Volume 21, Issue 1

A small, walled settlement spanning the early through mid-Longshan culture was discovered at Ximengzhuang site, Tengzhou City, Shandong Province. The development of the settlement encompasses two periods: a square enclosure in the early period and a circular enclosure in the late period. Houses inside the enclosure might have been laid out in rows from south to north during the early period; late period houses can be divided into three phases. All houses were laid out along the circular enclosure, which could be used as a special space for storage. Cultural remains after the abandonment of the walled settlement date to the mid-Longshan culture. The Ximengzhuang site is the first small Longshan culture settlement to have been revealed in its entirety in China, with a clear trajectory of development and distinguishing characteristics as regards periodization. The Ximengzhuang site may have been a military outpost.

Five series of archaeological excavations were conducted at the Honghe site from 2013–2019. Fieldwork during the 2013–2017 season confirmed that cultural attributes of late Neolithic remains found at Honghe were identical to the Ang’angxi culture as first established by Liang Siyong. Thus, this fieldwork adds further evidence to understanding the cultural implications, attributes, and chronology of Ang’angxi culture. Excavation during the 2018–2019 season subsequently revealed settlement pattern belonging the Ang’angxi culture in the Nenjiang River Basin, demonstrating a mixed sedentary subsistence strategy, including fishing, hunting, and farming, practiced regionally during the late Neolithic. This provides significant materials for understanding the civilizational trajectory of that time.

Remains of the grand platform in the locus of Huangchengtai at Shimao site in Shenmu, Shaanxi was discovered and excavated during the 2018–2019 season. The south-eastern corner and southern buttress of the platform were revealed. The locations of the other three sides of the buttresses were also preliminarily confirmed. As many as 70 stone carvings were discovered from multiple contexts, including the surface of the southern buttress, the floor of the corridor, as well as the debris of the southern buttress inside the corridor. The relative chronology of this platform and stone carvings cannot be later than the late Longshan period. The absolute date ranges from 2000 BCE to 1800 BCE. Fieldwork performed at the grand platform encourages multiple archaeological discussions, including the settlement layout within the Huangchengtai area, the nature of the settlement, and its role as the core of the Shimao site.

A series of excavations were conducted at the Xiwubi site during 2018–2019, yielding abundant copper metallurgy remains dating to the Erlitou and Erligang cultural periods. Archaeological features include remains of smelting furnaces, charcoal kilns, houses, and refuse pits. A variety of artifacts were retrieved, ranging from copper ores, fragments of smelting furnaces, crucibles, and slag to objects made of pottery, stone, and bone. It is the first copper metallurgy site found in the Zhongtiao Mountains in the vicinity of the heartland of the Xia and Shang dynasties. Characterized by early dates, large scale, and advanced specialization in copper metallurgy, the excavation of the Xiwubi site provides substantial materials for the study of mining and use of copper ore resources by the Xia and Shang dynasties, as well as interactions between copper metallurgy and the destiny of the royal courts.

The Zaoshulin cemetery includes five large tombs with an entry ramp leading to a central chamber on one side, 19 medium tombs, and 62 small tombs. According to the inscriptions on the bronze vessels, the layout of the tombs, and the grave assemblages, this cemetery was the burial place for the high-ranking noblemen of the Zeng state. Three hierarchies of tombs from large to small in size correspond to the social ranks of marquises, high-ranking noblemen, and low-ranking noblemen. Amongst these tombs, the occupants of five large burials in three groups are identified as Lord Qiu of Zeng and his wife Yu, Marquis Bao of Zeng and his wife Mi Jia, and Marquis De of Zeng. The Zaoshulin cemetery, along with the sites and cemeteries at Yejiashan, Wenfengta, Guojiamiao, Sujialong, presents a clear and complete archaeological sequence of the culture of Zeng. It also establishes a reference point for Bronze Age archaeological culture in South China.

Tomb M1 at Quangou cemetery in Wulan, Qinghai, is the only Tubo-period tomb with mural paintings discovered thus far on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. The tomb includes a tomb entry ramp leading to a rectangular multi-chambered structure built from bricks and timber. The walls of the antechamber and burial chamber are all painted with various images heavily influenced by typical Tang painting techniques, displaying Tang-period stylistic influence, although painted subjects present characteristic scenes of nomadic life on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. The color-painted lacquered coffins in the tomb are the first of their kind found in the region, indicating that the tomb occupant must have been of high social status. There is a secret compartment behind the tomb’s burial chamber, where a wooden chest was found containing a luxuriously decorated gilt silver crown and a turquoise-inlaid gold cup. The findings suggest that the tomb occupant was probably closely related to the local royal family under Tubo’s sovereignty.

Hunan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology excavated at the site of Sunjiagang during 2016–2018 after 33 earthen pit tombs were uncovered in 1991. It yielded 192 pit tombs and one urn burial along with a number of pottery vessels and jade artifacts. The whole cemetery was laid out with a clear pattern of spatial arrangement, organized in an orderly style. A unique burial practice prevailed in the cemetery, for which the deceased was laid upon a layer of grave goods. According to the typology of unearthed pottery vessels and jade artifacts, the cemetery at the Sunjiagang site dates sometime from 2200 to 1800 BCE. It represents a new local variant of the Xiaojiawuji culture, and thus can be named the Sunjiagang type culture.

In August 2015, an earthen cache pit of lead ingots was discovered to the northwest of Liujiazhuang Village within the Yinxu site. The round pit yielded an assemblage of 293 lead ingots weighed 3404kg. The ingots are shaped like turtle shells with broader fronts and narrower rears. Their full length measured from 10cm to 70cm. Lead was an important element in the bronze metallurgy of the Shang and Zhou dynasties. The excavation of the cache of lead ingots is significant to the studies of the scale, technology, organization, and management of the bronze-casting industry of the Shang dynasty.

There are numerous, controversial theories on the function of the jiandiping amphorae as Yangshao culture water-drawing vessel, wine vessel, or other. This paper discusses jiandiping amphorae functional form from a typological perspective and presents the view from molding technique. The primary function of the pointed bottom concerned sedimentation, yet the vessel’s small opening was poorly adapted to cereal fermentation. The large jiandiping amphora was less transportable but better suited to long-term storage and sedimentation: wine decanted into medium- or small-sized flat-bottom vessels or jiandiping amphora was easily transferred and used, and decanting served to remove any sediment from turbid wine. Functional differences between the large and small jiandiping amphorae explain varying functions and uses of double-loop handles. The development of sediment separation technique is the key reason for the disappearance of the jiandiping amphorae.

By synthesizing previous studies and the most updated archaeological data by typical stratigraphic contexts and assemblages, Hetao region cultural remains represented by li -tripods with double-handles should be considered part of the Shimao culture. With its core distribution area spanning from northern Shaanxi to central-northern Shanxi to central-southern Inner Mongolia, the development of Shimao culture can be divided into three phases: early, middle, and late. The absolute dating of the Shimao culture ranges from approximately 2300 BCE to 1800 BCE. The Shimao culture was therefore a major late Longshan archaeological culture in northern China that stands apart from its peers in the Central Plains.

Shimao and Taosi are the two most important North China mega-sites dating from the late Longshan through early Xia. Both were possibly early political centers. Based on a comprehensive analysis of updated archaeological discoveries and the results of interdisciplinary research, the current study is a preliminary discussion of interactions between Shimao and Taosi. We argue that the inter-site dynamic varied over time. More importantly, Shimao influenced middle and late Taosi to the extent of altering its cultural identity, as evidenced by the archaeological record.

By examining the structural components, settlement plan, and developmental trajectory of the capital city at Erlitou, it is possible to explore the emergence of the state, kingship, and accompanying characteristics. Erlitou has been subjected to intensive excavation, revealing roads, walls, huge sacrificial pits, and palatial buildings with multiple courtyards as indicated by foundation No. 5. As to the developmental trajectory of the settlement pattern, all principal components of a capital city appeared in phase II of the Erlitou culture. A layout based on intersecting roads also formed, thus laying a foundation for the plan of an urban center in later periods. The open urban system formed during the Erlitou period changed to a closed system during later periods. The Erlitou site went through an initial phase during which it flourished as a capital city, then a period when principal urban components were gradually abandoned. The site became a high-ranking settlement during the early Erligang period. There is a relationship between the changes through time in pottery typology and the development of the settlement pattern. Kin-based residential and burial areas define the spatial division of the capital city at Erlitou. The mode of craft production is characterized by a large-scale workshop enclosure along with small-scale production sites.

A cast brass ewer was unearthed from the Shangfang Śarīra Stupa crypt at Qingshan Monastery. Most likely, it was made in the northwestern part of the South Asian subcontinent in the late seventh century. Integrating ancient Roman, Sassanian, and early Islamic styles, the shape of this ewer not only is a mixture of the elements of different eras and traditions but also reflects unique attributes. The multi-headed and multi-armed deities from Hinduism, especially Skanda, may have inspired the six-faced design on the body. Eventually, the ewer was taken to Chang’an by Indian or Kashmirian monks and buried in the pagoda’s crypt.

Human remains recovered from the Donghulin site are key materials for the study of the physical evolution and biocultural adaptation of the North Chinese population during the early Holocene. Physical anthropological study of the skeletal remains of two Donghulin individuals shows that their craniofacial heterogeneity and diversity are comparable to that of the Upper Paleolithic population. Early Holocene is the critical period for the formation of the diagnostic craniofacial features of modern East Asian population. The dental macrowear, dental caries, and femoral midshaft diaphyseal cross section geometry suggest that the Donghulin people were undergoing a physical transformation attributable to reduced mobility and broad-spectrum diet, which is consistent with the Upper Paleolithic-Neolithic transition of lifestyle and subsistence strategy.

A number of charred plant seeds were recovered from the Donghulin site by means of flotation. The site is located in suburban Beijing and dates from 11,000 to 9000 BP. A total of 14 charred grains of foxtail millet have been collected and identified as of the domesticated species ( Setaria italica ) according to morphological analysis. One grain of broomcorn millet was also identified. These are the earliest domesticated millet grains recovered by flotation, providing crucial archaeological evidence for understanding the timing, locations, and processes of millet domestication. Moreover, the charred seeds of Setaria viridis provide important clues for exploring the wild ancestral plants of foxtail millet and the domestication process. The results of flotation at the Donghulin site are important for understanding the origins of dryland agriculture in North China, which was predominated by millet farming.