The 8-episode documentary series "Why China" won the Magnolia Best Series Documentary Award at the 29th Shanghai TV Festival.
Together with "Why China", a number of international masterpieces such as "Earth Pulse (Season 3)" and "Shakespeare: The Birth of a Genius" from the United Kingdom were shortlisted for the final evaluation of the Magnolia documentary unit.
Poster of "Why China" (Source: Douban)
The documentary "Why China" consists of 8 episodes, including "Qin and Han Dynasties", "Cradle", "Star Dou", "Ancient Kingdom", "Choosing China", "Yin Shang", "Home Country" and "Tianxia", which took three years to shoot and traveled more than 40,000 kilometers, with more than 120 Chinese first-line archaeologists and historians forming a consultant "heavenly group".
The story begins with the Qin and Han dynasties, which are moving towards integration, and then traces back to the turn of the Old and Neolithic Ages, witnessing how the ancestors of China formed families and societies, how they established early beliefs and cultural aesthetics, until the beginning of the dynasty era of the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties, and the great process of the Qin and Han dynasties establishing a unified multi-ethnic state.
On the premise of preserving historical authenticity, the film crew restored a large number of original buildings and settlements, which well depicted the appearance of Chinese civilization as a child.
The audio-visual language of "Why China" is also very vivid, and any piece of the picture can be used as a wallpaper.
(Screenshot of "Why China")
(Screenshot of "Why China")
Museums born on these archaeological sites give us another way to understand history.
The new Sanxingdui Museum and Shiyuan Museum will open in 2023, the new Erlitou Xiadu Ruins Museum will open in 2019, and the new Liangzhu Museum will open in 2018...... Archaeological sites museums are becoming popular places to visit.
Archaeological site museums are unique in that they provide a natural historical context, recreating the historical scene, allowing us to jump out of the books, travel through time and space, and experience the depth and depth of ancient civilizations.
01
Yinxu Ruins: The "Bronze Age"
Located in Anyang City, Henan Province, Yinxu is the site of the capital city in the late Shang Dynasty of China, which is the first capital site in Chinese history that has been documented and confirmed by archaeology and oracle bone inscriptions, and has a pivotal position in the history of Chinese civilization and the history of world civilization. Oracle bone cellar, stepmother Wuding, women's tomb...... It has been discovered here one after another, and the Yinxu site was even once called the "birthplace" of Chinese archaeology.
The strength of the Shang Dynasty has a history to examine, in the four major mall ruins (Zhengzhou Mall, Yanshi Mall, Huanbei Mall, Anyang Yinxu), there are three excavated ruins of the city wall, its scale can be imagined. During the archaeological excavation of the Yin Ruin site, experts found the ruins of more than 60 palaces.
Restoration of the Late Shang Dynasty (Screenshot of "Why China")
The layout model of Yinxu City is the "clan model", and the palace area is the heart of the capital, surrounded by small clan towns. Each clan in Yinxu is a relatively independent settlement unit, and each clan is a complex of residential area, production area and burial area.
Yinxu Palace Temple Ruins (Screenshot of "Why China")
The construction of the new Yinxu Museum, led by Academician He Jingtang, officially started construction in November 2020 and will be opened to the public on February 26, 2024.
The building area of the museum is 51,000 square meters, of which the exhibition area is 22,000 square meters, which is 20 times that of the old museum, and nearly 4,000 sets of cultural relics such as bronze, jade, oracle bones, and pottery are exhibited, of which about three-quarters of the cultural relics are on display for the first time.
The new Yinxu Museum (Source: Architectural Design and Research Institute of South China University of Technology, Photo: Lin Liqin)
The building adopts a holistic, atmospheric, and concise geometric shape, humbly watching over the ruins and in dialogue with the ruins. The architectural shape is based on the important weapon of Chinese civilization - Ding as the design image, a civilization heavy weapon that can represent the history and culture of Yinxu breaks through the ground and stands on the land of China.
The new Yinxu Museum (Source: Architectural Design and Research Institute of South China University of Technology, Photo: Lin Liqin)
Between the dragon patterns on the top of the building, there are three oracle bone inscriptions: "Tianyi Shang". In the oracle bone inscription, "Tian" leads to "Da", Tianyi Shang, that is, Dayi Shang, which was the proud title of the Shang Dynasty people in their own city at that time.
The new Yinxu Museum (Source: Architectural Design and Research Institute of South China University of Technology, Photo: Lin Liqin)
Walking into the hall of the exhibition hall, a long-tailed phoenix bird spun and flew high, looking pure and mysterious in the light attracted by the transparent skylight at the top. This is echoing the description of Shang in the ancient famous chapter: "The Divine Destiny Xuanniao descends to give birth to Shang, and the house is full of earth and mangman." The ancient emperor ordered martial arts, and the four sides of the domain were in the right domain. ”
The new Yinxu Museum (Source: Architectural Design and Research Institute of South China University of Technology, Photo: Lin Liqin)
02
Sanxingdui Ruins: Awaken the ancient Shu civilization that has been sleeping for thousands of years
Among China's starry ancient cultural sites, there is hardly anything more mysterious and "supernatural" than Sanxingdui, whose people have used their diligence and wisdom to build a fantastic and magnificent country.
Bronze head wearing a gold mask (Source: Sanxingdui Museum)
In the Sanxingdui civilization period more than 3,000 years ago, buildings adapted to the climate have appeared.
The wooden mud wall unearthed in Sanxingdui is a building that can adapt to a humid and rainy climate, the wooden structure is conducive to ventilation, the mud wall can prevent moisture, and the use of terraces may be to cope with seasonal floods or high groundwater levels.
Sanxingdui architectural remains (Source: Sanxingdui Museum)
The new Sanxingdui Museum, designed by Liu Yi, chief architect of China Southwest Architecture Design and Research Institute, is composed of three earth-covered unit buildings, which means "stacking up three stars".
The landscape-style architecture of the new museum is faintly integrated into the site, and the indoor circular ramp spires down to explore the "eye of the earth", expressing the spiritual world of the ancient Shu Kingdom of heaven, earth, man and god.
Sanxingdui Museum (Source: Research Institute of China Southwest Architectural Design Institute, Photo: Existence Architecture)
There are a large number of cultural relics unearthed in Sanxingdui that show "eyes", and the most famous is the bronze mask of the Zongmu people. Therefore, the most special place of the museum building is the two huge glass windows on the outer wall, like two "eyes", looking at the distant ruins like a torch, which is called the "eye of ancient Shu".
In order to create a pair of "eyes" that are transparent and clear enough, the design team specifically found a manufacturer who provided glass for the Apple store, and customized the super-large size of high-transparency white glass here.
Sanxingdui Museum (Source: Research Institute of China Southwest Architectural Design Institute, Photo: Existence Architecture)
The ring-shaped chandelier hanging above the ramp inside the museum, with a diameter of 31 meters and a weight of 12 tons, is currently the largest chandelier in the world. The surface of the chandelier is carved with beautiful gold ornaments, from the bronze sun wheel and golden rod fish and birds unearthed in Sanxingdui, with a strong ancient Shu atmosphere.
Sanxingdui Museum (Source: Research Institute of China Southwest Architectural Design Institute, Photo: Existence Architecture)
The museum also creates an "eye of the earth" that rotates towards the center of the earth, representing people's pursuit of the earth - the spiral ramp spirals down, and finally reaches the lowest point of the building, the deepest part of the pit, three laser projections are shot out of the round hole, and the changing Sanxingdui image is projected on the 30-meter-high ceiling, implying the light from ancient civilization.
Sanxingdui Museum (Source: Research Institute of China Southwest Architectural Design Institute, Photo: Existence Architecture)
03
The Ruins of the Ancient City of Liangzhu: The "Infrastructure Maniac" of 5,000 Years Ago
Located in the northwest suburbs of Hangzhou, the Liangzhu civilization proves that China has a mature civilization form and entered the early national stage as early as 5,000 years ago.
The city went from construction (about 5,000 years ago) to abandonment (about 4,000 years ago) for thousands of years, and the long-term and local infrastructure planning played a great role, fully demonstrating the wisdom and technology of the people at that time.
The water conservancy system of the ancient city of Liangzhu is extremely advanced. The structure of the Liangzhu dam is similar to the modern clay core wall dam, the outer side of the dam body is made of yellow clay as the dam shell, and the inner side is filled with silt and grass-wrapped mud, similar to the current flood control using woven bag soil, which is the largest dam system in the world at the same time, and the water storage capacity is equivalent to three West Lakes.
Liangzhu Ancient City Water Conservancy System Site (Screenshot of "Why China")
The ancient city of Liangzhu made use of the characteristics of the natural environment to transform the mountains outside the city, and the natural mountains and artificial city walls were organically combined to build an unparalleled water capital.
The overlook of the ancient city of Liangzhu presented by new archaeological achievements and new imaging technologies (screenshot of "Why China")
The Liangzhu Cultural Museum was designed by 2023 Pritzker Prize winner David Chipperfield, who was inspired by the arrangement of jade cones, with the design concept of "a handful of jade cones scattered on the ground", and the building resembles a "box of treasures".
Liangzhu Cultural Museum (Source: Official Account "Liangzhu Ancient City")
The museum covers an area of about 40,000 square meters, with a construction area of 10,000 square meters, and the exterior walls of the building are all made of yellow travertine stones.
良渚文化博物馆（图源：Archdaily，摄影：Richard Bryant）
The courtyard in the depths of the museum uses elements of Chinese garden architecture in the form of a traditional cloister, surrounded by a garden or pond on all sides.
Liangzhu Cultural Museum (Source: Official Account "Liangzhu Ancient City")
04
Erlitou Ruins: Three-dimensional and vivid capital of the Xia Dynasty
According to ancient documents, Xia was the first dynasty in China, was the Xia Dynasty a dynasty speculated by the ancients? The controversy has persisted.
However, the discovery of the Erlitou ruins of Yanshi in Henan Province has unveiled the mystery of the ancient "summer capital", the existing area of Erlitou ruins is about 3 million square meters, which is the largest capital settlement in China and even East Asia at that time, and is recognized by the academic community as the capital site of the middle and late Xia Dynasty, which is the most important starting point and yardstick for exploring the origin of Chinese civilization and the country.
Erlitou Ruins (screenshot of "Why China")
It is a super city with grand conception, careful planning, strict layout and orderly hierarchy, with the earliest known urban arterial road network in mainland China, the earliest palace city and palace complex, and many other "best in China".
The rise of Erlitou is the first time that a super political and cultural core has emerged in China's cultural community, and it has established the basis of the centripetal force and cohesion of Chinese civilization.
Erlitou Ruins (screenshot of "Why China")
The layout of the ruins of the capital city became the inspiration for the design of the Erlitou Summer Capital Ruins Museum.
Erlitou Summer Capital Site Museum (Source: Archdaily, Photo: Zhu Handong)
The initial concept of the architectural design came from a photograph of the site of an archaeological excavation in Erlitou: a zigzag and irregular extension of the archaeological exploration gradually reveals the hidden inner code of this ancient cultural site. The modern treatment of copper plate curtain wall + handmade rammed earth + fair-faced concrete is placed around the quaint ruins, which is not abrupt at all, creating a remote and secluded venue atmosphere.
Erlitou Summer Capital Site Museum (Source: Archdaily, Photo: Zhu Handong)
The design of the building uses a large number of copper curtain walls, hand-rammed earth and matching fair-faced concrete technology. Among them, the total amount of rammed earth exceeds 4,000 cubic meters, which is currently the world's largest single earth-made building.
Erlitou Summer Capital Site Museum (Source: Archdaily, Photo: Zhu Handong)
05
Jiahu Ruins: Chinese civilization is at least 9,000 years old
The site of Jiahu Lake in Wuyang, Henan, covers an area of 55,000 square meters, and is determined to be 7500~9000 years old according to carbon-14 and luminescence dating. In this ancient Chinese site, a large number of cultural relics have been excavated.
During this period, people came out of the caves and gradually developed into villages, and in Jiahu villages, the houses of different families were grouped together and scattered around the central square, and there were also pottery making kilns and food storage cellars next to the houses, which was the progress of society.
8,000 years ago, the Jiahu bone flute directly proves that the people at that time already had superb musical sentiments and artistic pursuits, and the Jiahu ruins can prove that the Chinese civilization is not only up and down for 5,000 years, but at least up and down for 9,000 years.
Restoration of Jiahu Village (Screenshot of "Why China")
Overlooking the Jiahu Museum, the whole design is like a drop of water falling into the dust, and this drop of water "ripples" on the land, forming a unique land landscape.
The design of the Jiahu Museum continues the concept of ancient settlements, and the museum will also assume the function of the village center, combining the protection planning of the site, the development of the site park, and the daily life of local residents, breaking through the single attribute of the museum as a building, presenting a multi-faceted and complex function.
Architect Liu Kecheng said: "Jiahu was a village 9,000 years ago, and it is still a village 9,000 years later. ”
Jiahu Museum (Source: Liu Kecheng Studio)
In the masonry of the walls and the construction of the roof, the museum avoids the use of overly modern materials and techniques, and the roof is made of metal materials that imitate thatch, and the exterior walls are made of textured earth materials.
Jiahu Museum (Source: Liu Kecheng Studio)
The texture of the exterior wall refers to the construction method of the ancient inhabitants' "wood bone mud wall", and the semi-circular pattern, sun pattern and handprint pattern are designed on the wall, which vividly shows the practice of the ancestors of Jiahu to transform nature and use nature with their own hands.
Jiahu Museum (Source: Liu Kecheng Studio)
06
Miaodigou Ruins: The Formation of "Earliest China" in the Cultural Sense
Yangshao culture, also known as painted pottery culture, is the most influential prehistoric culture in the Yellow River Basin, Yangshao culture lasted more than 2,000 years, and the Miaodigou period was its middle period.
In ancient Chinese, the original meaning of "Hua" is "flower", and the archaeologist Su Bingqi praised the common patterns in the painted pottery at the bottom of the temple as "Huashan Rose", and the group of people who created the flower of the temple ditch were called the original Chinese.
Miaodi ditch painted pottery (screenshot of "Why China")
Large-scale single buildings have appeared in the Miaodigou period, and the semi-crypt-type pentagonal house with large scale and complex structure is one of the important symbols of Miaodigou culture.
The large house is magnificent in scale, complex in craftsmanship, spacious and bright, elegantly structured, the ground is processed and laid layer by layer, and the walls are painted in many colors, which should be the public gathering place of the whole settlement, and such a building marks the formation of "the earliest China" in the cultural sense.
Restoration of the temple ditch building (screenshot of "Why China")
Miaodigou Museum, located in Miaodigou Archaeological Site Park in Sanmenxia City, Henan Province, will be officially opened to the public in 2021.
The museum is designed by the School of Architecture and Design of Tsinghua University, the appearance of the building is like clasped hands, the building is divided into one underground floor, two floors above ground, using the form of earth-covered architecture, the main building is located underground, the park landscape and the city square into one, pedestrians can roam on the roof of the museum without entering the museum.
The overall space of the museum is magnificent and atmospheric, and the color tone is mainly sand yellow, implying that prehistoric civilization took root in the yellow earth of western Henan.
Miaodigou Museum (Source: Henan Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism)
With the theme of "Flowers in China", the exhibition in the museum uses multi-dimensional channels, phantom imaging and other technologies to create a fantasy and real experience.
Miaodigou Museum (Source: Henan Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism)
Miaodigou Museum (Source: Henan Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism)
07
Stone Ridge Ruins: The largest prehistoric stone city site
The ancient city of Shiyuan, which was built 4,300 years ago and covers an area of 4 million square meters, is the center of northern Shaanxi, western Shanxi to central Mongolia in that era.
The ruins of the ancient city of Shiyuan (screenshot of "Why China")
The core area of the ancient city of Shiyun is the tall and majestic "Imperial City Terrace", which is the platform city that is surrounded by stones to wrap the city steps to protect the slope, there are two inner and outer city walls, the area of the city is about 1.9 million square meters, the ancillary buildings such as piers, urn cities, corner towers and so on can be seen in the city, and there are even the "horse face" structure that is suspected to be in later generations, and the defense is strict.
Screenshot of "Why China" at the ruins of the ancient city of Shiyuan)
The newly built Shiyuan Ruins Museum, located in Shenmu City, Yulin City, Shaanxi Province, officially opened to the public on November 29, 2023. The exhibition area covers an area of 5,943 square meters, displaying 688 pieces (groups) of various precious cultural relics such as jade, stone tools, pottery, bone tools, stone carvings and painted murals unearthed from the Shiyuan site and the Shiyuan culture period.
Shiyuan Museum (Source: Shiyuan Ruins Management Office)
The basic exhibition of the Shiyuan Museum includes four sections: "Towering Shiyuan", "City of Kings", "Duyi Life" and "Famous Name", with the theme of "Ancient Chinese Kingdom, Civilization and the Royal Capital".
Shiyuan Museum (Source: Shiyuan Ruins Management Office)
epilogue
"Where do we come from?" It is a big problem that human beings have repeatedly pondered, and the discovery of ancient times is not only to discover the lost worlds, but also to return to the spirit again and again, allowing us to find our way home.
Chinese civilization, through the blood of 5,000 years, is still not old, and today's China is still like the rising sun.
At any time, we can always believe in the power of traditional Chinese culture.
Resources
Documentary "Why China"
"The New Yinxu Museum Designed by Academician He Jingtang Officially Opened" (Architectural Design and Research Institute of South China University of Technology)
"Luoyang Erlitou Summer Capital Ruins Museum, the largest earthen building" (Tongji Ruoben Architectural Studio)
Jiahu Ruins Museum (Liu Kecheng Studio)
Good book recommendation
Painting for 6,000 Years, Opening Another Door to Chinese Art
Written by Cao Xingyuan, a well-known art historian, and illustrated by Chen Yuanyuan, a professional visual recorder, to help you open a door and see the other side of 6,000 years of Chinese art.
2 Buddha statues, 3 artifacts, 39 calligraphy and paintings, more than 90 visual illustrations, and more than 100 photos of cultural relics will take you to appreciate the other side of Chinese art. From prehistoric faience, bronze artifacts, mural Buddha statues to modern and modern paintings and calligraphy, it builds a systematic framework for readers to develop a history of Chinese art. Learn about the artistic styles and works of dozens of representative artists. The text is printed on special paper, which clearly restores the details of calligraphy and painting; Bare ridge stitch binding, flat reading, hands-free.
Illustrated Chinese Gardens
This book is written by landscape architecture experts and also Zhejiang garden science writers, integrating professional knowledge and landscape appreciation, starting from the four aspects of mountains and rocks, water bodies, buildings, and plants, explaining the gardening characteristics and gardening techniques of classical gardens, and the creation of each landscape also gives two actual cases of gardens to help understand. There are more than 350 pictures in the book, and the line drawings have a clear structure, which is used to explain gardening techniques and garden expertise; The floor plan is used to view the topography and structure of the garden; The real picture has beautiful scenery and can intuitively feel the charm of the garden.
Wisdom Hidden in Wood: Notes on Traditional Chinese Architecture
This book does not fall into the trap of introducing specific buildings, but focuses on the big picture, starting from the construction logic of traditional buildings, skillfully analyzes the reasons why the ancients built this way, and explains in detail the changes in architecture with the development of technology, so that readers can understand the internal structure of traditional buildings at the same time, and deeply admire the wisdom of the ancient Chinese. As the author said in the preface, I hope that when the public pays attention to traditional Chinese architecture, it is not only because of the "tradition", but also because of the wisdom and design quality of the construction that can transcend the times.