Source: Overseas Network
A large wooden building was discovered at the Jimingcheng site in Li County, Hunan Province. The picture shows the wooden boards laid in the foundation trench.
Han Pengfu unearthed from the Fengsui site in Keyakuduk, Yuli, Xinjiang. The pictures accompanying this article are all provided by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage. 2021 is a milestone in the development history of Chinese archeology. It not only ushered in the centenary of modern archeology in China, but was also called the "Year of Archeology". Data show that there were more than 1,700 approved archaeological excavations across the country this year.
On March 18, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences announced 6 "New Archaeological Discoveries in China in 2021." On March 31, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage announced the "Top Ten New Archaeological Discoveries in the Country in 2021." These discoveries have filled the research gaps, further enhanced historical credibility, and demonstrated the elegance of Chinese civilization.
Where is the exact location of Emperor Ba's Mausoleum of Han Dynasty? What are the new discoveries in the Sanxingdui ruins that "reawakened and shocked the world"? What is the shape of the palace in the former dynasty of Ming Zhongdu ... Recently, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage announced the "Top Ten New Archaeological Discoveries in the Country in 2021", Sichuan Daocheng Piluo Site , Henan Nanyang Huangshan Site, Hunan Li County Jijingcheng ruins, Shandong Tengzhou Gangshang ruins, Sichuan Guanghan Sanxingdui ruins sacrificial area, Hubei Yunmeng Zhengjiahu Cemetery, Shaanxi Xi'an Jiangcun Tomb, Gansu Wuwei Tang Dynasty Tuyuhun royal tomb group, Xinjiang Yuli Keyak Kuduk Ten projects including Fengsui Ruins and Mingzhongdu Ruins in Fengyang, Anhui were selected.
Solve relevant historical mysteries
The new discoveries selected not only vividly explain the origins of early human beings in my country, prehistoric culture and the development of Chinese civilization, and the historical process of unifying a multi-ethnic country, but also update people's previous historical understanding.
In the 1940s, the American anthropologist Mauves proposed the "Moveys Line" theory, believing that during the Paleolithic Age, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa to the west of this line were the advanced areas of early human culture. Represented by the Acheulean hand ax cultural tradition, it is an advanced cultural circle that can master advanced tool manufacturing technology; while areas such as China located to the east of this line are "culturally lagging marginal areas" characterized by the tradition of making simple chopping tools. There is a lack of more sophisticated stone tools and technology such as hand axes.
"The archaeological results of the Pillow site have brought an end to the debate over the 'Movius Line' that has lasted for more than half a century." Supporting the conclusion of the report by Zheng Zhexuan, the reporter of the Pillow Site project, are the hand axes and thin blades found at the site. The ax and other relics are the highest-altitude Acheulean technological relics in the world. They are also the most typical Acheulean assemblage, the most exquisitely crafted, the most mature technology and the most complete combination in East Asia.
The middle and late period of Dawenkou culture is a key node in the origin of Chinese civilization. "The discovery of the large-scale city site at the Gangshang site, together with a batch of ritual vessels represented by the intense social divisions, the concentration of wealth in large tombs, the protruding utensil boxes, and a set of ritual vessels represented by a set of pottery, jade, bone and tooth vessels, provide evidence of the Chinese Five Thousand Years of Civilization provides first-hand materials," said Zhu Chao, the person in charge of the archaeological excavation project of the Gangshang site.
The archaeological work of the Jiangcun Tomb in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province refuted the traditional understanding that "Phoenix Mouth" was the tomb of Emperor Wen of Han Dynasty, determined the exact location of the tomb, and solved the problem of the title of the eleven tombs of the Western Han Dynasty.
For a long time, Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang built the capital in his hometown of Fengyang - the shape of the palace in the former court area of Ming Zhongdu has been a mystery because of unclear historical records. The excavation of the Ming Zhongdu ruins from 2015 to 2021 clarified the layout of the main hall and ancillary buildings of the former Ming Zhongdu, resolving 40 years of speculation and controversy.
Empirical evidence of the pluralistic unity of the Chinese nation
China is a unified multi-ethnic country. Since ancient times, people of all ethnic groups have jointly written the history of civilization and created splendid culture. Many of the new archaeological discoveries in 2021 provide new evidence for the pluralistic unity of the Chinese nation.
According to Guo Weimin, the person in charge of the archaeological excavation project of the Jimingcheng site in Lixian County, Hunan, the Jimingcheng settlement group in Liyang Plain, which has good ecological diversity, relies on the support of its own rice agricultural economy and uses land, agriculture, and population as elements. The whole process of ancient culture-ancient city-ancient country has evolved."If the ancient country is a form of civilization, then Chicken Crying City is an agricultural civilization that grew out of its own soil and rice fields - this is the main way and method of the emergence of pluralistic and integrated early Chinese civilization. The latest archaeological discovery of the Jijingcheng settlement provides a rare and precious sample for the international community to understand the process of Chinese prehistoric culture and social complexity and the origin of civilization."
The discovery of the tombs of the Tuyuhun royal family in Wuwei, Gansu during the Tang Dynasty vividly reveals the historical fact that the Tuyuhun people gradually integrated into the Chinese civilization system, and reflects the changes in historical details such as the ideological concepts, material life, and cultural identity of the Tuyuhun people after returning to the Tang Dynasty, and provides a solid foundation for the Chinese nation. Research on community consciousness provides a typical case.
The archaeological work on the beacon-sui site in Keyakkuduk, Yuli, Xinjiang, is the first active archaeological excavation of the beacon-sui site of the Tang Dynasty in China, and has systematically revealed the entire site. It is worth mentioning that the various relics unearthed from the site have accurate excavation locations, layers and ages, which will promote the development of archaeology, history, philology and other disciplines, and will help inherit the Chinese cultural genes and forge a solid foundation for the Chinese nation. The sense of national community also played an important role.
Multidisciplinary research runs through the archaeological process
"Analysis of the composition of the sand and stone slurry found that most of the sand and stone slurry is a mixture of Dushan jade and sandstone grindstone powder, which provides key evidence for determining the nature of the jade workshop." "Human Bone DNA Research Tomb Sampling 16 "...Ma Juncai, the leader of the archaeological excavation project of the Huangshan site in Nanyang, Henan, listed the results of multidisciplinary cooperation in the report PPT.
It’s not just the Huangshan site in Nanyang. In the final review meeting’s report on new archaeological discoveries, multidisciplinary cooperation has almost become standard. Relevant experts said that "multidisciplinary cooperation" provides strong support for archaeologists to obtain and interpret information more comprehensively.
The Sanxingdui Ruins Sacrificial Area Project, which has attracted much attention, adheres to the work philosophy of "topic design, conservation synchronization, multi-disciplinary integration, and multi-team cooperation", and is based on Sichuan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archeology, Institute of Archeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Many domestic scientific research institutions, universities and technology companies, represented by the School of Archeology and Museology of Peking University, etc., jointly carry out archaeological excavation, site protection and multi-disciplinary research. "This archaeological innovative use of a modern multi-functional protection platform, constant temperature and humidity archaeological excavation cabin, on-site emergency protection experimental platform, multi-functional archaeological excavation operating system, remote control system, uninterrupted high-definition digital recording system, etc., It has promoted the continuous progress of field archaeological methods and methods," said Lei Yu, the person in charge of the archaeological excavation project of the Sanxingdui Ruins Sacrifice Area.
The archaeological excavation of Zhengjiahu Cemetery in Yunmeng, Hubei has carried out a number of multidisciplinary testing studies, including carbon 14 dating, human bone archeology, animal and plant archeology, ancient DNA analysis, isotope analysis, residue analysis, composition and process research and abdominal soil parasite detection, etc., with remarkable results. "For example, the use of multiple isotopes to reconstruct individual migration behaviors and life histories clearly reveals the close interaction between northern and southern populations, providing scientific and technological support for understanding the integration of populations at that time." said Luo Yunbing, the person in charge of the Zhengjiahu Cemetery archaeological excavation project. (Reporter Zhao Xiaoxia)
"People's Daily Overseas Edition" (Page 08, April 4, 2022)
