059c3029617/w800)][![The eight pits of the sacrificial area: picture](https://mysteriesdept.com/media/folio/sanxingdui-a-sxd-pits-c0)][![The eight pits of the sacrificial area: photo](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/v/5c5ec34b2652e31b01ac31db80f6e67e6f3b82a7070802c0ba3f4bf12da03d4d/w800)][![The eight pits of the sacrificial area: picture](https://mysteriesdept.com/media/folio/sanxingdui-a-sxd-pits-c1)]

Rectangular pits packed with broken and burned bronzes, gold, jade and ivory; their layout, fill and the order of deposition are the evidence for and against the sacrifice reading.

Bairuilong, 1986. CC BY-SA 4.0

## Copies 5

**Photo** Bairuilong · commons.wikimedia.org · 2022-09-10 · CC BY-SA 4.01 step from the original

[Where it's published](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sanxingdui_8_pit.jpg)[Download](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/d/b3903d3d678fe23f3f86d01e0642641f598d95021dc3bb1aeaa5b059c3029617)

**Picture** Bairuilong · commons.wikimedia.org · CC BY-SA 4.01 step from the original

[Where it's published](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sanxingdui_8_pit.jpg)

**Photo** China News Service (中国新闻网) · commons.wikimedia.org · 2022-04-21 · CC BY 3.01 step from the original

[Where it's published](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E4%B8%89%E6%98%9F%E5%A0%86%E9%81%97%E5%9D%80%E5%8F%91%E6%8E%98%E7%8E%B0%E5%9C%BA_Sanxingdui_2022.jpg)[Download](https://mysteriesdept.com/files/d/5c5ec34b2652e31b01ac31db80f6e67e6f3b82a7070802c0ba3f4bf12da03d4d)

**Document** Ran and colleagues (Sichuan Provincial Institute) · doi.org · 2025 · publisherPrimary source: [Newly discovered sacrificial pits at the Sanxingdui site: Insights into Bronze Age ritual remains in Southwest China](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D739N3R1TXX/newly-discovered-sacrificial-pits-at-the-sanxingdui-site)2 steps from the original

[Where it's published](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ara.2025.100621)

**Picture** China News Service · commons.wikimedia.org · CC BY 3.01 step from the original

[Where it's published](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E4%B8%89%E6%98%9F%E5%A0%86%E9%81%97%E5%9D%80%E5%8F%91%E6%8E%98%E7%8E%B0%E5%9C%BA_Sanxingdui_2022.jpg)

## Where it is kept

[Sanxingdui](https://mysteriesdept.com/records/PLC0D739RRY4D0Z/sanxingdui) · Bronze Age walled settlement and sacrificial area

## Sources 2

- [Deciphering the origins of Sanxingdui bronzes through petrographic and elemental analysis of casting cores](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D739MVY6VCB/deciphering-the-origins-of-sanxingdui-bronzes-through)_SRC_
- [The Sacrificial Area of the Sanxingdui Site in Guanghan City, Sichuan Province (四川广汉市三星堆遗址祭祀区)](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0D739Q282C0Z/the-sacrificial-area-of-the-sanxingdui-site-in-guanghan-city)_SRC_

## Cite it

```
Mysteries Department. (2026). The eight pits of the sacrificial area [Artifact ART0D73A5F61VEP]. https://mysteriesdept.com/r/ART0D73A5F61VEP
```

Key

**ART** 0D73A5F61VEP

Kind

Object

Held by

In situ, Sanxingdui site (excavated)

Dated

filled about 3200–3000 BP; Pits 1 and 2 excavated 1986, Pits 3 to 8 from 2019 to 2022

Licence

CC BY-SA 4.0

Place

[Sanxingdui](https://mysteriesdept.com/records/PLC0D739RRY4D0Z/sanxingdui)

Part of

[Sanxingdui and its sacrificial pits](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/sanxingdui)

The record

Every record is open data. Take this one as JSON, with its links and its history.

[JSON](https://mysteriesdept.com/api/v1/records/ART0D73A5F61VEP)