Painkillers for a warlord’s migraines. Train tickets for a legendary statesman who never made it north. And a Labubu doll for the father of modern socialism.

There are among the modern tributes young Chinese are now leaving at the tombs of historical figures — across China and beyond — each one matched to a legend, a quirk, or just a running joke. 

The unexpected gifts first trended online in China this past Qingming festival, also known as Tomb-sweeping Day, when families visit their ancestors’ graves and burn paper offerings such as “ghost money.” But in recent years, the tradition has evolved into something more personal, with many incorporating modern offerings, with some papercraft studios even creating paper replicas of electronics like laptops and smartphones.

One of the more visible examples appeared in central Henan province. At the tomb of Cao Cao, a warlord said to suffer from migraines and a central figure in the classic Chinese novel “Romance of the Three Kingdoms,” visitors began leaving ibuprofen.

One visitor left four different kinds, telling domestic media it was just in case one didn’t work, or the warlord had built up a tolerance. As the gifts began to pile up, museum staff set up a small shelf near the tomb to collect them, along with handwritten letters addressed to the warlord.

“I know they’ll never receive my gift, and it may soon be cleared away. But that doesn’t matter. The moment the gifts reach the tomb, my respect has been delivered,” another fan of Cao told domestic media.

The offerings gained wider attention after a video of two young travelers discovering the painkillers at Cao’s grave drew more than 240,000 likes on Douyin, China’s version of TikTok. The duo then walked to the nearby tomb of Hua Tuo, the physician said to have treated him, and left a medical exam prep book.

Experts see the trend as a sign of renewed interest in history. “I admire these fans,” said Wei Jian, a cultural scholar at Shandong Normal University. “Without remembrance, the ancients truly become ancient.”

He said these tributes reveal a deep knowledge of history among young people. “Perhaps it’s also a way for them to escape today’s anxieties,” Wei told Dazhong Daily.

Other history buffs have taken the idea further. In southwestern Sichuan province, fans left high-speed train tickets at the tomb of Zhuge Liang, the famed adviser to Liu Bei, founder of the Shu-Han Dynasty, to help the statesman fulfill his long-held dream of a northern expedition against Cao’s heirs. 

In eastern Anhui province, a miniature aircraft carrier appeared at the tomb of Zhou Yu, another Three Kingdoms commander celebrated for his naval victories. “Let him see how the navy has developed,” the visitor said. 

Tributes extend beyond the Three Kingdoms. At the resting place of Tang dynasty poet Li Bai, known for letting wine stir his genius into timeless verse, visitors have offered liquor from across China and abroad. Another admirer left cigarettes, wine, and mahjong tiles for Li Qingzhao, a nod to the fun-loving spirit of one of China’s greatest female poets.

And in London, at the grave of Karl Marx, one Chinese visitor left a Labubu doll. The father of socialism, too, deserved a taste of modern consumerism.

Editor: Marianne Gunnarsson.

(Header image: From left to right: Liquor offerings at the resting place of Li Bai; painkillers at the grave of Cao Cao; A high-speed train ticket at the tomb of Zhuge Liang. From Xiaohongshu)