Cao Cao's Mausoleum, officially confirmed by archaeologists in 2009 after years of debate, lies on the northern outskirts of Anyang in the Xigaoxue area. The warlord who dominated the final decades of the Han dynasty and whose campaigns form the backdrop to one of China's great literary traditions — the Romance of the Three Kingdoms — was buried here in 220 CE according to his own austere instructions. The site is now an open museum with walkways over the excavation pits, where you can see the tomb structure, some remaining artefacts, and inscribed stones that clinched the identification.
The museum surrounding the tombs provides good context for those unfamiliar with the Three Kingdoms period — Cao Cao is a figure of genuine historical complexity, portrayed as a villain in the popular tradition but regarded by many historians as an able administrator and poet who might have reunified China had he lived longer. The display includes some of the actual bones recovered from the main burial chamber, along with inscribed stone tablets that bear his posthumous title. Entry is ¥60. The site is about 20 kilometres northwest of central Anyang; taxis are the easiest way to reach it.