Kuahuqiao site: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Archaeological site in Hangzhou, China}} |
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'''Kuahuqiao''' (跨湖桥 遗址Kuahuqiao Yizhi) is an early neolithic site of [[Kuahuqiao culture]] (跨湖桥 文化 Kuahuqiao Wenhua); it was discovered in 1990 near Xianghu village, Xiaoshan District, in the outskirts of [[Hangzhou]], in the Chinese province of [[Zhejiang]]. The site has a history of 8,000 years. |
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[[File:Kuahuqiao Site Museum 06 2014-07.JPG|thumb|300px|Excavation site at Kuahuqiao]] |
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The '''Kuahuqiao site''' ({{zh|s=跨湖桥遗址|p=Kuahuqiao yizhi}}) is an early [[Neolithic]] site of [[Kuahuqiao culture]] (跨湖桥文化 Kuahuqiao Wenhua) near Xianghu village, [[Xiaoshan District]], in suburban [[Hangzhou]], [[Zhejiang]], China. It was first discovered in the early 1970s during the construction of a local brick factory, which destroyed a large part of the site.<ref>Leping Jiang & Li Liu (2005), [http://antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/liu305/ The discovery of an 8000-year-old dugout canoe at Kuahuqiao in the Lower Yangzi River, China.] antiquity.ac.uk</ref> But the professional excavations first started in 1990. |
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The site is located near the place where the [[Qiantang River]] flows into [[Hangzhou Bay]], and it has a history of 8,000 years. [[Sea level rise|Rising sea levels]] may have suddenly deluged the area around 7,550 years ago. |
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==Excavations== |
==Excavations== |
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[[File:Zhejiang Sheng Bowuguan 2014.09.28 10-10-14.jpg|thumb|Big-mouth amphora from the site. [[Zhejiang Provincial Museum]]]] |
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[[File:Dugout Canoe Excavated at Kuahuqiao Site of Hangzhou 02 2014-07.JPG|thumb|right|250px|Dugout canoe excavated at Kuahuqiao site]] |
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Many wooden, stone and pottery utensils were also unearthed from the site. |
Large quantities of stoneware, unglazed pottery, sophisticated painted pottery, jade artifacts, and other cultural relics were found. Villagers made pottery with wild rice as a bonding material. Many wooden, stone and pottery utensils were also unearthed from the site. |
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According to Yan Wenming, |
According to Yan Wenming, |
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<blockquote>"The culture of Kuahuqiao is very unique. It can hardly be compared to any other ancient cultures discovered in the province, and we found it difficult to put it into the cultural chronology within our knowledge."<ref>Zheng Lifei, [http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2007-08/08/content_5449295.htm Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage.] 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn</ref></blockquote> |
<blockquote>"The culture of Kuahuqiao is very unique. It can hardly be compared to any other ancient cultures discovered in the province, and we found it difficult to put it into the cultural chronology within our knowledge."<ref>Zheng Lifei, [http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2007-08/08/content_5449295.htm Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage.] 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn</ref></blockquote> |
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In 2001, a second excavation was also carried out. In the same year, Kuahuqiao culture was recognised as one of top 10 most important archaeological discoveries in China. |
In 2001, a second excavation was also carried out. In the same year, Kuahuqiao culture was recognised as one of top 10 most important archaeological discoveries of the year in China. |
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Kuahuqiao has been entered in the official list of the Monuments of the People's Republic of China since 2006.<ref>Zheng Lifei, [http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2007-08/08/content_5449295.htm Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage.] 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn</ref> |
Kuahuqiao has been entered in the official list of the Monuments of the People's Republic of China since 2006.<ref>Zheng Lifei, [http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2007-08/08/content_5449295.htm Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage.] 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn</ref> |
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==Discoveries== |
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[[File:Zhejiang Sheng Bowuguan 2014.09.28 15-09-46.jpg|thumb|Ancient canoe from Kuahuqiao, exhibited at the [[Zhejiang Provincial Museum]]]] |
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During latest excavations, numerous well-preserved organic remains were found. They indicate that rice, dogs and pigs had already been domesticated by villagers. Thus, it was established that paddy rice cultivation was already practised in China dating back 7,700 years. This evidence was well-dated, and may be the earliest evidence for rice cultivation. It was found by a team led by Cheng Zong of [[Durham University]] in [[UK]]. |
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According to Gary Crawford, of the University of Toronto at Mississauga, this new evidence is "an important contribution to understanding agricultural origins in the rice regions of East Asia."<ref>James Owen, [https://web.archive.org/web/20071223012155/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/09/070926-china-rice_2.html Stone Age Rice Fields Discovered in China Swamp] National Geographic News - September 26, 2007</ref> |
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A very early [[dugout canoe]] was revealed; this demonstrates the earliest technology for constructing this type of watercraft in China, and perhaps the world.<ref>Leping Jiang & Li Liu (2005), [http://antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/liu305/ The discovery of an 8000-year-old dugout canoe at Kuahuqiao in the Lower Yangzi River, China.] antiquity.ac.uk</ref> |
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The earliest domesticated [[peach]] was found here.<ref name="YangZheng2014">{{cite journal|last1=Yang|first1=Xiaoyan|last2=Zheng|first2=Yunfei|last3=Crawford|first3=Gary W.|last4=Chen|first4=Xugao|title=Archaeological Evidence for Peach (Prunus persica) Cultivation and Domestication in China|journal=PLOS ONE|volume=9|issue=9|year=2014|pages=e106595|issn=1932-6203|doi=10.1371/journal.pone.0106595|pmid=25192436|pmc=4156326|bibcode=2014PLoSO...9j6595Z|doi-access=free}}</ref> The second oldest remains of peach have been found at Neolithic [[Tianluoshan]] site, also in Zhejiang Province. |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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{{commonscat}} |
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*[[Hemudu culture]] |
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*[[Majiabang culture]] |
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*[[List of Neolithic sites in China]] |
*[[List of Neolithic sites in China]] |
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*[[Wet rice cultivation]] |
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==Notes== |
==Notes== |
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==Literature== |
==Literature== |
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*Xiaoshan Bowuguan萧山博物馆 (Xiaoshan Museum): Xiaoshan gu Taoci萧山古陶瓷 (Old ceramics in Xiaoshan), Beijing: Wenwu chubanshe 2007; ISBN |
*Xiaoshan Bowuguan萧山博物馆 (Xiaoshan Museum): Xiaoshan gu Taoci萧山古陶瓷 (Old ceramics in Xiaoshan), Beijing: Wenwu chubanshe 2007; {{ISBN|9787501021161}} |
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==External |
==External links== |
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*Leping Jiang & Li Liu (2005), [http://antiquity.ac.uk/projgall/liu305/ The discovery of an 8000-year-old dugout canoe at Kuahuqiao in the Lower Yangzi River, China.] antiquity.ac.uk |
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*Paddy rice cultivation in China dating back 7,700 years |
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*Zheng Lifei, [http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2007-08/08/content_5449295.htm Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage.] 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn |
*Zheng Lifei, [http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2007-08/08/content_5449295.htm Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage.] 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn |
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{{coord|30|08|39|N|120|13|06|E|display=title|scale:10000}} |
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{{Prehistoric cultures of China}} |
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{{Authority control}} |
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[[Category:Buildings and structures in Hangzhou]] |
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[[Category:Neolithic cultures of China]] |
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[[Category:History of Hangzhou]] |
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[[Category:Major National Historical and Cultural Sites in Zhejiang]] |
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[[Category:Xiaoshan District]] |
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[[Category:Populated places established in the 6th millennium BC]] |
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Latest revision as of 00:33, 15 December 2023
The Kuahuqiao site (Chinese: 跨湖桥遗址; pinyin: Kuahuqiao yizhi) is an early Neolithic site of Kuahuqiao culture (跨湖桥文化 Kuahuqiao Wenhua) near Xianghu village, Xiaoshan District, in suburban Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. It was first discovered in the early 1970s during the construction of a local brick factory, which destroyed a large part of the site.[1] But the professional excavations first started in 1990.
The site is located near the place where the Qiantang River flows into Hangzhou Bay, and it has a history of 8,000 years. Rising sea levels may have suddenly deluged the area around 7,550 years ago.
Excavations
[edit]
Archaeologist Yan Wenming (严文明) has researched the site since the beginning. He uncovered a community of wooden dwellings that was constructed on stilts over the marshy wetlands.
Large quantities of stoneware, unglazed pottery, sophisticated painted pottery, jade artifacts, and other cultural relics were found. Villagers made pottery with wild rice as a bonding material. Many wooden, stone and pottery utensils were also unearthed from the site.
According to Yan Wenming,
"The culture of Kuahuqiao is very unique. It can hardly be compared to any other ancient cultures discovered in the province, and we found it difficult to put it into the cultural chronology within our knowledge."[2]
In 2001, a second excavation was also carried out. In the same year, Kuahuqiao culture was recognised as one of top 10 most important archaeological discoveries of the year in China.
Kuahuqiao has been entered in the official list of the Monuments of the People's Republic of China since 2006.[3]
Discoveries
[edit]
During latest excavations, numerous well-preserved organic remains were found. They indicate that rice, dogs and pigs had already been domesticated by villagers. Thus, it was established that paddy rice cultivation was already practised in China dating back 7,700 years. This evidence was well-dated, and may be the earliest evidence for rice cultivation. It was found by a team led by Cheng Zong of Durham University in UK.
According to Gary Crawford, of the University of Toronto at Mississauga, this new evidence is "an important contribution to understanding agricultural origins in the rice regions of East Asia."[4]
A very early dugout canoe was revealed; this demonstrates the earliest technology for constructing this type of watercraft in China, and perhaps the world.[5]
The earliest domesticated peach was found here.[6] The second oldest remains of peach have been found at Neolithic Tianluoshan site, also in Zhejiang Province.
See also
[edit]
Notes
[edit]- ^ Leping Jiang & Li Liu (2005), The discovery of an 8000-year-old dugout canoe at Kuahuqiao in the Lower Yangzi River, China. antiquity.ac.uk
- ^ Zheng Lifei, Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage. 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn
- ^ Zheng Lifei, Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage. 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn
- ^ James Owen, Stone Age Rice Fields Discovered in China Swamp National Geographic News - September 26, 2007
- ^ Leping Jiang & Li Liu (2005), The discovery of an 8000-year-old dugout canoe at Kuahuqiao in the Lower Yangzi River, China. antiquity.ac.uk
- ^ Yang, Xiaoyan; Zheng, Yunfei; Crawford, Gary W.; Chen, Xugao (2014). "Archaeological Evidence for Peach (Prunus persica) Cultivation and Domestication in China". PLOS ONE. 9 (9): e106595. Bibcode:2014PLoSO...9j6595Z. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0106595. ISSN 1932-6203. PMC 4156326. PMID 25192436.
Literature
[edit]- Xiaoshan Bowuguan萧山博物馆 (Xiaoshan Museum): Xiaoshan gu Taoci萧山古陶瓷 (Old ceramics in Xiaoshan), Beijing: Wenwu chubanshe 2007; ISBN 9787501021161
External links
[edit]- Leping Jiang & Li Liu (2005), The discovery of an 8000-year-old dugout canoe at Kuahuqiao in the Lower Yangzi River, China. antiquity.ac.uk
- Zheng Lifei, Hangzhou home to ancient cultural heritage. 8 August 2007, chinadaily.com.cn
