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The functions of non-agricultural crops unearthed from archaeological sites mainly pertain to their usage as livestock feed. However, the studies of livestock feed have predominantly relied on qualitative analysis, which often lacks descriptive objectivity and relies heavily on subjective feelings and experiences. In this paper, we aim to address this gap by focusing on quantitative analysis, utilizing macro-plant remains from the data of seventy-five archaeological settlements and one archaeological investigation in northern China spanning the Neolithic Age to the Bronze Age, as well as stable isotope analyses of carbon and nitrogen. This research delves into various aspects, including the exploration of the plant resources and livestock farming and the categorization of feed types for cattle and pigs in captivity. By employing quantitative analysis, we can gain a more comprehensive and objective understanding of these subjects. This approach aligns with studies on ancient livestock management and feed diversity. In essence, the discussion of civilization development and social changes during the Pre-Qin period holds significant value when considering forage analysis, just as crop analysis has proven insightful. By focusing on the quantitative analysis of non-agricultural crops and their role as livestock feed, we can shed light on important aspects of ancient societies and their agricultural practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Nenjiang River Basin, located in the northern part of Northeast China, is an important cultural region that has attracted much attention from academic communities. Previous studies demonstrated that hunting and gathering always dominate the subsistence for prehistoric populations in this region. Herein, we further investigate the evolution of dietary and economic strategies in the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age occupations at the recently excavated Honghe site of the Nenjiang River Basin by means of a multidisciplinary approach incorporating zooarchaeological and stable isotope analysis. The results of zooarchaeological approaches indicate that the Honghe populations rely extensively on hunting and fishing during the Late Neolithic (4500–4000 cal BP), consistent with the results of previous studies. Interestingly, by the Bronze Age (3100–2400 cal BP), animal husbandry develops as one main economic strategy, corresponding to the probable decline of hunting and fishing, which is different from the previous reports. In addition, based on the results of stable isotopic approaches, C3 plants are always prominent diets for animals and humans from the Late Neolithic to the Bronze Age, which signifies that crop agriculture does not appear to have been of primary importance during either of these eras, in contrast to the C4 agricultural tradition formed in the Neolithic Age of the southern part of Northeast China. The findings of this paper shed some more light on the evolution of human subsistence strategies in the Nenjiang River Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transitions in animal exploitation patterns are caused by topographical and climatic variations on both macro and micro scales. This paper presents temporally and spatially contextualized faunal profiles from 27 sites in the Guanzhong (关中) region of Shaanxi province (陕西省), PRC which date from the Early Neolithic to the Bronze Age (ca. 6000–1000 BCE). Climatic and environmental data was cross-referenced with archaeological, archaeobotanical and (where appropriate) historical sources to examine the reasons for the clear micro-transitions observed. Faunal profiles from sites in the Wei River plain (渭河盆地), loess plateau, and the transitional zone between them were analyzed. Animal utilization was found to vary substantially between different zones during the period under analysis. The transition in praxis between the Wei River valley and the loess plateau was not gradual. The hilly transition zone was found to have its own distinct animal exploitation pattern. These spatio-temporal differences in animal exploitation were caused by changes in both the local microclimates and the topography of the landscape in which the communities were living. Some regions apparently reverted to 'earlier' animal exploitation patterns in response to climatic changes. These environmental factors were also augmented by internal social developments and interactions with neighboring communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amidst its diverse prehistoric civilizations, the Shizhaishan culture has provided evidence concerning the lives the ancient Dian people more than 2,000 years ago with its vivid and figurative excavated artifacts exhibiting exquisite craftsmanship and varied forms. One of the artifacts unearthed from Tomb M6, the "Golden Seal of the King of Dian," matches exactly with descriptions in the Historical Records , serving as the only domestic case in which the "the dual evidence method" of historical research has been applied. Bronze ornaments embodying the sophistication of Bronze Age civilization in the Dian Kingdom have been excavated from this and subsequent large tombs, the cultural interaction between Dian and the Bronze Age plaques of the Scythians on the Eurasian steppe and the North System implies exchange between different prehistoric civilizations an issue that is still source of current academic debate. This paper provides an iconographic study of the Dian Kingdom bronze ornaments through the study of decorative motifs, inlaid materials, and the casting and gilding techniques. In this respect, we explore social production in the Dian Kingdom and contact between the civilizations of the East and the West across the "golden latitude" and connected by the "Southern Silk Road." Our paper concludes that Bronze Ornaments are the concrete embodiment of the Ancient Chinese South-west highland and Western civilization in terms of the integration in the integration Dian culture. Therefore, this subject of is great value in terms of our understanding of both regional prehistory and cultural development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Zooarchaeological research on the early Bronze Age in the Central Plain of North China has been focused mainly on two periods: the Erlitou culture (ca. 1900–1500 BC) and the late Shang Dynasty (ca. 1250–1046 BC). In this paper, our research on the animal bone assemblage from the Wangjinglou site, a walled city of the Erligang culture (ca. 1600–1400 BC), allows us to explore the use of animal resources and husbandry specializations during the time period between Erlitou and the late Shang. Domesticated animals, especially pigs and cattle, were dominant species in the faunal assemblage, while wild animals, mainly deer, were small in number. Moreover, the percentages of cattle and sheep were higher in prosperous phases at Wangjinglou and lower in the later phase during the site's decline. Analysis of the estimated death ages for various taxa suggests that pigs were raised for meat consumption, while sheep were used for secondary products. This research on Wangjinglou shows the varied nature of the animal economy at an early Bronze Age City in East Asia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past two decades, environmental studies in research on prehistoric China have been gaining popularity and importance. For Northwest China in particular, climate change, especially the so-called ~4.2k BP event has been seen as the main reason for an alleged collapse of Late Neolithic societies and a transition to pastoral-heavy economies and mobile lifeways. Yet, these explanatory models tend to rely on limited archaeological and environmental data and non-contemporaneous historical data, resulting in simplistic causal relationships between environmental changes and social response. This paper re-evaluates the Incipient Bronze Age in China's Northwestern region, discussing evidence for climate change and its exact dates, as well as textual and archaeological evidence. We argue that the old narratives perpetuating the image of a dichotomy between Steppe and Sown are inaccurate, while large-scale models of region-wide subsistence change in response to climate cooling tend to disregard local developments and group-specific responses as well as chronological issues. Focusing on the Xindian and Siwa archaeological phenomena, this paper provides a view into sub-regional responses to this climate event, warning against simplistic broad-brush reconstructions and calling for both a return to archaeological fundamentals and large-scale intensive fieldwork and interdisciplinary studies involving archaeologists, paleobotanists, zooarchaeologists, isotope specialists, and climate scientists. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the possible provenance of ores employed for metallurgical production during the Early Bronze Age in the central Hexi Corridor of north‐west China. In total, 78 pieces of copper (Cu) ore samples were collected from five Early Bronze Age sites and one Cu deposit site (the Beishantang Cu deposit) in the Heihe River region of the central corridor. These sites were dated to the late Machang (4100–4000 bp), Xichengyi (4000–3700 bp), Qijia (4000–3600 bp) and Siba (3700–3400 bp) cultures. After comparing with published lead (Pb) isotopic data from other possible Cu deposits in north‐west China, the results show that the Cu ores collected from the Early Bronze Age sites were most likely derived from the adjacent Beishan Cu deposit. More intriguingly, for the first time in Hexi Corridor, a dozen Cu ores were discovered containing highly radiogenic Pb. Though fundamentally different from those in the Central Plains, they illustrate a possible new type of Cu used in Bronze Age western China, and the first‐hand materials are significant for further understanding the provenance of raw metals for metallurgical production in the prehistoric Hexi Corridor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tianshanbeilu is the largest Bronze Age site in eastern Xinjiang, China. Stretching across the entire second millennium BC, it performed a prominent role in connecting the Hexi corridor, Central China and the steppe. A further insight into the metallurgical tradition and the metal supply network is of vital importance to improve our understanding of its multi‐connected nature. This paper offers a new set of chemical and isotopic data on the copper‐based objects at Tianshanbeilu, including alloying elements, trace elements (impurities) and lead isotopes. Combining the concentrations of arsenic and antimony reveals that arsenic was introduced to copper partially due to the use of specific minerals tethrahedrite‐tennantite. Lead isotopes demonstrate that multiple sources of copper were employed at Tianshanbeilu and a majority of them are characterized by common lead, which appears rather different from those of the Central Plains and the Hexi corridor, but highly consistent with local ores. Surprisingly, one object at Tianshanbeilu contains the well‐known highly radiogenic lead. This object undoubtedly marks the westernmost boundary of the distribution of the highly radiogenic lead. We also anticipate that more lead isotopic analyses in NW China will further contribute to the study of the highly radiogenic lead in Central China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A multicrop agricultural system, including millet, wheat, rice, and soybeans, first emerged in China in the Late Longhang period and is considered to be one of the most important basic foundations underpinning the origin and development of early states in China. However, there is still a lack of studies on the specific subsistence strategies of humans from the Bronze Age, specifically addressing how widespread the multicrop agricultural system was. To explore these questions above, carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis on human bones from the Nanwa site (ca 1720–256 BC & 960–1279 AD) was undertaken to investigate the palaeodiet and subsistence strategies of the Nanwa humans. This paper also reviews the existing stable isotope data of Bronze Age humans on the Central Plains of China. The Nanwa humans from the Erlitou and Yinxu periods have a mean δ13C value of −9.4 ± 0.7‰ and −9.1 ± 0.9‰, suggesting a predominantly C4 diet, probably derived from millet agriculture or domesticated animals fed on millet. Nanwa humans of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty have a relatively low mean δ13C value of −10.5 ± 2.4‰, indicating a consumption of much more C3 foods, likely derived from rice, wheat, soybean, or animals that fed on those plants. A temporal stable isotopic comparison from the Erlitou period to the Eastern Zhou Dynasty on the Central Plains of China shows the majority of the Bronze Age humans have high mean δ13C value (−9.5 ± 1.8‰), suggesting a predominantly C4‐based diet. We infer that millet agriculture was still the primary economy for humans during the Bronze Age. However, there is a relatively large proportion of humans from the Eastern Zhou Dynasty that have decreased δ13C values, indicating a much more C3 foods consumption and diversity diet, presumably derived from a multicrop agricultural system of millet, wheat, rice, and soybean. It is possible that the trend moved from a narrowly focused, mainly millet‐based diet, to a more diverse agricultural system and was triggered by a combination of factors such as climate change, agricultural reform, social stratification, wars, migration, and so on. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition to the Upper Xijiadian period (1200–600BCE) in north-east China is often connected with the decline of agricultural settled life and the adoption of mobile pastoralism. Many see a deterioration of climatic circumstances as the reason for this change, while others have argued that this model is an oversimplification of the intricate socio-economic dynamics of the time. The extent and manner in which pastoralism was incorporated into the economy is still a matter of debate. This paper presents the results of the analysis conducted on grave location preference in the landscape, using data collected by the Chifeng international collaborative survey project. I argue that burial landscapes provide important insights into the discussion on Upper Xiajiadian pastoralism, both economically and symbolically. Based on these results, I suggest that mortuary practices may have reinforced the desire to practice pastoralism as an initially secondary economic strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The emergence and intensification of transcontinental exchange during both the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age profoundly influenced the social history of Eurasia. While scholars have intensively discussed east-west long-distance communication along the proto-Silk Road, the north-south transport networks that connected China to South and Southeast Asia during the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age have attracted much less attention in the scholarly literature based on archeological science data. In this paper, we find new radiocarbon dates from 11 Neolithic and Bronze Age sites in northwestern and central Yunnan in Southwest China, a key entrance into South and Southeast Asia from China. Combined with previously published archeological records and radiocarbon dates, we attempt to disentangle and understand the timing and routes of the networks linking China to South and Southeast Asia during the Late Neolithic and Bronze Age. We propose three north-south land routes that played essential roles in the cultural exchanges in addition to the proto-Silk Road and maritime routes. This includes the trans-Himalayan routes, trans-Hengduan Mountain routes, and the trans-Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau routes. The north-south exchange between China and South and Southeast Asia probably emerged in the fifth millennium BP (before the present) mainly through a low-frequency trans-Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau and trans-Himalayan routes. The exchange frequency significantly increased after the fourth millennium BP, with the synchronous development of the three primary north-south passageways. Trans-Hengduan routes might have been the most crucial artery connecting China and South and Southeast Asia during 3000–2200 BP, but more archeological records are needed to understand the detailed evolution of these transport networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It is widely known that the Hexi Corridor in North‐West China lies at a hub of trans‐Eurasian cultural exchange. Its role became increasingly important during the late prehistoric period, particularly as the ancient Silk Road began to be used. While the profound transformation of local cultural characteristics in the late Neolithic and the Bronze Age is well documented, the detailed economic dynamics of cultural evolution have not yet been clearly illustrated. In this paper, we report on significant new zooarchaeological and faunal isotopic data from the Neolithic and Bronze Age sites in the Hexi Corridor. The primary objective is to systematically reconstruct the prehistoric economic context of this area by combining these new data with previous archaeological studies and radiocarbon dates. We argue that the primary economic activities of local inhabitants changed dramatically in the prehistoric Hexi Corridor. This was marked by agricultural production at c.4800–4000 bp, agro‐pastoral production at c.4000–3000 bp and animal husbandry at c.3000–2200 bp, respectively. The major subsistence strategies of these three periods show considerable variation. It is very likely that these transformations of economic patterns in the prehistoric Hexi Corridor were primarily triggered by transcontinental cultural exchange and, to a lesser extent, by climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The archaeological culture found in Xiaohe Cemetery (1980-1450 BC) is one of the early Bronze Age cultures in Xinjiang, northwestern China. The material assemblages from Xiaohe culture display features with both eastern and western influences. These east-west cultural and dietary interactions may be observed via the diet of the Xiaohe population. This paper examined the stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes of human and animal bones and human hairs from the Xiaohe Cemetery and compared with those of human bones from the Gumugou Cemetery, another Xiaohe culture site. The results indicate that the diets of the peoples from the Xiaohe culture varied significantly over different periods. The unified diets of the earlier periods reflect that an admixed population first settled in the Lop Nur region and primarily engaged in animal husbandry. In the later periods, the transformations in the human diets in this region reflect that new immigrants constantly relocated here and promoted population complexity over time. Moreover, this population occasionally produced small quantities of domesticated wheat and millet. The complex population and diversified economy of the Xiaohe culture were due to the expansion of the coeval cultures in the Eurasian steppe and eastern immigrants. Additionally, the millet cereal was probably mainly used for ritual practices rather than for staple food in the later periods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The provenance of raw materials and finished objects is one of the most intriguing problems in archaeology. It is significant for the discussion of inter-regional cultural communication. Many of the methods used to determine provenance employed by archaeologists are shared with geologists or geochemists, among which the use of lead isotopes is probably one of the best-known. However, geologists and archaeologists do not always ask the same questions. Because of many and various human choices, it is not always possible to apply geological methods directly to archaeological objects. Specifically, the potential existence of mixing and recycling of metals challenges all the provenance studies of metal objects. In this paper, using Bronze Age China as an example, we suggest that by using geochemical techniques such as lead isotopic analysis and trace-element analysis of bronzes, but by asking slightly different questions, one can throw new light on the way in which important resources were managed by consumers of different social status within early dynastic China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper examines bronze vessels and bells excavated from late Bronze Age élite tombs in Guangdong and Guangxi. Categorized stylistically, such objects represent diverse traditions of manufacture, including 1) that of the Zhou states in the Yellow and Yangzi river systems (especially of Chu), 2) those of the Zhou-related, but basically independent bronze manufacturing cultures along the Middle and Lower Yangzi (known to Chinese archaeology as the Wu and Yue cultures), 3) those of Southeast Asian Bronze Age cultures (proto-Dian, Dongso’n), and 4) that of emergent local Lingnan bronze-casting workshops. The frequency and distribution of objects pertaining to each of these traditions changed somewhat over time; the assemblages from the tombs at Yangjia, Gongcheng (Guangxi) and Songshan, Zhaoqing (Guangdong), representing, respectively, an earlier and a later stage of local development, are scrutinized in some detail. It is noted that, both in import and in local manufacture, the choice of bronze vessel types emphasizes functional equivalence with the indigenous ceramic inventory while evincing little if any awareness of the conventions governing the composition of Zhou ritual assemblages. Bronzes and ceramics appear to have been used in conjunction at ritual celebrations. Rather than documenting a process of acculturation, objects imported from the Zhou states were adapted to uses specific to Lingnan cultural contexts. One of their main rôles probably consisted in serving as symbolic prestige items to be handled and displayed by their élite owners. The primary rôle of display is indicated also by the fact that locally-made bronze bells are musically useless, and that, differing from their northern prototypes, they are fashioned in such a way as to emphasize visually one side over the other. Adducing cross-cultural parallels, and dwelling upon some ideas stated by K.C. Chang in a 1975 article, the paper speculates about the probable rôle of the exchange of such artifacts and of their local emulation in the emergence of an indigenous élite. Such analysis may yield some insights into local historical developments during the centuries preceding the area’s incorporation into the Qin and Han empires. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The period from the late third millennium BC to the start of the first millennium AD witnesses the first steps towards food globalization in which a significant number of important crops and animals, independently domesticated within China, India, Africa and West Asia, traversed Central Asia greatly increasing Eurasian agricultural diversity. This paper utilizes an archaeobotanical database (AsCAD), to explore evidence for these crop translocations along southern and northern routes of interaction between east and west. To begin, crop translocations from the Near East across India and Central Asia are examined for wheat (Triticum aestivum) and barley (Hordeum vulgare) from the eighth to the second millennia BC when they reach China. The case of pulses and flax (Linum usitatissimum) that only complete this journey in Han times (206 BC–AD 220), often never fully adopted, is also addressed. The discussion then turns to the Chinese millets, Panicum miliaceum and Setaria italica, peaches (Amygdalus persica) and apricots (Armeniaca vulgaris), tracing their movement from the fifth millennium to the second millennium BC when the Panicum miliaceum reaches Europe and Setaria italica Northern India, with peaches and apricots present in Kashmir and Swat. Finally, the translocation of japonica rice from China to India that gave rise to indica rice is considered, possibly dating to the second millennium BC. The routes these crops travelled include those to the north via the Inner Asia Mountain Corridor, across Middle Asia, where there is good evidence for wheat, barley and the Chinese millets. The case for japonica rice, apricots and peaches is less clear, and the northern route is contrasted with that through northeast India, Tibet and west China. Not all these journeys were synchronous, and this paper highlights the selective long-distance transport of crops as an alternative to demic-diffusion of farmers with a defined crop package. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The origin, development and expansion of prehistoric agriculture in East Asia have been widely investigated over the past two decades using archaeobotanical analysis from excavated Neolithic and Bronze Age sites. Research on prehistoric agriculture has predominantly focused in the valleys of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. Agricultural development during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau of southwest China, an important passageway for human migration into Southeast Asia, still remains unclear. In this paper, based on macrofossil and microfossil analysis and radiocarbon dating at the Shilinggang site, we investigate plant subsistence strategies in the Nujiang River valley during the Bronze Age period. Combined with previous archaeobotanical studies in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, we explore agricultural development processes in this area during the Neolithic and Bronze Age. Our results indicate that rice and foxtail millet were cultivated in Shilinggang around 2500 cal a BP. Three phases of prehistoric agricultural development in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau can be identified: rice cultivation from 4800-3900 cal a BP, mixed rice and millet crop (foxtail millet and broomcorn millet) cultivation from 3900-3400 cal a BP, and mixed rice, millet crop and wheat cultivation from 3400-2300 cal a BP. The development of agriculture in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau during the Neolithic and Bronze Age periods was primarily promoted by prehistoric agriculture expansion across Eurasia, agricultural expansion which was also affected by the topographic and hydrological characteristics of the area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Central China is one of the key regions of the world that sees the transition from early Neolithic urbanization into the social complexity of Bronze Age civilizations. Previous evidence had indicated that the diets of humans and the feeding strategies of livestock in Central China during the Longshan Period (4.5–3.8 kaBP) became more complex and diverse, including the widespread introduction of cattle and sheep, and the coexistence of different human dietary groups within several settlements. Within this paper new and pre-existing stable isotope analyses from human (n = 31) and animal bones (n = 76) recovered from Wadian and Haojiatai, two important Longshan sites in the southeast of Central China, are integrated with multiproxy data from archaeological, environmental, and cultural contexts to interpret the social conditions behind dietary complexity from an interdisciplinary perspective. We suggest that the feeding strategies of cattle and sheep from Western Asia were successfully adapted to the pre-existing local millet farming subsistence regimes, and that the different human dietary groups seen corresponded to continuing diversified subsistence strategies that included millet farming, rice farming, and hunter-gathering. This dietary complexity is considered as a reflection of different patterns within the cultural interactions in Central China during the Longshan Period that saw the mixing of populations with diversified cultural backgrounds. This is represented by the introduction of extraneous livestock and the coexistence of millet and rice farmers at Wadian, and the continued expansion of millet agriculture within Central China indicated by the coexistence of millet farmers and hunter-gatherers at Haojiatai. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Because human modification has been significant enough to alter the atmospheric chemistry, some scholars argue that our planet Earth is going beyond the Holocene and coming into a new geological epoch, the Anthropocene. While the Anthropocene concept is widely acknowledged, some key issues, such as the starting point of this epoch and how humans influenced climate, are unclear. This paper provides an overview of the long-term, broad-scale interactions between climate evolution and increasingly intensive human activities (mainly farming) in Early China. It firstly reviews both the traditional "climate in charge" hypothesis and Ruddiman's "anthropogenic greenhouse gases" hypothesis. Then pollen and isotope data on paleo-climate is summarized to shed light on the climatic history in China from ~3500 BCE to ~220 CE. It is followed by an overview of the cultural history within the same time span. Finally, by integrating these two lines of evidence, the dynamic process of the interplay of human activity (particularly farming) and climate is synthetically discussed. Based on the evidence, I argue that the onset of the Anthropocene is a prolonged process with a notable mark in the early centuries CE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last decade, much has been learned about the network of interactions in Bronze Age Eurasia, and the importance of the steppe pastoralists in the creation of this network. However, the mechanisms that enabled societies in ancient China (both those bordering on and distant from the steppe) to participate in the Bronze Age Eurasian arena are still poorly understood. Based on the latest archaeological discoveries in China, this article focuses on the participation of four regions of ancient China: the Ejin River Transfer Zone (ERTZ); the western Hexi corridor; central Inner Mongolia; and the middle Yellow River valley. The article analyzes all significant innovations, materials, and technologies transmitted via the Eurasian network and adopted in ancient China, with an emphasis on metallurgy and the variations in the mechanism of its adoption across different societies during the Bronze Age. The introduction of metallurgy into the ERTZ was an economic imperative, although it was profoundly affected by the political landscape in the middle Yellow River valley. Through analysis and comparison, this paper argues that the participation of different societies of ancient China in the Bronze Age Eurasian network can best be understood in the local and regional contexts, which were deeply embedded in their natural and cultural landscapes, rather than as the result of the pull from the steppe pastoralists alone. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores the development of religious traditions in the Neolithic and Bronze Age of northern China. It applies the cognitive anthropological theory of Divergent Modes of Religiosity (DMR) for the first time in this part of the world. DMR theory frames ritual behavior in two distinct modes, one that is more traumatic/emotional and occurs less frequently (imagistic rituals) and another that is more placid and occurs more frequently (doctrinal rituals). Various archaeological and historic sources indicate that violent imagistic rituals involving human sacrifice and feasting began deep in the Neolithic; but religion did not become more tame when societies entered the Bronze Age, as predicted by DMR theory. Instead, violent imagistic rituals continued and became arguably more brutal. The application of DMR theory here is a useful means to explore the challenging topic of religious violence and to reveal biases in the treatment of ritual and religion in Shang studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to bridge the disciplinary gap between museum management and tourism studies. Constructing a museum on an important archaeological site has become an increasingly popular conservation practice. The Sanxingdui Museum in Sichuan province is one of the earliest archaeological museums, planned in the 1980s. Nevertheless, since its inauguration in 1997, the Sanxingdui Museum has barely reached financial stability in its operation, despite the fact that the number of visitors it received every year has risen. This paper will evaluate the Sanxingdui Museum from two interrelated perspectives: site management and curatorship. The present study argues that sustainability is the primary consideration in the management of archaeological site museums, and curatorship in those venues should be taken in a direction to ensure that tourists or relevant research parties will be making return visits on a regular basis. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Anyang, the last capital of the Chinese Shang dynasty, became one of the largest metal consumers in Eurasia during the second millennium BCE. However, it remains unclear how Anyang people managed to sustain such a large supply of metal. By considering the chemical analysis of bronze objects within archaeological contexts, this paper shows that the casting and circulation of metal at Anyang was effectively governed by social hierarchy. Objects belonging to the high elites such as Fuhao, particularly the bronze ritual vessels, were made by carefully controlled alloying practice (primary) using very pure copper, whereas the lower elites only had access to bronzes made by secondary alloying practice and copper with more impurities. Such contrasts allow scholars to identify those objects which are less likely to have been made by mixing and recycling, which has very important implications for the chemical and isotopic determination of provenance for future studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring prehistoric variation in human–environmental interaction is critical for understanding the historical patterns and mechanisms of long-term human–land evolution. In this paper we review the published radiocarbon and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) data from Late Paleolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Age sites in China, analyze the spatial–temporal distribution of these sites, and compare it with the results of recent paleoclimatic and archaeological studies. We seek to study the trajectory and influencing factors of human–environmental interactions in late prehistoric China. We detect changing patterns in the relationship between humans and the environment during different phases of the prehistoric era in China. Climate change clearly affected the environment of hunter-gatherer groups between 50,000–10,000 BP (before present, defined as 1950AD), and variation in human population in Neolithic China (∼10,000–4000 BP) was likely influenced primarily by the development of agriculture, in addition to substantial climate events. The spatial scale of human settlements expanded in the Bronze Age (∼4000–2200 BP) in a period of cooling climate. During this time the impact of human activities on the environment increased significantly, primarily caused by technological innovations related to the onset of prehistoric transcontinental cultural exchange in Eurasia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of human activity in shaping the terrestrial environment has been a core scientific issue of interest across various disciplines. However, it remains unclear whether there are significant differences in the patterns of the anthropogenic impact on the terrestrial environment in terms of spatial and temporal dimensions, and we are yet to identify the underlying factors that have driven it. Here, we present an analysis of sporopollen and geochemical proxies from a section of the Anjiangbei site (AJB) on the Yunnan Plateau, spanning the Ming–Qing period, in order to explore the spatio-temporal variation in the anthropogenic impact on the terrestrial environment in the Lake Dian basin. Integrating the reported multidisciplinary evidence, we aim to reveal the influencing factors of anthropogenic impact. Our results show that there were remarkable differences in anthropogenic impact on the terrestrial environment in the Lake Dian basin between the Late Bronze Age and the Ming–Qing period. Changes in crop vegetation and the forest were all affected by human activity in the Lake Dian basin during the two periods, and were more evident during the Ming–Qing period. The heavy metal pollution in the soil was obvious during the Ming–Qing period. The increase in the intensity of human activity, especially the rise in population, could be attributed to changes in the hydrological environment in the Lake Dian basin during the Late Bronze Age and to geopolitical change during the Ming–Qing period. This study reveals the different patterns in human impact on the terrestrial environment in the Lake Dian basin during the Late Bronze Age and the Ming–Qing period, providing new evidence to enable a deeper understanding of past human–environment interactions on the Yunnan Plateau. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Xinjiang, the most northwest provincial administrative area of China, was the area where the oriental people met the occidental. The populations in Xinjiang exhibit very high genetic diversity. Previous study revealed that the eastern Xinjiang populations of the Bronze Age were mixed by the Eastern and the Western Eurasians. However, few studies have been performed to reveal when the population admixture started and how far to the west it reached. In this paper, we studied 148 craniofacial traits of 18 skulls from the Bronze Age Liushui graveyard in Khotan (Keriya County) in the southwest of Xinjiang. Seventeen craniometrical parameters of the Khotan samples were then compared with those of other ancient samples from around Xinjiang using dendrogram cluster analysis, principal components analysis, and multidimensional scaling. The results indicated that population sample of Liushui graveyard was mixed by the Western and Eastern Eurasians with about 79% contribution from the east. Therefore, we demonstrated that population admixture between east and west Eurasia can be traced back to as early as 1000 BC in southwest Xinjiang. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It was during the early Eastern Zhou period (7th–5th centuries BCE) that forged tin foil turned up suddenly as an "exotic" novelty. This paper investigates archaeological finds of tin foil with decorating patterns from Caojiagang and Zhaoxiang, the two Eastern Zhou tombs found in Dangyang, Hubei, Central China. The results of scientific examination reveal the application of remarkable forging and working techniques to manufacturing the patterned tin foil, demonstrating a new trend toward diversity in metalwork in Eastern Zhou China, signalling a departure from the dominance of piece-mould casting bronze technology in the earlier periods of the Shang and Western Zhou. It is argued that the appearance of tin foil and the widespread adaption of forging technology in the Eastern Zhou period were most likely motivated by the desire to pursue social distinction or display individual preference. The cultural links to the Eurasian steppe could have played a role in the process also. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract For decades, the origin of the bronzes with distinct highly radiogenic lead isotopic ratios in Shang period China has been a puzzle. This paper presents new lead isotope data for bronze objects from the Hanzhong region, one of the key regional bronze cultures during Shang period China. On the basis of a synthetical investigation of the typological, chemical and lead isotopic features of Hanzhong bronzes and their relations to other regional bronze cultures, we propose the Qinling area as a potential region of origin for the metals containing highly radiogenic lead used by several contemporaneous but culturally/politically distinct entities across a vast territory. Taking into account both archaeological and geological evidence, this working hypothesis draws attention not merely to the geological provenance of metal resources, but also to the mechanisms of metal production and circulation as well as broader social-economic dynamics. Highlights • New lead isotope results from a key regional bronze culture of Shang period China. • The Qinling region is proposed as a source of the mysterious highly radiogenic lead in Shang period bronzes. • Regional specialisation and a multiple-direction interregional exchange are shown in Bronze Age China. • A new understanding of ancient metallurgy in broader social-economic contexts is offered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: The Tarim Basin, located on the ancient Silk Road, played a very important role in the history of human migration and cultural communications between the West and the East. However, both the exact period at which the relevant events occurred and the origins of the people in the area remain very obscure. In this paper, we present data from the analyses of both Y chromosomal and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) derived from human remains excavated from the Xiaohe cemetery, the oldest archeological site with human remains discovered in the Tarim Basin thus far. Results: Mitochondrial DNA analysis showed that the Xiaohe people carried both the East Eurasian haplogroup (C) and the West Eurasian haplogroups (H and K), whereas Y chromosomal DNA analysis revealed only the West Eurasian haplogroup R1a1a in the male individuals. Conclusion: Our results demonstrated that the Xiaohe people were an admixture from populations originating from both the West and the East, implying that the Tarim Basin had been occupied by an admixed population since the early Bronze Age. To our knowledge, this is the earliest genetic evidence of an admixed population settled in the Tarim Basin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For a long time, research on the pre-Han (before 202 BCE) Chinese use of the lost-wax process was targeted at demonstrating that it was of no use at all. That position was severely shaken when the zun-pan set of Zeng Hou Yi ("Marquis Yi of Zeng," d. 433 BCE) was unearthed at Hubei Suizhou in 1978, along with subsequently excavated finds or rediscovered artifacts carrying similarly interpenetrating openwork. Since the early 2000s, however, there has been a persistent revival of a research orientation against the use of the lost-wax process in Bronze Age China. After surging first in Chinese academia, the new tide took some time to arrive in the West. A response to Donna Strahan's prestigious lecture, "Debating the Use of Lost-wax Casting in Ancient China," this article presents my thinking about lost wax versus piece molds in early Chinese casting practices. Strahan's studied "diatrete" ornamentation in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, to me, can be securely identified as lost-wax cast thanks to some telltale traces. Through this critical investigation, I invite my fellow art historians, archaeologists, and historians of metal technology to emerge from the "doubting of lost wax" era to tackle new challenges in early Chinese archaeo-metallurgy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article builds on recent archaeological theorizing about early complex societies to analyze the political anthropology of Neolithic and Bronze Age China in a culture-specific trajectory over the longue durée. Synthesizing the latest archaeological discoveries, I show that a series of successive declines, beginning around 2000 BC, took place throughout lowland China. This put an end to the lowland states of the Longshan period (2400–1900 BC) and provided the context for the constitution of the Erlitou secondary state (1900–1500 BC). Following the shift in "archaic states" studies from identifying "what" to investigating "how," I focus on the strategies, institutions, and relations that undergirded and sustained the Erlitou secondary state. I explore how heterogeneous lowland populations were reorganized after collapse, how a new collective identity was created through ritual and religious performance at the household level at Erlitou, and how Erlitou's ideologies, political system, and economic network were shaped by the upland polities and societies. Through a series of innovative practices, the Erlitou secondary state did not replicate the preceding Longshan states but instead pioneered a sociopolitical order that was repeatedly reenacted and referred to as a source of legitimacy in successive Bronze Age Central Plains polities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous archaeometallurgical studies on Bronze Age China mainly focused on finished artefacts, whereas our understanding of copper smelting technology of this period is still limited. This paper, for the first time, presents analytical results of metal production remains from the site of Laoniupo in Guanzhong Plain, central Shaanxi. It reveals that arsenical copper was produced at this site by smelting arsenic-rich polymetallic ores with raw copper or high purity copper ores. The identification of metal production in the Guanzhong Plain is significant for the investigation of regional development and inter-regional interaction of Bronze Age cultures in China. The possible exploitation of ores from deposits in the Qinling Mountain region during this period is also discussed in this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Previous studies of archaeology and history suggested that the rise and prosperity of Bronze Age culture in East Asia had made essential contribution to the formation of early state and civilization in this region. However, the impacts in perspective of genetics remain ambiguous. Previous genetic researches indicated the Y-chromosome Q1a1a-M120 and N1a2a-F1101 may be the two most important paternal lineages among the Bronze Age people in ancient northwest China. Here, we investigated the 9,000-years history of haplogroup N1a2a-F1101 with revised phylogenetic tree and spatial autocorrelation analysis. Materials and Methods: In this study, 229 sequences of N1a2a-F1101 were analyzed. We developed a highly-revised phylogenetic tree with age estimates for N1a2a-F1101. In addition, we also explored the geographical distribution of sub-lineages of N1a2a-F1101, and spatial autocorrelation analysis was conducted for each sub-branch. Results: The initial differentiation location of N1a2a-F1101 and its most closely related branch, N1a2b-P43, a major lineage of Uralic-speaking populations in northern Eurasia, is likely the west part of northeast China. After ~4 thousand years of bottleneck effect period, haplgroup N1a2a-F1101 experienced continuous expansion during the Chalcolithic age (~ 4.5 kya to 4 kya) and Bronze age (~ 4 kya to 2.5 kya) in northern China. Ancient DNA evidence supported that this haplogroup is the lineage of ruling family of Zhou Dynasty (~ 3 kya-2.2 kya) of ancient China. Discussion: In general, we proposed that the Bronze Age people in the border area between the eastern Eurasian steppe and northern China not only played a key role in promoting the early state and civilization of China, but also left significant traces in the gene pool of Chinese people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The CORONA satellite image preserves the landscape from half a century ago, and has played a great role in landscape archaeology in many regions of the world. In recent years, with the rapid development of UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) Photogrammetry technology, Archaeologists can easily obtain the digital surface model (DSM)and Digital Ortho Map (DOM) of a site in the fieldwork. In the archaeological survey of bronze age sites in the middle of the Yangtze River project, we combined the UAV photogrammetry results with CORONA satellite photography, which can help us extract the surface landscape feature of the sites. This strategy has shown significant advantages in reconstructing the settlement layout, detecting the unknown linear features (such as walls, moats and canals) of sites and comparing the landscape between different sites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the long-term change of plant use from the Neolithic to the early Bronze Age (ca. 4800–1000 BC) in central-south Inner Mongolia to reconstruct the transitional process from foraging and low-level food production to agriculture. We employed an interdisciplinary approach, including starch analysis, phytolith analysis, and usewear analysis, correlated to changes in tool types used over time. The results show that this region experienced several waves of social transformations resulting from a combination of local social development, interactions with surrounding regions, and changing climatic conditions. The initial Neolithic development was a result of population expansions from the Central Plain, which introduced domesticated millets and arguably Job's tears to the region. However, cereal-based farming before 3500 BC appears to have been rather insignificant in the economy. Instead, it appears that various underground storage organs (USOs), wild or cultivated, including yams, lily bulbs, snake gourd roots, and occasionally cattail rhizomes, were staple foods. By ca. 3500–3000 BC, subsistence favoring USOs began to give way to cereal-based farming as millets and Job's tears became a more important source of starchy foods. This shift was parallel with a rapid population increase in the region and may be related in part to the need for additional high-calorie foods as would be provided by cereals. During the late Neolithic and the early Bronze Age (ca. 2500–1000 BC), cereal farming appears to have become a dominant starch-based subsistence strategy. In addition to millets and Job's tears, wheat and/or barley may have been introduced to the region. The population in this region may have played a crucial role for the introduction of wheat and/or barley from the steppes to China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reconstruction of complex political formations in tropical and subtropical environments has long been challenged by the ephemeral nature of archaeological deposits and the detectability of a settlement hierarchy. This paper presents findings from systematic archaeological surveys in the Lake Dian basin in southwest China to evaluate processes of political differentiation during the Bronze Age (ca. BC 900–100) and identified with the protohistoric kingdom of Dian. We discuss the problems of interpreting political consolidation based on mono-centers and ranked site size distributions. Our approach considers the contingent forms that ‘built’ landscapes can take in the humid subtropics in an effort to understand the variable relationship between politics and spatial scale. Combining traditional survey as well as subsurface methods suited for intensively worked paddy landscapes, we discuss the emergence and timing of multiple nucleated settlements as indicative of peer polity dynamics in the basin and examine the formation histories of large shell mound sites to highlight physical modifications that embedded central places during the Bronze Age period. We show that the boundary between on-site and off-site, living and non-living spaces is not solely determined by the availability of prime land but also by spatial conventions with discrete cultural and historical ramifications. By contextualizing macroscale views on complexity with an understanding of local scales of landscape transformation, we provide an alternative to models of pristine state formation based in temperate alluvial environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Legumes and cereals, which provide different nutrients, are cultivated as coupled crops in most centers of plant domestication worldwide. However, as the only legume domesticated in China, the spatio-temporal distribution of soybeans and its status in the millet- and rice-based agricultural system of the Neolithic and Bronze Ages remains elusive. Here, archaeobotanical evidence of soybeans (n=254), millet (n=462), rice (n=482), and zooarchaeological evidence of fish (n=138) were synthesized to elucidate the phenomenon of coupled or decoupled cereals and legumes in prehistoric China. During the Neolithic and Bronze Ages, soybeans was mostly confined to northern China and rarely found in southern China, serving as a companion to millet. In contrast, fish remains have been widely found in southern China, indicating a continuous reliance on fish as a staple food besides rice. Thus, an antipodal pattern of millet-soybeans and rice-fish agricultural systems may have been established in northern and southern China since the late Yangshao period (6000-5000 cal BP) respectively. These two agricultural systems were not only complementary in terms of diet, but they also exhibited positive interactions and feedback in the coculture system. Consequently, these two systems enabled the sustainable intensification of agriculture and served as the basis for the emergence of complex societies and early states in the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Millet agriculture, i.e., broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum) and foxtail millet (Setaria italica), initially originated in northern China and provided the basis for the emergence of the first state in the Central Plains. However, owing to the lack of a comprehensive archaeobotanical dataset, when, where, and how these two millet types evolved across different regions and periods remains unclear. Here, we presented a dataset of archaeobotanical macroremains (n=538) spanning the Neolithic and Bronze ages in northern China and suggested a significant spatiotemporal divergence of millet agriculture in the subhumid mid-lower Yellow River (MLY) and semiarid agro-pastoral ecotone (APE). The key timing of the diffusion and transition of millet agriculture occurred around 6000 cal. a BP, coinciding with the Holocene Optimum (8000–6000 cal. a BP) and Miaodigou Age (6200–5500 cal. a BP). It spread westward and northward from the MLY to APE and underwent a dramatic transition from low-yield broomcorn millet to high-yield foxtail millet. The combined influence of warm-wet climate, population pressure, and field management may have promoted the intensification, diffusion, and transition of millet agriculture around 6000 cal. a BP. Thereafter, the cropping patterns in the MLY were predominated by foxtail millet (∼ 80 %), while those in APE focused on both foxtail (∼ 60 %) and broomcorn millet under a persistent drying trend since the mid-Holocene. This study provided the first quantitative spatiotemporal cropping patterns during the Neolithic and Bronze ages in northern China, which can be used for evaluating prehistoric human subsistence, discussing past human–environment interaction, and providing a valuable perspective of agricultural sustainability for the future. The dataset is publicly available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6669730 (He et al., 2022). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The transition to a cast iron industry was essential to the development of ancient China. Previous studies, however, did not address precisely how this process occurred and how the preexisting bronze industry could have served as the foundation for the transition. This paper develops a framework focusing on three parameters—techniques, assemblages of final products, and production organization—to investigate the mechanism of the transition to cast iron. Results of two case studies indicate that the three parameters do not demonstrate dramatic changes between the two industries. Also, cast iron and bronze foundry workers were not segregated; they often worked side by side at the same foundry. Very likely, the cast iron foundry workers adopted and adjusted the original bronze production techniques and, consequently, maintained the preexisting organization. This study illustrates how cast iron manufacturing developed based on the indigenous bronze production in the Central Plains of China, and aims more broadly to contribute to the discussion of technological transitions in archaeological contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we use archaeometallurgical data from the Yunnanese Bronze Age sites of Hebosuo and Shangxihi, to examine the nature of early exchange networks within Yunnan, across southern China and into Mainland Southeast Asia (MSEA). Traditional perspectives on relations between China and MSEA were viewed from a Core-Periphery (C–P) perspective, derived from World Systems Theory (WST) but this area, though now divided by national borders, has shared ecological and cultural characteristics that allow its definition as the Southeast Asian Massif (SAM). The fourteen analysed samples were all unleaded copper or bronze, mostly as-cast and with some annealing. Their lead isotope signatures did not group at site level but showed broad consistency with the other, limited, signatures available from Yunnan, Sichuan and Guangxi. Critically, comparison with MSEA signatures revealed good isotopic consistency with key Bronze Age sites in Thailand, Myanmar and Vietnam, active within tight timeframes, and mostly lying on or near the path of major river systems that find their source in or via Yunnan. The picture we propose, based on current data, is one of a complex network of autochthonous SAM societies interacting at short (ca. 50 km), medium (ca. 300 km) and long (ca. 800–1600 km) ranges over mountainous and forested terrain. • Yunnan and Mainland Southeast Asia have recently aligned Bronze Age chronologies. • 14 copper-base artefacts from early 1st mill. BC Hebosuo and Shangxihi were analysed. • 8 were unleaded copper and 6 were unleaded copper.11 as-cast, 2 annealed & 1 corroded. • Lead isotope ratios did not cluster intrasite but were consistent with southern China. • Consistency with selected Mainland Southeast Asian signatures suggests radial network. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article outlines the research progress on radiocarbon (14C) dating of the Erlitou site. The Erlitou site, belonging to the Bronze Age, located in Yanshi, Henan province, China, was discovered by archaeologists in 1959 when they investigated the Xia people's remains in the area where the Xia people lived according to the records of ancient documents. Since then, there has been a standing debate about whether the site belongs to the Xia or Shang dynasty. By the mid-1990s, several hundred discussion articles on the issue had been published, but the question was still unresolved. Therefore, evidence from the chronology has attracted a great amount of attention. The dating of the Erlitou site began in the 1970s, and since the Xia-Shang-Zhou Chronology Project began in the mid-1990s, by application of wiggle-matching on the basis of improving the dating accuracy, the date of the Erlitou site has gradually become clear, which provides a basis for the archaeological research on the Xia and Shang dynasties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Origins of royal libation ritual and performance of kingship. • Contextual analysis of libation assemblage. • Emergence of bronze ritual assemblages. • Libation ritual as techniques for engaging with the sacred and ancestral. Building on a diverse array of previous discoveries, this paper investigates the intersection of alcohol consumption, ritual performance, and political representations in early China. It traces the emergence and elaboration of a libation assemblage in coastal Neolithic mound centers to its incorporation into Bronze Age high culture, whereas it became an important medium for religious communication in Zhou bronze inscriptions and ritual texts. As the ritual process bound the living with the ancestral and supernatural realms, the deep continuities in these ritual practices and associated assemblage reveal an emerging notion of kingship in the political evolution of early China that took alcohol and alcohol-related rituals as its primary representation of political and ritual authority. This close connection between libation and power becomes the defining attribute of Bronze Age material culture in early China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The published map recording cultural sites in Xinjiang shows that there is a lack of data collection on the distribution of sites in the area, and no relevant data sets have been released. Existing written materials indicate that there are more cultural sites in this area. For this reason, we have collected and sorted out information. Our cultural site database provides the geographic location and corresponding geographic environment of each site in Xinjiang from the Paleolithic to the Bronze Age. The data record the human development and settlement process, settlement environment landscape characteristics, scale, type, quantity, and spatial distribution in Xinjiang in prehistoric China. These data not only are the basis for further understanding the spatial distribution of prehistoric humans in Xinjiang, but also provide references for understanding prehistoric human behavior and prehistoric man-land relationship, and the exchange of eastern and western civilizations. It is of great significance to modern social planning, site protection, and resource utilization. Measurement(s) spatial distribution data of cultural sites Technology Type(s) Geographic Information System • digital curation Independent variable(s) geographic location • age • geographical landscape type Sample Characteristic - Environment prehistoric human sites Sample Characteristic - Location China [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human settlement and agricultural development are closely linked to local geomorphological and climatic environments. However, the variation in agricultural systems in different environmental and prehistoric contexts remains unknown. We report new archaeobotanical and radiocarbon dates from 34 Neolithic and Bronze Age sites in the Hutuo River Valley (HTRV) in north-central China and compare them with updated archaeobotanical studies in the Sushui River Valley (SSRV) and Henan Province (HNP), to explore the similarities and differences of agricultural patterns under different geomorphologic and climatic environments in north-central China. Our results reveal that humans consistently cultivated foxtail and broomcorn millet in the HTRV from the Miaodigou (6000–5700 cal. a BP) to the Shang-Zhou (3600–2256 cal. a BP) period, despite the introduction of wheat and barley into the area around 4000 a BP. Climate conditions and hilly landforms in the HTRV, SSRV and some parts of the HNP led people to develop foxtail and broomcorn millet dry land farming practices between 7000 and 3000 a BP. Alternatively, in other areas of the HNP, the climate conditions and alluvial plains enabled people to develop a mixed agriculture of millets, soybeans, and rice from 7000 to 4000 a BP, with the addition of wheat between 4000 and 3000 a BP. Farmers' different agricultural technologies and interactions with foreign cultures may have also influenced the formation of different agricultural patterns in the three regions between 7000 and 3000 a BP. Population growth during 7000–3000 a BP can explain the overall propensity of the higher-yield foxtail millet rather than broomcorn millet as the main cultivated crop. In the HTRV, however, higher proportions of broomcorn millet (as compared to the SSRV and HNP), may reflect the greater drought and heat tolerance of broomcorn millet, representing an adaptive agricultural strategy in the river valley. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article we argue that several of the dominant narratives concerning the political economy of the Chinese Bronze Age are in need of major revision, including its chronological divisions and assumptions of unilineal development. Instead, we argue that for many parts of China, the Bronze Age should begin in the third millennium BC and that there was significant political economic heterogeneity both within and between regions. Focusing on the issues of centralization and commercialization, we argue that, in spite of the tendency in the Chinese archaeological literature to equate complexity with centralization and hierarchy and to posit top-down redistributive economic models, there is little evidence of such institutions. To the contrary, our survey of nearly 2000 years of development turns up significant investment in public goods, especially before the Anyang period, as well as ample evidence of horizontal exchange and increasing commercialization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: This paper is concerned with the technology of a small but representative sample of thirty nephrite jades from the burial assemblages of the Jin Marquisate excavated at Tianma-Qucun, Beizhao, Shanxi province, north-central China. The jades date mainly from two Bronze Age cultures, the Western Zhou dynasty (c. 1050–771 BC) and the previous Shang dynasty (c. 1600–c. 1050 BC). They include unfinished and finished carvings. The carvings were examined at Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology, Houma: following an optical survey of the tool marks, detailed silicone moulds were made from twelve jades bearing evidence of working techniques. The moulds were examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) at the British Museum, London. Consideration of several characteristics of the moulded features for comparison with moulded experimental standards provided evidence for the tools employed for several stages of working. Extensive use was made of non-rotary rigid saws and thicker files for shaping many parts of the jades, and pointed tools for incising pieces. Use was also made of rotary solid drills for working narrow perforations for openwork and the suspension of jades, and broader tubular drills. Although no evidence of non-rotary string saws, rotary circular saws or smaller incising wheels was seen on the jades, there was evidence for the use of rotary lathes, on which jades were mounted for shaping. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Pastoral nomadism, as a successful economic and social system drawing on mobile herding, long-distance trade, and cavalry warfare, affected all polities of the Eurasian continent. The role that arid Inner Asia, particularly the areas of northwestern China, Kazakhstan, and Mongolia, played in the emergence of this phenomenon remains a fundamental and still challenging question in prehistoric archaeology of the Eurasian steppes. The cemetery of Liushiu (Xinjiang, China) reyeals burial features, bronze bridle bits, weaponry, adornment, horse skulls, and sheep/goat bones, which, together with paleopathological changes in human skeletons, indicate the presence of mobile pastoralists and their flocks at summer pastures in the Kunlun Mountains, ∼2,850 m above sea level. Radiocarbon dates place the onset of the burial activity between 1108 and 893 B.C. (95% probability range) or most likely between 1017 and 926 B.C. (68%). These data from the Kunlun Mountains show a wider frontier within the diversity of mobile pastoral economies of Inner Asia and support the concept of multiregional transitions toward Iron Age complex pastoralism and mounted warfare. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Egypt, Mesopotamia, ancient India and China, the four big ancient civilizations, have experienced the Bronze Age, they launch the Bronze ware manufacture the opportunity, all just when in politics and economy developed vigorous development stage. Bronze-ware of the Pre-Chin Dynasty, with its high degree of history, art and craft values and superb casting technology for world-famous, it is not only important to the ancient religious ritual of the ceremony, but it is also daily life appliances. It is the representative of Chinese bronze works. However, the academic studies of bronze ware of the Pre-Chin Dynasty are focused on interpretation of inscriptions, archaeological dating or ware of the appearance of shapes and decorative patterns, but ignore design aesthetic research of bronze ware. The dragon pattern design in the decorative art of China is the most oldest. Therefore, this article will introduce "dragon-shaped decorations," and will use the design transformation of dragon pattern decoration in bronze ware to verify the Pre-Chin Dynasty design aesthetic proposition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The anthropogenic explanation for the increase in atmospheric methane concentration during the last 5000 years requires large CH4 emissions from human activities beginning early in the Bronze Age. This paper presents a compilation of 311 archeological sites in rice-growing regions of China. The number of new sites between 6000 and 4000 years ago increased almost ten-fold compared with those during previous millennia. This early spread of rice production across most of the area in China where irrigated rice is grown today supports the hypothesis that early farming caused the anomalous methane reversal. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

This research is intended to report on a case of healed foot amputation in Central Plains, China, and to provide a differential diagnosis on the amputation. The material used is an adult skeleton, dating back to 8th–5th Centuries BCE, from Chongpingyuan site, Shaanxi, China. The methods used are macroscopic observations, microscope, and X‐ray. Macroscopic observations indicated that the individual of interest was probably a male, around 50 to 70 years old, with a stature around 168.51 cm. Nearly one third of the distal end of his left tibia and fibula was absent, and the surface was remodeled with obvious signs of healing. Meanwhile, this individual suffered from osteoarthritis, lumbosacral transitional vertebrae, and several oral pathologies. Osteoarthritis was more profoundly found on the right limbs. Yue penalty (刖刑), which is often seen on scripts and artifacts in Bronze Age China, was an explanation for this amputation, while surgery amputation or traumatic incident cannot be entirely excluded. Contemporary images and artifacts of amputees suggested the usage of crutches. The social status and possibility of punitive amputation lead to the argument that this individual was unlikely to receive positive treatments after amputation. This study supplements the current research of ancient amputation in early China and provides an opportunity to look at the penal system and medical knowledge of the Zhou Dynasty. The absence of cutting marks left a questionable point with regards to the tools used for amputations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]