Tomb halts work

Building work has been halted at an Olympic shooting range in China after workers unearthed an ancient tomb.

It was located in Beijing near the site of several other Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) tombs discovered in May. Local officials said the age of the new tomb and its connection with the others had not yet been verified, and would require further examination.

Beijing's Olympic venue construction is expected to be complete well before the opening ceremony in August 2008.

Construction workers laying pipes at the site on Saturday discovered a "relatively large chamber with a structure" and informed the authorities, the Beijing Times reported.

Experts have since unearthed a metre-thick slab and have been able to identify two finely-carved "little roofs" within the chamber, the newspaper said.