This year marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of modern Chinese archaeology, and CITIC Publishing has invited 15 experienced archaeologists to bring readers a feast of archaeology. "Archaeology in China - 15 Archaeologists Say Five Thousand Years" is a general preface by Professor Xu Hong of the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, who introduces the 15 major sites to the reader from the three dimensions of time, space and culture, expounds their definitions and their impact on Chinese history from the significance of "big sites", and observes ancient China from a global perspective.
"Archaeology in China - 15 Archaeologists Say Five Thousand Years" Xu Hong et al. CITIC Publishing Dafang January 2022 168 yuan
Comprehensively interpret the achievements of modern Chinese archaeology from the three dimensions of time, space and culture. The book contains 15 archaeological discoveries, from yangshao village in Shichi, Henan, discovered in 1921, to Qingping Fort in Jingbian, Shaanxi Province, which is a microcosm of the century-old discovery and research history of Chinese archaeology; 15 archaeologists from the "post-50s" to the "post-70s", active in the 1980s until today, have witnessed the transformation and development of Chinese archaeology. Archaeological sites cover a variety of scenes such as Duyi, mausoleums, underwater, deserts, plateaus, kiln sites, etc., involving political, religious, military, scientific and technological, industrial, agricultural, architectural, transportation, water conservancy and other aspects of rich historical and cultural information.
Two Mile Head Copper Lord
Arranged according to the archaeological discovery time of the site (1921-2020), it is a microcosm of China's century-old archaeological history. The book collects 452 first-hand archaeological site maps, precious archaeological reports, high-tech digital elevation model maps, shocking site restoration maps, elaborate site plans, real-life photos and panoramic aerial views of the sites, as well as exquisite cultural relics pictures taken by well-known cultural relics photographer Arterial Shadow on the Internet, etc., comprehensively showing the magnificence and details of archaeological discoveries from multiple angles, and presenting the innovation of archaeological technology in the past century. From only exploration shovels and hand shovels to the practical application of high-tech in archaeological work, such as geographic information systems, remote sensing, three-dimensional scanning, unmanned aerial vehicles, and ultra-depth of field microscopes have played an important role. The appendix also contains profiles of 49 archaeologists, paying tribute to Chinese archaeologists who have searched up and down over the centuries.
Sanxingdui bronzes
Fill in many historical gaps, correct historical errors, put forward new views, and ask new questions. All along, the West only recognizes China's more than 3,000 years of civilization, Liangzhu Ancient City with its "miyagi, inner city, outer city" triple structure and large-scale water conservancy projects, empirical Chinese 5,000 years of civilization history; Du Mu's "Afang Palace Fu" is well-known, archaeological findings show that Afang Palace was not burned at all, or even built; as we all know, the construction of the Great Wall is mainly for military purposes, but in the past 300 years, the bloody war that occurred along the Northern Great Wall is not the mainstream, on the contrary, most of the time the two sides live in peace. There are various trades and exchanges; 4,000 years ago, when the Shiya people were building the city wall, they consciously put jade shovels, jade huang, jade and other utensils into the wall, which is in line with the records of the last monarch of the Xia Dynasty in the history books, "li yumen and decorating Yaotai", is Shi Jia the capital of the Yellow Emperor or the capital of Xia? These views and questions were re-raised in Archaeological China.
Stone carving
The author Xu Hong believes that archaeology is a mysterious discipline, and its mystery lies in the curiosity about the unknown past. It can be said that satisfying the innate curiosity of human beings is its most basic and greatest function. In archaeological excavations, you don't know what kind of windfall you will get in the next minute; archaeology is a cruel science, and new discoveries are constantly perfecting, revising, and even subverting our existing understanding. This is precisely the greatest charm of archaeology. In this sense, although archaeology is a discipline that studies the past, it should not have the same old-fashioned qualities.
Xu Hong
"On the occasion of the centenary of the birth of Chinese archaeology, the publication of Archaeology in China is timely. "Archaeology in China" does not stop at listing new discoveries, but rather delves into the new understanding brought about by new discoveries, and the contribution of archaeology to the country and society is undoubtedly a satisfactory and thought-provoking answer. Xu Jian, a professor in the Department of History at Shanghai University, said.
Nandu reporter Zhu Rongting intern Tan Wanying