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The large houses of Xiahe Site in Baishui County, Shaanxi

  • Weilin Wang EMAIL logo , Pengcheng Zhang and Ming Yuan
Published/Copyright: December 12, 2013
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Chinese Archaeology
From the journal Chinese Archaeology Volume 13 Issue 1

Abstract

This paper discusses the characteristics and significance of the three large pentagonal semi-subterranean houses of the Miaodigou Phase (F1, F2 and F3) at the Xiahe Site in Baishui County, Shaanxi Province. The construction of these houses comprised six steps. The living floors were plastered with lime made from calcareous nodules obtained from the local loess formation. F1 was built on the primary earth surface; wherein F2 was built on the foundation of F3, which was previously burnt to the ground. The living floor of F1 occupied 304.5sq m, making it the largest house structure of its archaeological phase ever found. We maintain that these structures might have been used for religious and communal occasions. The findings of these remarkably large houses are significant to the understanding of the manipulation and organization of resources in the Xiahe community. Furthermore, the technological achievements indicted by them are deemed to be the precursor of palatial architectures in China.

Keywords: Foundations (structural elements)-Neolithic Age; houses; Xiahe Site (Baishui County; Shaanxi); Yangshao Culture
Published Online: 2013-12-12
Published in Print: 2013-12-1

© 2013 by Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co.

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Masthead
  2. Contents
  3. New archaeological discoveries in 2011
  4. The Yejiashan Cemetery of the Western Zhou Dynasty in Suizhou City, Hubei
  5. The tombs of the Han Dynasty at the Dayun Hill in Xuyi County, Jiangsu
  6. The Han tomb near Lingsheng Lake in Dingtao County, Shandong
  7. The Chang mo Grottoes in Dinggyê County, Tibet
  8. Spotlight
  9. The excavation of the house remains of Yangshao Culture at Xiahe Site in Baishui County, Shaanxi
  10. The large houses of Xiahe Site in Baishui County, Shaanxi
  11. Reports
  12. The Hualong Cave upper Paleolithic site in Dongzhi County, Anhui
  13. The remains of Yangshao Culture at Xiaowu Site in Lingbao City, Henan
  14. Excavation of the Neolithic city site at Zhangxiwan in Huangpi District, Wuhan
  15. Neolithic Yejiamiao City Site in Xiaogan, Hubei
  16. The excavation of the bronze casting remains in Zhuangli Locus West at Zhouyuan Site
  17. The excavation of the Xiongjiazhong Graveyard in Jingzhou, Hubei in 2008
  18. Excavation of Liu Shen’s tomb of the Western Han Dynasty on Heitou Hill in Xuzhou, Jiangsu
  19. The mural tomb of the Northern Wei Dynasty at Yunboli in Datong City, Shanxi
  20. Architectural foundation No. 5 of the Northern Wei Palace found at Han-Wei Luoyang City, Henan
  21. The Buddhist sculpture hoard at Bei Wuzhuang in Ye City Site at Linzhang County, Hebei Province
  22. Excavation of the cultural remains in front of the Bezeklik Thousand-Buddha Caves
  23. Research
  24. On the archaeology of traditional industry
  25. The Miaodigou Age and “early China”
  26. On the custom of burying dogs in prehistoric burials
  27. The restoration of the chariots of the Warring-States Period in Majiayuan, Gansu
  28. On the Kele Culture
  29. Bronze casting techniques of the Erlitou Culture period
https://doi.org/10.1515/char-2013-0006
Keywords for this article
Foundations (structural elements)-Neolithic Age; houses; Xiahe Site (Baishui County; Shaanxi); Yangshao Culture

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Masthead
  2. Contents
  3. New archaeological discoveries in 2011
  4. The Yejiashan Cemetery of the Western Zhou Dynasty in Suizhou City, Hubei
  5. The tombs of the Han Dynasty at the Dayun Hill in Xuyi County, Jiangsu
  6. The Han tomb near Lingsheng Lake in Dingtao County, Shandong
  7. The Chang mo Grottoes in Dinggyê County, Tibet
  8. Spotlight
  9. The excavation of the house remains of Yangshao Culture at Xiahe Site in Baishui County, Shaanxi
  10. The large houses of Xiahe Site in Baishui County, Shaanxi
  11. Reports
  12. The Hualong Cave upper Paleolithic site in Dongzhi County, Anhui
  13. The remains of Yangshao Culture at Xiaowu Site in Lingbao City, Henan
  14. Excavation of the Neolithic city site at Zhangxiwan in Huangpi District, Wuhan
  15. Neolithic Yejiamiao City Site in Xiaogan, Hubei
  16. The excavation of the bronze casting remains in Zhuangli Locus West at Zhouyuan Site
  17. The excavation of the Xiongjiazhong Graveyard in Jingzhou, Hubei in 2008
  18. Excavation of Liu Shen’s tomb of the Western Han Dynasty on Heitou Hill in Xuzhou, Jiangsu
  19. The mural tomb of the Northern Wei Dynasty at Yunboli in Datong City, Shanxi
  20. Architectural foundation No. 5 of the Northern Wei Palace found at Han-Wei Luoyang City, Henan
  21. The Buddhist sculpture hoard at Bei Wuzhuang in Ye City Site at Linzhang County, Hebei Province
  22. Excavation of the cultural remains in front of the Bezeklik Thousand-Buddha Caves
  23. Research
  24. On the archaeology of traditional industry
  25. The Miaodigou Age and “early China”
  26. On the custom of burying dogs in prehistoric burials
  27. The restoration of the chariots of the Warring-States Period in Majiayuan, Gansu
  28. On the Kele Culture
  29. Bronze casting techniques of the Erlitou Culture period
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