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The excavation of the Huahaizi No. 3 Site in Qinghe County, Xinjiang

Institute of Archeology, CASS, Altai Prefectural Cultural Relics Bureau and Qinghe County Cultural Relics Bureau
Published/Copyright: November 18, 2017
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Chinese Archaeology
From the journal Chinese Archaeology Volume 17 Issue 1

Abstract

The main body of the site of Huahaizi No. 3 in Qinghe (Qinggil) County, Xinjiang, is a stone cairn surrounded by a stone circle with cross-shaped spokes. Around it, stone circles and stone cairns for sacrifices are located. In addition to two deer stones, shield-shaped stones, a simple wooden frame structure and fragments of human bones and sheep teeth used as sacrifices were found. The scientific data and the style of the deer stones show that this site was in use from around the 9th century BCE. The archaeological remains and artifacts show that this site and similar remains are for sacrificial activities, which might be related to the worship of sun, the moon and other celestial bodies or phenomena. The Sandaohaizi Site and similar remains found nearby as well as at the Arzhan kurgans in Tuva, Southern Siberia would have been left by the same people; Sandaohaizi was the summer ritual center of this early nomadic society and Arzhan was its royal necropolis.

Keywords: Cairns; early Iron Age; sacrificial sites; Sandaohaizi Site (Qinghe (Qinggil) County, Xinjiang); stone circles

Postscript

The original report published in Kaogu 考古 (Archeology) 2016.9:25–37 with 26 illustrations was authored by Wu Guo 郭物, Hailong Zhang 张海龙, Enguo Lü 吕恩国, Dongjun Wu 乌东军, Jie Zheng 郑颉, Renwen Yao 姚仁文, Jianjun Man 满建军 and Long Wang 王龙. This English translation is done by Catrin Kost 金秋月.

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Published Online: 2017-11-18
Published in Print: 2017-12-20

© 2017 Walter de Gruyter, Inc. ⋅ Boston ⋅ Berlin

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  27. A Liao Dynasty tomb in the Panyanggou Cemetery, Bairin Left Banner, Inner Mongolia
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  29. On the issues related to the discoid cores
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https://doi.org/10.1515/char-2017-0012
Keywords for this article
Cairns; early Iron Age; sacrificial sites; Sandaohaizi Site (Qinghe (Qinggil) County, Xinjiang); stone circles

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. New archaeological discoveries
  3. Neolithic cultural remains in the coastal area of southeastern Hainan Province
  4. New archaeological discoveries
  5. The Remains of Liangzhu Culture at Jiangzhuang Site in Xinghua and Dongtai Cities, Jiangsu
  6. New archaeological discoveries
  7. The 2014-2015 excavations of the Zhouyuan Site in Baoji, Shaanxi
  8. New archaeological discoveries
  9. Marquis of Haihun’s tomb of the Western Han Dynasty in Nanchang, Jiangxi
  10. New archaeological discoveries
  11. The excavation of the Taiji Hall complex in Han-Wei Luoyang City
  12. Spotlight
  13. The tusi cemetery of the Yang Family at Xinpu New District, Zunyi City, Guizhou
  14. Spotlight
  15. The archaeological survey and excavation of walls and passes of the Hailong Tun site in Zunyi City, Guizhou
  16. Reports
  17. The excavation of the Niupodong Site in Pingba District, Gui’an New Area, Guizhou in 2012–2013
  18. Reports
  19. The excavation of walls and roads at the Erlitou Site in Yanshi City, Henan in 2012–2013
  20. Reports
  21. The bone workshop site of Yinxu Period at Tiesan Road in Anyang, Henan
  22. Reports
  23. The excavation of the Dadianshan Cemetery in Changning, Yunan
  24. Reports
  25. The excavation of the Huahaizi No. 3 Site in Qinghe County, Xinjiang
  26. Reports
  27. A Liao Dynasty tomb in the Panyanggou Cemetery, Bairin Left Banner, Inner Mongolia
  28. Research
  29. On the issues related to the discoid cores
  30. Research
  31. Variability in pottery firing technology: choice or technical development?
  32. Research
  33. The evolution of auspicious beasts in the burial decoration of the Six-Dynasties Period and the formation of the “Jin System”
  34. Research
  35. Studies on the materials and manufacturing technology of the murals unearthed at Shimao Site in Shenmu County, Shaanxi
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