The Chinese people's preference for pork has a long history. In the Jiahu site of Wuyang, Henan Province, where the earliest remains of domestic pigs in China were unearthed, the remains of pig bones were broken and numerous, and the age structure of their deaths was dominated by the individuals with the largest amount of meat and the best meat quality, while the excavation of dog bones was completely different from this, and only sporadic finds were found in the ruins, and 11 dogs were buried in the cemetery and the residence site in the form of complete individuals. This shows that the ancestors of Jiahu used pigs as the main source of meat, and in addition to eating their meat, they also obtained more protein by knocking on bones and sucking the marrow, while the function of dogs was mainly reflected in the care of the family and the worship of gods.
Pigs are widely eaten on the Chinese map, and we can even say that most of the protein necessary for the survival and reproduction of the Chinese nation comes from pigs. We have counted more than 200 archaeological sites across the country, and all of them have found the remains of pig bones, which are broken and have obvious traces of processing and eating. Domestic pigs have gradually become the main source of meat, which is most typical in the Central Plains and Haidai regions.
In the Central Plains, from the early Neolithic to the early Yangshao culture (10,000-7,000 years ago), the proportion of domestic pigs in mammals increased sharply from 10% to 70%-80%, the middle Yangshao culture (about 6,000 years ago) reached a peak of 80%-90%, and the late Yangshao culture to the Erligang culture period (5500-3500 years ago) declined but remained stable (at 50%-70% It was not until the late Shang Dynasty (about 3300 years ago) that the meat contribution rate of pigs in some locations of the Yinxu site in Anyang, Henan Province gave way to cattle.
In the Haidai area, domestic pigs were domesticated from local wild boars in the northern Lubei area of the Later Li culture period (such as the Zhangmatun site in Jinan, Shandong), and the proportion of pigs (mainly domestic pigs) in the mammalian population in the Later Li culture period was about 15%-40%, and the average proportion in the Dawenkou culture period was about 70%, and even as high as 80%-90% (there are differences in the level of domestic pig breeding in various regions, but the overall breeding scale is large, The proportion of domestic pigs in the middle and late stages of the Dawenkou culture reached a peak, indicating that the scale of domestic pig breeding has developed to a higher degree, and the proportion of domestic pigs decreased slightly due to the introduction and proportion of domestic cattle and sheep in the Longshan culture period, but the overall trend is stable, and there are obvious differences in the level and scale of domestic pig breeding between the sites, which is a reflection of social differentiation.
There were significant regional differences in pork consumption in prehistoric times. Northwest China once took pigs as the main meat resources, 5500-5000 years ago, domestic cattle and sheep were introduced into the region from West Asia, about 4000 years ago in the Qijia culture period, under the stimulation of the external environment of the climate turned dry and cold, the way of livelihood changed from "pig-based" to "sheep-based", and the grassland animal husbandry and nomadic livelihood finally took root in this place. In the Central Plains and Haidai region, pigs are the main meat resources, about 4500-4000 years ago, domestic cattle and sheep were introduced into the region, and the livelihood mode formed a situation dominated by pigs and including a variety of domestic animals, which laid the foundation for the livelihood of the region to take the lead in entering the civilized society. The ancient ancestors in the south and northeast relied heavily on wildlife resources, and the scale of domestic pig breeding remained low on the whole. Dong Ningning and Yuan Jing integrated the zooarchaeological and isotopic research data of pigs from 10000 to 2000 years ago in the Central Plains and the lower reaches of the Yangtze River to reveal their different domestication trajectories. The abundant wildlife resources and the preference of the ancestors for wildlife resources eventually led to the limited exploitation of domestic pig resources by the prehistoric ancestors in this area.
As for the method of processing pork, we can obtain evidence from the traces of processing and meat production on the remains of pork bones and the traces of use on the utensils. According to the heating traces on the pottery, Cui Jianfeng et al. believe that the pottery at the Xinglonggou site in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia was mainly heated during the Xinglongwa culture period (8000-7500 years ago), and the pottery was heated by charcoal fire or heated stones (called stone boiling method). Ethnographically, the Indians used tongs to put a burnt stone into a basket containing water and fish during the Kutnera festival, and the fish was cooked in just 5 minutes. The Oroqen people in China use birch barrels, the Yao people in Lianshan in Guangdong Province use cowhide containers, and the Dai people in Yunnan use bamboo tubes to hold water and animal meat, and take hot stones and put them into it, so as to cook the animal meat. The pebbles of the stone boiling method are found in the late Paleolithic ruins of Lingwu Shuidonggou in Ningxia and the Shang and Zhou ruins of Hanyuan in Sichuan) are directly placed in the container to heat the food, and the main way to make food is barbecue and baking; the pottery of the lower culture period of Xiajiadian (4000-3500 years ago) is mainly heated outside, indicating that the food is made by steaming and stewing, and the change of the internal and external heating methods of this pottery reflects the change of the livelihood and diet of the ancestors of Xinglonggou. According to Wang Renxiang, Zhou Xinhua, Song Zhaolin and other research, from prehistory to the Shang and Zhou dynasties, the processing and production of meat included raw food, direct barbecue, wrapping food in mud or animal stomach and grilling over the fire, heating meat through utensils (including internal heating and external heating), etc., the utensils used to heat meat have undergone the transformation from the stage of non-pottery cooking with stone slabs, stones and animal skins or bamboo and wood as pots to the stage of using pottery and copper cooking utensils, and pottery cooking utensils include pottery kettles (mainly used for cooking), Pottery retort (mainly used for steaming, and later evolved into pottery, steaming food is a unique technique of East Asian cooking), pottery ding (both cooking utensils and eating utensils), pottery pots, pottery stoves, pottery stoves, etc., tableware includes daggers, chopsticks, forks, etc.
Meat is derived from hunting and fishing, or from livestock. The growth of pork consumption from prehistoric to Shang and Zhou dynasties benefited from the development of domestic pig breeding in ancient China, the Chinese were willing to accept foreign productivity factors, and the introduction of foreign domestic animals and crops also had an important impact on meat consumption. Luo Yunbing summarized the early development of domestic pig breeding in ancient China (9000-2200 years ago) into four models, which can be divided into five models based on the latest archaeological discoveries and cutting-edge results of biological archaeological research:
1. Central Plains model
Represented by the Central Plains, it also includes the Haidai region, the middle and lower reaches of the Huai River, and the upper reaches of the Han River.
The earliest domestic pigs in China appeared in the Central Plains 9000-8500 years ago, and the shape and size of domestic pigs were relatively close to those of wild boars but there were obvious differences. 7000-5000 years ago in the Yangshao culture period, the shape and size of domestic pigs tended to be stable as a whole, local breeds of domestic pigs began to form, the prehistoric ancestors had put their main energy on agriculture, and the northern dry farming based on millet and millet was finally established. On this basis, the livestock industry, including dogs, was greatly developed (the proportion of pigs in the mammalian population peaked during this period), and domestic pigs in turn promoted the development of agriculture by accumulating fertilizer. During the Longshan culture period of about 5000-4000 years ago, the Central Plains was dominated by the cultivation of millet and millet, rice was promoted, and wheat was introduced.
2. Northwest model
Represented by the northwest region, it also includes the northern region and the West Liaohe region.
Domestic pigs appeared in these areas 8,000 years ago. Around 5500-5000 years ago, domestic cattle and sheep were introduced from West Asia to the northwest and northeast regions, and the domestic pig breeding industry developed slowly (the relative proportion of pigs increased slowly). About 4000 years ago, the domestic pig breeding industry reached its peak, with the introduction of domestic goats, domestic horses, wheat and barley, stimulated by the external factors of dry and cold climate, the number of domestic sheep gradually exceeded that of domestic pigs, and the combination of agriculture and animal husbandry gradually took shape. Subsequently, the importance of domestic horses became increasingly prominent, and the introduction of camels around 3,000 years ago gradually transformed the northwest region into a nomadic way.
3. The Tibetan model
Centered on the Tibet region.
Agriculture-related livelihood activities in the region may have been introduced from the Northwest Territories. 6000-5000 years ago, with the late Yangshao and Majiayao culture millet farming population from the western Loess Plateau to the west and south, Tibet entered the Neolithic Age, the first affected people in the eastern part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau mainly relied on millet crops and wildlife resources for their livelihood; 5000-4000 years ago, domestic pigs were introduced from other places (probably northwest China) through breeds or technologies, and in Qamdo Karo (5000- 4000 years ago) and Lhasa Qugong site (4000-3000 years ago), the young age of pig death indicates that it was mainly used as a source of meat, and the Tibetan area formed a combination of millet cultivation and pig breeding, and since 4000 years ago, Tibetan ancestors independently domesticated yaks (the earliest in the early accumulation of Lhasa Qugong site in Tibet, dated 4000-3500 years ago), Tibetan sheep and dogs (the two were first seen in the Lhasa Qugong site in Tibet, the age is 4000- 3000 years ago), wheat farming people began to settle here on a large scale around 3500 years ago, and domestic horses may not have been introduced from the northwest until the early metal age, so that agriculture in Tibet shifted from mixed wheat and millet farming to barley cultivation, animal husbandry from raising domestic pigs to Tibetan sheep and yaks, in addition, fishing and hunting also played an important role.
4. Taihu model
It is represented by the area around Taihu Lake in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.
Domestic pigs appeared in the Taihu Lake area 8,000 years ago. From the cross-lake-bridge culture (8300-7200 years ago) to the Songze culture (5900-5200 years ago), the paddy field rice cultivation technology was gradually improved, rice and soup fish were the main dietary forms, the livelihood was still mainly based on fishing and hunting, the relative proportion of domestic pigs was not high, and the domestic pig breeding industry developed slowly. The Liangzhu culture (5200-4000 years ago) was the pinnacle of agricultural development, and the agricultural economy supported by intensified rice production and pig breeding was fully established, and the relative proportion of pigs increased dramatically and reached its peak. During the Maqiao culture (3900-3100 BC), the agricultural economy declined and reorganized, farming and livestock rearing shrank, and the relative proportion of pigs declined sharply. During the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, new crops and domestic animals were introduced from the north, and the upland rice mixed farming method based on dry-fed crops such as wheat, millet, millet and soybeans appeared, and the livestock-raising method mainly based on domestic animals such as pigs, dogs, cattle, sheep, chickens and ducks appeared, and the livelihood mode gradually entered a new stage of development.
5. South China model
Represented by South China, it also includes the Southwest Xiajiang region.
Agriculture-related livelihood activities in the region may have been introduced from the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. Domestic pigs appeared in South China 6,000 years ago, and 6,000-5,000 years ago, crops such as rice, millet, millet, barley, soybeans and mung beans appeared in this region, and the relative proportion of domestic pigs increased significantly, but the increase was limited. After 4000 years ago, the pig breeding industry had a relatively obvious development, and it was not until the Western Zhou Dynasty that agriculture and livestock breeding began to occupy a major position.
What is the internal driving force of China's prehistoric domestic pig breeding industry as a whole?
Since the successful domestication of domestic pigs by the Chinese 9000-8500 years ago, domestic pigs have played an important role as an important resource in Chinese society, and this role has influenced to this day. With the development of archaeology, especially environmental archaeology, human bone archaeology, plant archaeology, zooarchaeology, and isotope archaeology, we can explore the mystery of the origin and early development of domestic pigs from multiple dimensions such as environment, society, population, resources, technology and livelihood, which is the initial stage of domestic pig breeding and laid the foundation for the development of China's pig breeding industry. Based on the results of archaeological research, the author tries to make diachronic observations on the formation and development of domestic pig breeding industry from the Neolithic period to the Erlitou culture in Henan Province.
1. Middle Neolithic (9500-7000 years ago)
The climate conditions are generally warm and humid. Suitable environmental conditions provide the prerequisites for industrial development and population growth, with a population of about 110,000 people and a population density of 0.66 people per square kilometer. Humans chose to live on the highlands of riverside terraces and piedmont plains, where settlements were relatively equal among and within settlements, and their livelihood was in the transition stage from hunter-gatherer to agricultural society. As far as the development of animal husbandry is concerned, prehistoric inhabitants have domesticated and raised dogs and pigs, and the breeding method of domestic pigs is mainly free-range, and the use of domestic pig resources is mainly meat, and it is also used as sacrificial animals and aggregate sources.
2. Late Neolithic (7000-4500 years ago)
The climate is warm and humid in the early and middle stages, at the peak of the Great Warm Period, and the climate fluctuates violently in the late stages. The population of the early, middle and late Yangshao culture in Henan was 249,000, 942,000 and 1,073,000, respectively, and the population density was 1.51 people/square kilometer, 5.71 people/square kilometer, and 6.5 people/square kilometer, respectively. The population size continued to grow, and the pressure on environmental resources was significant, and the social differentiation of Yangshao culture in the middle period was more prominent in the late period. With the establishment of an agrarian society, crop farming and animal husbandry provided the material basis for population growth and social differentiation. In animal husbandry, the livestock breeding industry represented by domestic pigs developed greatly, the prehistoric inhabitants strengthened the breeding technology of domestic pigs, and began to raise pigs in captivity, mainly feeding crops and their by-products, and the planting industry provided material security for the domestic pig breeding industry, and the prehistoric inhabitants used pig manure to fertilize the fields, and animal husbandry in turn promoted the development of agriculture. The development of the domestic pig industry ensured its widespread use of rituals, and pigs became a symbol to distinguish social hierarchies and groups of people. Domestic herbivores (cattle and sheep) have already appeared in the northwest and northeast regions, and it is only a matter of time before they spread and spread to the Henan region.
3. End of the Neolithic period (4500-4000 years ago)
The climate fluctuates gently, with a predominantly warm and humid climate and a slightly dry mid-to-late period. The population of Henan is about 1.157 million, and the population density has increased from 7.01 people per square kilometer in the early Longshan culture to 12.69 people per square kilometer in the late Longshan culture. With the rapid growth of population, the pressure on resources and the environment intensified, the division between the settlements was divided into master and slave, the hierarchical difference was significant, and the urban-rural differentiation further developed. The society is in a state of crisis and adjustment, the planting industry has formed a multi-variety crop planting system, the animal husbandry industry has formed a multi-variety livestock breeding model, and domestic herbivores (including cattle and sheep) have broken down the proportion of domestic pigs to a certain extent, but all livestock breeds have shown a steady growth trend. Domestic pigs are still the main source of meat, and as sacrificial animals further highlight the identity and status of the user, and are used as divination bones, and the use as a source of aggregate is still insignificant.
4. Xinqi-Erlitou Cultural Period (4000-3500 years ago)
In the late stage of the Holocene climate suitability, the climate belongs to the transition type from warm temperate to subtropical, and is a humid or semi-humid monsoon climate. Around 4000 years ago, the Central Plains region was prone to abnormal floods, such relics can be seen in the Yihe, Luohe, Shushui River, Qinhe River, Shuangye River Basin, after the flood, the Yiluo River Basin appeared a broad and flat floodplain, the soil is fertile and there are waterlogged depressions, which is conducive to the development of compound agriculture. The population of Henan is about 11.032 million, and the population density is 55.16 people per square kilometer, and the overall population is increasing. During this period, the number of settlements declined, but there was a concentration of settlements and population, and the population in some areas was concentrated on a large scale, the social organization capacity was enhanced, and the constraints of environmental resources on human beings were relatively reduced. This period is in a relatively developed stage of agricultural production, human beings use a variety of environmental conditions, the development of a variety of crops and domestic animals, the ability to resist disasters is enhanced, the cultivation of many varieties of crops and the continuous development of many varieties of livestock breeding, domestic goats appear in the Central Plains, the number of wheat has increased, the number of rice unearthed at the Erlitou site is amazing, and its proportion even exceeds that of millet and millet, which may be related to the expropriation of the capital to the surrounding areas. A variety of resources converge to high-level central settlements, and resource exchanges between urban and rural areas and between regions are frequent.
(Author: Lu Peng, associate researcher at the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.) This article is excerpted from "The Archaeological Study of Ancient Chinese Domestic Pigs", Elephant Press, January 2024)