Recently, the award ceremony of "Celebrating the Centenary of Chinese Archaeology" sponsored by Hunan Daily, Hunan Provincial Archaeological Society and Hunan Provincial Museum Society was held in Changsha for the "Celebration of the Centenary of Chinese Archaeology" Hunan Province's Top Ten Archaeological Discoveries and 100 Excavated Cultural Relics Promotion Activity. The results of the "100 pieces (sets) of excavated cultural relics in Hunan Province" were released, and the "Top Ten Archaeological Discoveries in Hunan Province" were awarded the medal certificate at the same time.
Huxiang civilization has a long history of 500,000 years, why can they stand out? To this end, two experts from the event expert review team, Guo Weimin, director of the Chinese Archaeological Society and chairman of the Hunan Archaeological Society, and Xiong Jianhua, an expert in Hunan bronze ware research, gave their own insights.
It covers the whole process of Hunan history since human activities
"The purpose of holding this promotion activity is to let everyone understand the history and culture of Hunan from the perspective of cultural relics and archaeology." The top ten archaeological discoveries and 100 pieces (sets) of excavated cultural relics we have selected basically cover the whole process of Hunan history since the beginning of human activities. Guo Weimin concluded.
This event gathered the first-class cultural relics and archaeology experts in Hunan Province, who after repeated discussions, selected the top ten archaeological discoveries and 100 pieces (sets) of excavated cultural relics in Hunan Province.
The top ten archaeological discoveries in Hunan Province are: Daoxian Yutou Rock Ruins, Lixian County Head Mountain Ruins, Liye Ancient City Ruins, Changsha Mawangdui Han Tombs, as well as Hongjiang Gaomiao Ruins, Ningxiang Tanheli Ruins, Yueyang Luocheng Ruins, Changsha Zoumalou Three Kingdoms Sun Wu Jian Mu, Changsha Tongguan Kiln Ruins, Chinese Tusi Ruins Yongshun Laosi City. Among them, the first four were rated as the "Top 100 Archaeological Discoveries in a Hundred Years" sponsored by the Chinese Archaeological Society and the China Cultural Relics Newspaper.
The fine works of 100 pieces (sets) of excavated cultural relics emphasize the word "unearthed" rather than the cultural relics passed down from generation to generation. "Just like a person, we know the place where he was born and raised, the family environment, etc., in order to understand him more accurately." Xiong Jianhua explained vividly. He said that the location of the cultural relics, the soil layer where they are located, and the remains unearthed together are very important for judging the information of cultural relics.
▲ Chinese bronze "Four Heavenly Kings", all excavated in Hunan.
In the eyes of archaeologists, fragments of artifacts, traces of decay, and the soil associated with them are treasures. They look for clues and strive to reconstruct the real history of mankind.
In the long history of 500,000 years, the ancestors of Hunan have created a brilliant Huxiang culture in this land by means of blue wisps and thorns. Guo Weimin, who has been engaged in archaeology for decades, said: "This year marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of modern Chinese archaeology and 70 years of Hunan archaeology. The archaeological work in Hunan has reconstructed the ancient history of Hunan, and the physical remains have proved that Hunan has made outstanding contributions in the formation and development of the pluralistic and integrated Chinese nation, and has an important position and role in the historical process of China's unification and multi-ethnicity. ”
China's Hunan, the world's Hunan
The "broken" clay pot that has been patched up with many "patches" in your eyes is the first pottery in Hunan that can be restored. It was excavated at the Jade Toad Rock Site in Daoxian County, about 18,000 years ago.
Guo Weimin said it was one of the few pieces of early Chinese pottery that could be restored, and its function was related to cooking food, and it was likely that it was cooked grain. As a result, this clay pot has become a landmark instrument for the transition from the fishing and hunting economy to the origin of agriculture, and the transition from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic. Rice from about 14,000 years ago and pottery from about 18,000 years ago have made the Jade Toad Rock site an epoch-making significance on a global scale.
▲ Pottery kettles from the end of the Paleolithic period
"The pottery and rice of Yutou Rock, the village of Pengtou Mountain, the white pottery of Gaomiao, the walls and moats of Chengtou Mountain, the Liye Qinjian, the Mawangdui Han Tomb, the Zoumalou Wujian, the Changsha Tongguan Kiln Colored Porcelain, the Laosicheng Tusi Cultural Relic... They belong not only to Hunan, but also to China and even to the world. Guo Weimin said.
Changsha Mawangdui Han Tomb, the benchmark of historical civilization in the early Han Dynasty, can be compared to the tomb of the Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun. Many groups of cultural relics unearthed here were selected as 100 pieces (sets) of excavated cultural relics.
In the T-shaped painting, the "Three Realms" of heaven, earth and earth are depicted. Guo Weimin said that many white pottery also have these "three realms". The toad on the painting is almost exactly the same as the jade toad excavated from the Sunjiagang site in Lixian County. There are copper toads at the site of the Tao Temple, and there are toads on the faience pottery of Yangshao culture, which means many children and many blessings. As its representative, many of China's cultural traditions can be traced back to prehistory.
▲ T-shaped painting
"Why is Chinese civilization so special? It lies in its unity of ancient and modern. He said with emotion that a lot of culture from more than 5,000 years ago can still be found in the folk, which is the greatness of the Chinese nation.
The cultural wave represented by the white pottery and its ornamentation at the site of the Gaomiao Temple has been hailed by the academic community as the first wave of art in prehistory in China.
The "earliest city in China", the ruins of Chengtou Mountain in Li County, opened the first wave of urbanization in prehistory in China.
Hunan World Cultural Heritage "Zero Breakthrough" Chinese Toast Site Yongshun Old Sicheng is a symbol of national unity and national unity, reflecting the highly developed political wisdom of the East.
Changsha Tongguan Kiln pioneered China's new colored porcelain process - underglaze color. The porcelain fired here is one of the most famous export porcelain in China, through which it can interpret the Hunan factor on the Tang Maritime Silk Road.
They take us to see the hometown that is not recorded in the history books
One end is sharp and the other end is thick and blunt. This stone, called the "Great Sharp Vessel", was unearthed at the tiger claw mountain site in Changdejin City. This site expands the history of Hunan upwards to about 500,000 years.
Hunan has been misread as a "barbaric land" for many years. In fact, in addition to the brilliant prehistoric civilization, its communication with the Central Plains began very early, at least 6,000 years ago.
The Xiyin culture faience pottery of the Central Plains spread throughout most of China, and the Xiyin pattern faience pottery bowl excavated from the site of Chengtou Mountain in Lixian County is the only one that has spread to the south of the Yangtze River in the Current Xiyin culture.
▲ Xiyin pattern faience pottery bowl
During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, the exchanges between the two sides were deeper and broader, as evidenced by the many bronze artifacts excavated in Hunan.
Ningxiang, which has the reputation of "the hometown of bronze ware in southern China", has unearthed many famous bronzes such as Shang Bronze Siyang Fangzun and Shang Bronze Human Face Pattern Fang Ding.
"The most noteworthy point of the Shang bronze human face pattern Fangding unearthed in Ningxiang is the fusion of the Central Plains culture and the local culture of Hunan." Xiong Jianhua said that Fang Ding was generally only excavated from the high-level tombs of kings and queens. The shape and function of the human face pattern Fangding originated from the Central Plains and embodied the political system of the Central Plains; the ornamentation composed of the "human face" and the horns on the edge of the forehead and the claws on the chin had the characteristics of Hunan local culture. The combination of the two reflects the convergence of diverse cultures.
▲ Shang bronze human face pattern square ding
On November 16, 2021, a villager in Miluo, Yueyang, excavated a national treasure-level cultural relic: a flat-bodied cylindrical pendant with a shangbee face pattern while building a road on the mountain. Xiong Jianhua said that the Miluo River basin is also an important area for bronze artifacts unearthed in our province.
The Shang bronze chimes unearthed in this area have also been selected as one hundred pieces (sets) of excavated cultural relics. Although the bronze chimes are recorded in the Song Dynasty Jinshi works, the bronze chimes found in archaeology are currently only found in Changyang in Hubei and Xiangyin and Miluo in Hunan. In the Shang Zhou ritual music system, the level of users is very high. After years of research, Xiong Jianhua firmly believes that there must be an ancient city in Miluo that is of the same level as the ancient city of Tanheli in Ningxiang, but it has not yet been discovered.
▲ Shang bronze chime
As early as the Warring States period, Hunan had frequent exchanges with foreign countries, and in the Chu tombs of Changsha, Yiyang, Changde, Xiangtan and other places, a glass bead with a South Asian style was often unearthed. Experts believe that they are from South Asia, showing a high level of exchanges between the two places. This exchange influenced the local glass casting industry in Hunan during the Chu period, and imitation glass beads and created glass bibs appeared in Hunan in the Warring States period. These glass works, through the hands of archaeologists, are known to us today. Among the hundred pieces (sets) of cultural relics unearthed this time, there are many glassware.
▲ Grain glass bibi
Archaeology does not create history, but rewrites history and fills in the gaps in history with solid physical evidence.
Xiangxi Liye Qin Jian filled the gap that the history books did not record the Qin Dynasty", "Cangwu County" and "Dongting County".
The text on the edict of Qin II excavated from the site of Rabbit Mountain in Yiyang emphasizes that Qin II was on the throne by the will, lightly dispensing with small gifts, and treating the officials well.
The Yongzhou water system depicted on the "Topographic Map of the South of Changsha State" excavated from the Tomb of Mawangdui Han in Changsha can still be found today. Among them, the location of the Nine Ridges Mountain has 9 pillars and the word "Di Shun", which is the symbol of the Shun Emperor Temple. This shows that in the early days of the Western Han Dynasty, people were already convinced of the legend that Emperor Shun "collapsed in the wilderness of Cangwu and was buried in the Nine Ridges of Jiangnan".
▲ Topographic Map of the South of Changsha
The Three Kingdoms of Changsha is a living specimen of the ancient Chinese civil service system; the Song and Yuan Longquan kiln vases reveal that during the Song and Yuan dynasties, people had a certain demand for works of art, and Hunan's economy has developed to a certain extent...
The top ten archaeological discoveries in Hunan Province and 100 pieces (sets) of excavated cultural relics can let you see the 500,000-year-old Huxiang through the fog of history.
Producer/Commander-in-Chief
Editor-in-Chief/Chen Weichun
Editor/Leilei Li Zhao Haotian (Intern)
Source/ Hunan Daily New Hunan Client