Robbers damage Qing Dynasty relic in Beijing

An ancient pillar was damaged in a cultural-relic site in Beijing's Fangshan district, and police still have not found the robbers, authorities said.

The robbers damaged a huabiao, a marble ornamental pillar used to decorate important buildings in ancient China, in the Yisang'e Tomb, a cultural-relic preservation unit.

The Beijing-based Mirror evening newspaper reported on March 27 that Fangshan district's cultural-relics protection department said it reported the case to local police, and the robbers were still at large.

A man named Cui, a resident of Huanghoutai village, where the tomb is located, said the huabiao has been hit by robbers several times since the end of 2012.

The top part of the pillar was looted and its main body was broken, the newspaper report said.

There are no protection measures in place for the tomb, and nobody has arranged to protect it, the report said.

Yisang'e was a former minister of personnel during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and his tomb is important for research on the history of the dynasty because of its well-preserved buildings and large size, experts said.