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The Shuanghuaishu (SHS) site in China is one of the 100 most important archaeological discoveries over the past 100 years; its historical heritage can be traced directly back 5300 years. Understanding the early landscape of the site would provide important information about the origin of Chinese civilization. The SHS site is buried and surface traces are difficult to see; therefore, we attempted to reconstruct the early landscape of the site based on a current surface landscape model and environmental archaeological analysis. We created a modern three-dimensional (3D) landscape model of the study area from high spatial resolution unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) aerial photographs and analysed the distance change between the Yellow River and SHS site in the past 60 years from CORONA and Landsat images. By combining environmental archaeological survey results, archaeological excavation data, relevant papers, and field measurements, we reconstructed the paleotopography of the SHS site during the Yangshao period (7000–5000 aBP). On this basis, 3D natural and human landscapes during the Yangshao period were rebuilt. The results show that (1) Satellite images acquired at different resolutions can provide multiscale spatial information about the site, and high-precision models of current conditions can be quickly generated from UAV aerial photography. (2) From 1960 to 2020, the shortest distance between the SHS site and the Yellow River was approximately 512 m. The location of bedrock on Mang Mountain can be used to infer the early extent of the northern terrace at the site. (3) Environmental archaeology provided information about the palaeoenvironment of the site area. By incorporating spatial information technology and 3D visualization, we can better restore the early landscape of the SHS site. Our work integrates environmental archaeology, field archaeology, and spatial technology, enabling data and modelling support for the visual interpretation of the SHS site. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The continuous development of the Neolithic to Bronze-Age cultures on China's Central Plains is well contested by archaeological and historical research. Environmental factors that sustained such an exceptionally long cultural continuity are, however, poorly understood. The evolution of fluvial landscapes and its relationship with cultural developments are key to disentangle the close interaction between the environment and civilizational discourse on the Central Plains. Here, we present OSL and AMS 14C ages and other environmental data collected from a range of typical geomorphological locations in the Shuangji River valley, which is situated at the heartland of the Central Plains and long considered to be one of the most important regions for the rise of the Chinese civilization. Combining the OSL and 14C dates, results of particle size and soil/sediment micromorphological analyses, and geoarchaeological field observations, we reconstructed the evolution of Holocene geomorphological landscape in the Shuangji River valley. The results show that the Neogene alluvial fan was incised into a wide valley during the early Pleistocene. Subsequent alluvial processes were constrained within this general framework of regional landform. The period of 20 ka BP and 10–8 ka BP saw two episodes of basin-scale alluvial incision, which created two alluvial terraces (i.e., T4 and T3), respectively. Despite the occurrence of episodic floods and some large-scale alluvial siltation during 8–3 ka BP, the alluvial surfaces remained stable for a prolonged period of time and thus provided optimal living conditions for prehistoric inhabitation. We argue that the geomorphological foundation and prolonged landscape stability were instrumental to the continuous cultural developments on the Central Plains as seen in the Shuangji River valley as a representative of such long-term human-environment interactions. Our geoarchaeological survey for the first time reveals basin-scale evidence on the mechanism responsible for this distinctive relationship between alluvial landscape and cultural development, in which the terrace-surface stability, alongside many other cultural factors, profoundly shaped the celebrated cultural continuity on prehistoric Central Plains. • Holocene fluvial landscape evolution was reconstructed in Shuangji River valley. • Regional rivers never overflowed the tops of high terraces after incision in 8 kaBP. • Landscape stability guaranteed the continuous cultural developments in Central China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Three Holocene landscape evolution models were identified in northeastern Songshan. • Unlike previous understanding, there wasn't an ancient large waterbodies in the west. • There was a complex mosaic of wetland and upland in middle-late Holocene. A recent suggestion of the existence of an enormous ancient waterbody in Central China had been associated with the intensifying water management that led to the rise of early states. However, the evolution of regional alluvial landscapes remains unclear. Through intensive geoarchaeological surveys and careful field examination of typical sedimentary sequences, we reconstructed Late Pleistocene-Holocene landscapes in the northeastern Songshan Region and identified three distinctive models of landscape evolution. In the loess hills and tablelands areas, rivers were characterized by the large-scale alluvial aggradation during the terminal Late Pleistocene. Following a slight river incision during the Early Holocene, a pronounced alluvial aggradation resumed throughout the Middle Holocene. This gave way to another episode of river downcutting during the Late Holocene. The platform-type plains area witnessed a similar process of landscape evolution. However, the amplitude of the Early Holocene river-incision was smaller, whilst the large-scale Middle Holocene aggradation filled up the valleys, which also led to the formation of buried terraces. The eastern plains area was marked by continuous alluvial-lacustrine aggradation from the Late Pleistocene onwards. Many lakes, marshes and wetlands were formed during the Middle Holocene river aggradation. These waterbodies were separated by the high-elevation landforms, creating a mosaic-like aquatic landscape. The Late Pleistocene-Holocene landscape supported mixed farming of rice and millets from the Neolithic to Bronze Age. After 4000 BP, with another event of river incision, the wetlands shrank, and the extensive area of drylands emerged in the east plains. This change coincided with the emergence of large-scale urban centers in the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]