Huanbei

Huanbei

洹北
Shown within Northern China
Location	China
Region	Henan
Type	walled city
Area	510 ha
History
Founded	c. 1350 BCE
Abandoned	c. 1300 BCE

Huanbei (Chinese: 洹北; pinyin: Huánběi) is the site of an ancient city on the northern outskirts of the modern city of Anyang in Henan province, China. The name refers to its position to the north (běi) of the Huan River. The city has walls of pounded earth forming an approximate square oriented 13 degrees east of north, with an area of 470 hectares (1,200 acres), including a palace-temple complex of 41 hectares (100 acres). The city seems to have been burnt to the ground after 50 years of occupation, shortly before the construction of the last Shang dynasty capital at the site now known as Yinxu across the river.

The remains of the city were first discovered in 1999. It has since been excavated by joint teams from Institute of Archaeology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, the University of Minnesota, the University of Wisconsin and the University of British Columbia. Part of the site lies under Anyang's airport, limiting the scope of excavations.

References

• Harrington, Spencer P.M. (May–June 2000). "Shang City Uncovered". Archaeology. 53 (3). Archaeological Institute of America.
• Jarus, Owen (17 May 2010). "Torched Shang Dynasty City Huanbei Was Destroyed by its Own Rulers". Heritage Key. Retrieved 12 January 2013.
• Li, Feng (2013). Early China: A Social and Cultural History. Cambridge University Press. pp. 81–83. ISBN 978-0-521-89552-1.
• Sawyer, Ralph D.; Sawyer, Mei-chün (2011). Ancient Chinese Warfare. Basic Books. p. 144. ISBN 978-0-465-02145-1.
• Tang, Jigen; Jing, Zhichun; Liu, Zhongfu; Yue, Zhanwei (2004). "Survey and Test Excavation of the Huanbei Shang City in Anyang" (PDF). Chinese Archaeology. 4. trans. by Jing Zhichun: 1–20.
• Tang, Jigen; Yue, Hongbin; He, Yuling; Yue, Zhanwei (2004). "A Brief Report on the Excavation of Palatial Compound F1 at the Huanbei Shang City in Anyang, Henan" (PDF). Chinese Archaeology. 4. trans. by Jing Zhichun: 21–28.