Archaeologists uncovered a pair of 1,500-year-old skeletons in Mongolia that may have inspired the Ballad of Mulan.
The remains belonged to two women who lived during the Xianbei period and are believed have been warriors.
Large markings on the bones indicate the females were skilled in archery and road horseback during a time when the region was riddled with conflict.
Although the remains do not reveal one was named ‘Hua Mulan’, the pair dates back to the fourth or fifth century – the same time period in which the legend had emerged.
The skeletons were uncovered during an excavation of a cemetery at the Airagiin Gozgor archaeological site, in the Orkhon province of northern Mongolia, LiveScience reports.
Researchers at California State University, Los Angeles found remains from 29 burials in the area as they were studying the prolonged effect of horseback riding, archery and trauma on bones.
According to the Ballad of Mulan, every family in the region was forced to send one man from the family to join the military, as the area was riddled with conflict.
Mulan took her old, ailing father’s place in the ranks, sparking the legend that was adopted by Disney in 1998.
Although the story has changed over the years, Mulan is said to have achieved success on the battlefield and becomes a leader for the military.
Christine Lee and Yahaira Gonzalez, bioarchaeologists at California State University, Los Angeles, have led the excavations in the area for years and have found three groups that were laid to rest there.
The groups include the Xiongnu, who dominated the region 2,200 years ago; the Xianbei, who displaced the Xiongnu around 1,850 years ago; and the Turkic people, who successively occupied the Mongolian steppes beginning around 1,470 years ago.
Markings on the three female Xiongnu skeletons suggest they may have occasionally practiced archery or ridden horses, while their Turkic remains only road horseback. However, two of the three Xianbei stood out as seasoned riders and possibly skilled fighters, suggesting to Lee who believes they may have seen time on the battlefield.
‘In neighboring China at that time, women were secluded,’ Lee told LiveScience.
‘The ideal woman was helpless and docile, while being in the north [in Mongolia], they’re not.’
‘They’re doing what the men are doing. So, you can extrapolate from that [and say] that they have some gender equality.’
Lee and Gonzalez have not yet published their findings in a peer-reviewed journal.
The team had planned to present their work at a meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists, but it was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic.