Preliminary discussions on painted pottery in Neolithic China
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Jun He
Abstract
Chinese painted pottery probably originated during the early Neolithic and developed through the middle to the first half of the late Neolithic period. Flourishing between 6000 and 5000 years ago, it was initially heavily distributed in the middle and lower Yangtze River areas and Haidai region, then spread northward to the middle Yellow River area, and finally reached its zenith during the Taosi culture period. In this process, painted pottery transitioned from “non-ritual vessels” to “ritual vessels.” In certain regions, painted pottery emerged either independently or through the integration of exotic and local traditions; while in others, its use was due entirely to external cultural influences.
Postscript
The original article 中国新石器时代彩绘陶初论was published in Kaogu 考古 (Archaeology) 2023.2:72–80, with five figures and 63 notes. This English version, translated by Tao Li 李涛, has removed the notes.
Further readings
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Articles in the same Issue
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- New archaeological discoveries
- Paleolithic site of Xuetang Liangzi in Shiyan, Hubei
- Sitai Neolithic site in Shangyi, Hebei
- Neolithic site of Nanzuo in Qingyang, Gansu
- Shang royal mausoleum area and its surroundings at Yinxu in Anyang, Henan
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- Xixia Suyukou porcelain kiln site in Helan, Ningxia
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- The excavation of the Tang tombs of Dai Zhou and his wife in Chang’an District, Xi’an
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- Preliminary discussions on painted pottery in Neolithic China
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- Seima-Turbino-type bronze spearheads from Xiawanggang in Xichuan and the implications for north-south cultural exchange
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- New archaeological discoveries
- Paleolithic site of Xuetang Liangzi in Shiyan, Hubei
- Sitai Neolithic site in Shangyi, Hebei
- Neolithic site of Nanzuo in Qingyang, Gansu
- Shang royal mausoleum area and its surroundings at Yinxu in Anyang, Henan
- Bronze Age site at Hebosuo in Kunming, Yunnan
- Xixia Suyukou porcelain kiln site in Helan, Ningxia
- Reports
- Dawenkou culture cemetery at the southern Gangshang site in Tengzhou, Shandong
- The excavation of the Tang tombs of Dai Zhou and his wife in Chang’an District, Xi’an
- Research
- The three grand cultural spheres of the Holocene Eurasian Continent
- Preliminary discussions on painted pottery in Neolithic China
- A comparative study on the jade drilling technology of ancient Mesoamerican civilizations and prehistoric China
- Seima-Turbino-type bronze spearheads from Xiawanggang in Xichuan and the implications for north-south cultural exchange
- “Export” of ninth- to tenth-century Chinese bronze mirrors: Shipwreck findings from the Java Sea
- Biological evolutionary insights into the origins of agriculture: Evidence from the origin of rice agriculture
