Plate 41
Three-layer green glazed pottery water pavilion
Late Eastern Han Dynasty
Height 133 cm pool diameter 35 cm
In 1989, it was collected in Baimayu Village, Hubin District, Sanmenxia City
The Origin of Ancient Chinese Cities
Xie Zhongli, Social Science Front, 1990, pp. 142-147
This paper first discusses the characteristics of ancient Chinese cities and the conditions for urban emergence, and then introduces the villages or cities of Yangshao, Longshan, and the early Shang Dynasty. The author believes that ancient Chinese cities had five characteristics: (1) population density, productivity levels, and the degree of commodity trade were much higher than in the countryside; (2) the layout was more regular than that of villages; (3) there was a relatively tight defense system; (4) it was the political center of the area, with a large-scale high-platform rammed earth palace; and (5) some public facilities appeared. There are three conditions for the emergence of the city: (1) the first condition is the determination of sedentary life, and the necessary condition for settlement is the development of agriculture; (2) the emergence of the division of labor, i.e., the beginning of the concentration of certain production techniques on specialized people; and (3) the differentiation of social classes. The author believes that stable villages such as Xinglongwa, Banpo, Jiangzhai and other sites were formed in the early Yangshao era, and their characteristics were: (1) the interior of the village was planned according to the principle of functional zoning; (2) there was a natural river or artificial trench on the outskirts of the village as a defensive facility, making the village a closed structure; (3) a clan had been divided into several tribes; (4) each tribe had a large house inside, surrounded by ordinary houses. The villages of the Yangshao era have laid the foundation for the birth of the city to a certain extent. The Longshan era has formed prototype cities, such as Henan Dengfeng Wangchenggang, Huaiyang Pingliangtai, Yancheng Haojiatai, Anyang Hougang, Shandong Zhangqiu Chengziya, Shouguang Border Wang, Inner Mongolia Baotou Ashan, Chifeng Dongbajia, Liangcheng Tiger Mountain, etc., their common features are: (1) the periphery is surrounded by stone walls or rammed earth walls; (2) the direction is basically north-south. Cities in the early Shang Dynasty began to mature, such as Shanxi Yuanqu Shangcheng, Henan Yanshi Erlitou Ruins, Corpse Township Gou Shangcheng, Zhengzhou Shangcheng, Anyang Yin Ruins and Hubei Huangpi Panlongcheng, etc., which basically possessed the basic characteristics of Eastern Zhou cities: (1) large population, large density, large site range, and many kinds of buildings; (2) Except for Erlitou and Yin Ruins, most of them had huge rammed earth walls, and Yuanqu and Yin Ruins had trenches; (3) some cities appeared in Miyagi and Guocheng; (4) there were a large number of handicraft workshops ;(5) There are drainage facilities.
Two Questions about the Origin of Ancient Chinese Cities
Wang Shouzhong, Shandong Social Sciences, No. 1, 1992, pp. 62-65
This article discusses the author's views on two issues: "the origin and private ownership of cities" and "the place where ancient Chinese cities arose". On the question of the origin of the city and private property, the author argues that the emergence of cities or cities is consistent with the emergence and development of private property, and that the thick walls are defensive measures taken to defend the special position of private property and property owners. On the question of the location of the rise of ancient Chinese cities, the author argues that ancient Chinese cities did not develop from cities, but were built by rulers according to the needs of political and military defense. Ancient Chinese cities arose at the end of primitive societies, where the heads of tribes or tribal confederations lived and consumed. Finally, this article makes a brief conclusion. First, the cities of ancient China arose with the development of production and the emergence of private property. Second, unlike in the West, the ancient Chinese cities were not the product of "economic take-off", but always arose and developed as political and military centers. Third, the economic status of ancient Chinese cities is easy to disappear with the disappearance of the role of political and military centers, which is also determined by the consumption of cities.
The source of the text is "Research Outline of the Origin of Chinese Civilization", published by Cultural Relics Publishing House in December 2003
Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Research Center for Ancient Civilizations, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, ed
The pictures and descriptions are from "Han Dynasty Architectural Ming Ware Unearthed in Henan", edited by Henan Museum, 2002