Let's Travel Back to the Xia Dynasty

Let's Travel Back to the Xia Dynasty

在中原 追寻夏的轨迹

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The Wangchenggang Site in Dengfeng Where Is the Capital City of the Xia Dynasty?

登封王城岗遗址：“夏之王城”今何在

 

In 1959, to seek the sites of the Xia Dynasty, Xu Xusheng, a famous Chinese archaeologist, discovered the Wangchenggang Site between Gaocheng town and Bafang village, which is of great significance due to its special location. According to historical documents, Yangcheng (阳城), a capital city of the Xia Dynasty or where Yu (who built the Xia Dynasty) was living, is located near Gaocheng town.

1959年，为寻找“夏墟”，著名考古学家徐旭生在登封市告成镇与八方村之间调查发现了王城岗遗址。由于其地理位置与古史记载的“禹居阳城”的地望相符，对探索夏文化有极其重要的价值。

The Wangchenggang Site

Three city ruins of the late Longshan Culture period (around 2500-2000 BC) were discovered at the Wangchenggang Site, of which the large one is also the largest of its kind during the late Longshan Culture period in the Central Plains, whose carbon-14 testing results are basically consistent with the first year of the Xia Dynasty presumed in the archaeological documents. Besides, pottery wares carved with the characters of Yangcheng (阳城) or Wares of Yangcheng (阳城仓器) were also discovered at a city ruin of the Warring States Period (475 BC-221 BC) located to the northwest of the large city ruin, thus proving the existence of a city named Yangcheng around the Wangchenggang Site as late as the Eastern Zhou Dynasty (770 BC-256 BC). These important findings suggest that the Wangchenggang Site was a capital city of the early Xia Dynasty, likely to be Yangcheng (阳城).

王城岗遗址先后发现有三座龙山晚期城址，其中，大城是面积超过30万平方米的大型城址，是中原地区龙山晚期面积最大的城址，且测年结果与文献推定的夏之始年基本相符；此外，距王城岗大城不远、东北方向的战国城址中出土的印有“阳城”“阳城仓器”戳记的陶器，证明至迟到东周时，在王城岗一带，存在被称为“阳城”的城市。这些发现，为王城岗遗址即为“禹居阳城”提供了极其重要的考古学证据。

 

In 2020, the Wangchenggang Site was proved as a key project (2020-2024) for the study of the Xia Dynasty by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage. The discovery of the large rammed-earth foundation during the new round of excavation not only proves that the large city's northern and central part is a living area (most likely for aristocrats), which is helpful to understand its functional zones, but also offers some support for the central position of the large city in the Yinghe River basin and the appearance of the "states in embryonic form" around Songshan Mountain.

2020年，王城岗遗址被列入国家文物局“考古中国·夏文化研究”重大项目。在最新考古发掘中，大范围夯土基址得到确认，一方面证明大城中北部是生活居住区，且极有可能是贵族生活区，推进了对大城内部功能分区的认识；另一方面佐证了王城岗大城在颍河流域的中心地位及环嵩山地区“雏形国家组织”的出现。

 

Major discoveries include city ruins, bronze vessel fragments, foundation pits, sacrificial pit.

重要遗迹遗物：城址、青铜容器残片、奠基坑、祭祀坑。

For more information, please click The Wangchenggang Site: Where Is the Capital City of the Xia Dynasty?

Polished Black Pottery Gu (a ritual or drinking vessel) discovered at the Wadian Site

The Wadian Site in Yuzhou Where the Story of Abolishing Abdication System Happened

禹州瓦店遗址：探秘夏启“钧台之享”

 

Located at the tableland in the north and northwest of Wadian village of Huolong town, Yuzhou city, Henan province, the Wadian Site is a large site of the Longshan Culture period with an area of more than 1 million square meters.

瓦店遗址，位于禹州市火龙乡瓦店村东部和西北部的台地上，是一处河南境内超大型的龙山文化遗址，面积达100多万平方米。

Many historical documents record that Yu (who built the Xia Dynasty) and Qi (the second king of the Xia Dynasty) once lived in Yangzhai (today's Yuzhou city). The story of Qi who called together the heads of the local states and held a grand sacrificial ritual to establish his chief position and abandon the abdication system also happened in Yuzhou. Since Yu and Qi, Yuzhou had become a main living area of the people of the Xia Dynasty. Henan Institute of Archaeology discovered the Wadian Site in 1979 followed by the first stage excavation from 1980 to 1982.

文献记载的夏禹、启居阳翟，夏启“钧台之享”的地望就在禹州，自禹、启以来，禹州地区即成为夏人的主要活动地域。1979年，河南省考古研究所在颍河两岸进行考古调查时发现瓦店遗址后，于1980年至1982年开始了第一阶段的发掘。

 

The Wadian Site, a major site of the Xia-Shang-Zhou Chronology Project, the Project for Tracing Chinese Civilization Origins and the study of the Xia Dynasty, occupies an irreplaceable position among the ancient sites of the same period in China. Important findings over the past 40 years include large circular trench, sacrificial remains, Egg-shell Black Pottery Cup with High Handle and Polished Black Pottery Gu (a ritual or drinking vessel), white pottery wares, jade, etc. The remains of bones and tortoise shells were also discovered at the Wadian Site. Judging from the cultural relics and the food remains, the site was a gathering place of people with diverse cultural backgrounds and a regional center settlement in the southeast of Songshan Mountain. Experts believe that the Yinghe River basin enjoys unique geographical advantages, which may be closely related to the rise of China's first dynasty, the Xia Dynasty.

作为夏商周断代工程和中华文明探源工程的重要研究对象和我国夏文化研究的重点遗址之一，瓦店遗址在全国同时期古文化遗址中占有无可替代的地位。经过40多年的调查、发掘、整理与研究，瓦店遗址取得了重要考古成果：发现了大型环壕、大型祭祀遗迹，出土有蛋壳陶高柄杯、磨光黑陶觚形器、白陶器、玉器等高等级精美器物，以及占卜用的卜骨、龟甲等，无论从遗物还是人群的食性特征看都是一处多元文化背景的人群聚集之处，体现了这里多元文化融合和“商贸”因素的重要作用，是嵩山东南一处区域性中心聚落。专家认为，颍河流域得天独厚的区位优势，或跟中国第一个王朝“夏”的崛起紧密关联。

 

Major discoveries include circular trench, sacrificial remains, Polished Black Pottery Gu (a ritual or drinking vessel), bones, etc.

重要遗迹遗物：环壕、祭祀遗迹、磨光黑陶觚、卜骨等。

 

For more information, please click The Wadian Site Where the Story of Abolishing Abdication System Happened

The Guchengzhai Site

The Guchengzhai Site in Xinmi: Thousand-Year-Old City Wall Still Stands

新密古城寨城址：历经千年城墙犹在

 

The Guchengzhai Site covers an area of 176,500 square meters with the discovery of three sections of city wall, rammed-earth building and corridor foundations, ash pits, tombs, foundation pits, etc. The rammed-earth foundations should be built for the palace buildings. With high wall and deep moat, it was carefully and intentionally designed and built with insular and military characteristics, showing the complete dual defense system in the the city-building history of ancient China.

古城寨城址，总面积17.65万平方米。主要发现有城墙、夯土建筑基址和廊庑基址、灰坑、翁棺葬、奠基坑等。夯土建筑基址当为宫殿建筑。其高墙深池，显示了其封闭性和军事色彩，是经过统一规划和精心设计的，也是我国古代筑城史中完备的双重防御体系之一。

Close to the core area where the Xia people lived, the Guchengzhai Site is one of the important symbols separating the culture of the Xia Dynasty form the culture of the late Neolithic Age. Particularly, the source of the rammed-earth foundations for palace buildings at the Erlitou Site has been found with the discovery of the city wall and the large rammed-earth building foundations (for palace buildings) at the Guchengzhai Site, a precedent for the layout of the palace buildings of the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC) which were located in Northeast Zhengzhou at that time. Besides, the Guchengzhai Site has unveiled the characteristics of the civilizations of both the Xia and the Shang dynasties, becoming an important evidence to study the formation of ancient Chinese civilization and the emergence of the state. In the 1980s, the site was named as the Ancient City of the Kuai State. However, later excavations suggest that the site is even older than the Kuai State. The remains discovered there are mainly of the Longshan Culture period.

古城寨地近夏人活动的中心地区，是新石器时代晚期文化与夏文化分界的重要标志之一。特别是城垣与大型建筑（宫庙）基址的发现，为二里头文化宫殿基址找到了源头，也为郑州商代宫殿基址坐落城东北部的布局开了先河。揭示了夏商文明的基本特征，成为研究我国古代文明形成、国家产生的重要佐证。上个世纪八十年代，这里曾被命名为郐国故城。通过后来持续的考古调查，又发现这个城址的年代应该比郐国故城更早，该城址各种文化错综复杂，但仍是以龙山文化遗存为主。

 

Major discoveries include palace buildings, city walls and sacrificial pits.

重要遗迹遗物：宫殿遗址、古城墙、祭祀坑。

 

For more information, please click The Guchengzhai Site in Xinmi: Thousand-Year-Old City Wall Still Stands

A 3,800-year-old red pottery bird statue discovered at the Xinzhai Site

The Xinzhai Site in Xinmi: The First Capital of the Xia Dynasty?

新密新砦遗址：夏朝开国都城是它吗

 

As for the origin and formation of ancient Chinese civilization, the mainstream has been formed that the Erlitou Culture (around 1735 BC-1530 BC) is of the Xia Dynasty, but the questions have not been resolved such as "What is the culture of the early Xia Dynasty?" and "Are there any cultures earlier than the Erlitou Culture?" From 1999 to 2000, the Center for Ancient Civilization Studies of Peking University and the Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology of Zhengzhou jointly lunched a new excavation at the Xinzhai Site, and one of the most important findings is that they discovered the stacked remains of the third stage of the Wangwan Culture (after 2400 BC or so), the Xinzhai Phase (around 1870 BC-1720 BC) and the early stage of the Erlitou Culture. Besides, thousands of cultural relics were unearthed, more than 300 of which have been restored. Finally, sufficient evidence points to the existence of the Xinzhai Phase. Nowadays, basically the Xinzhai Phase has been confirmed to be of the Xia Dynasty, even earlier than the Erlitou Culture, which is of great significance to search for the capital ruins of the early Xia Dynasty, study its establishment and probe into the origin of ancient Chinese civilization.

近年来在探讨中国古代文明的起源与形成这一重大学术课题时，二里头文化是夏文化已经成为主流认识。但对于何为早期夏文化，有没有比二里头文化更早的夏文化等问题，学界看法不一。1999—2000年，北京大学古代文明研究中心和郑州市文物考古研究所联合对新砦遗址重新进行发掘。其重要收获是发掘出王湾三期文化、新砦期遗存和二里头文化早期遗存的三叠层，并出土各类器物数千件，其中复原陶器达300余件。最终，从大量的地层关系、器物形制演变、碳十四测年数据等多方面，证明“新砦期”的确存在。是比著名的二里头文化还要早的夏文化。它对于寻找早期夏都遗址、探讨夏王朝的诞生以及中国古代文明的起源，都具有十分重要的意义。

Some experts pointed out that the Xinzhai Site was the capital city of the king Qi. 84.87 percent of the carbonized seeds unearthed from the Xinzhai Site are of crops, including millet, glutinous millet, unhusked rice, soybeans and wheat, sorted from the most to the least, indicating that during the Xinzhai Phase, bumper harvests had been realized. Besides, one of the prominent features of the Xinzhai Phase lies in its oriental culture, indicating the truth of the story about Dongyi (an ancient tribe in ancient East China) invading the Xia Dynasty, to some extent.

有专家认为，新砦遗址极有可能是中国考古界苦苦寻找多年的夏代开国之君夏启的都城。考古发掘表明，在新砦遗址，发现了粟、黍、稻谷、大豆、小麦。“五谷丰登”的局面初步形成。此外，新砦期还发现了诸多东方文化因素，说明文献记载的“东夷乱夏”可能是真实存在。

 

Major discoveries include the remains of the Xinzhai Phase, a 3,800-year-old red pottery bird statue, etc.

重要遗迹遗物：“新砦期”地层遗存、彩绘陶鸟等。

 

For more information, please click The Xinzhai Site in Xinmi: The First Capital of the Xia Dynasty?

The Puchengdian Site

The Puchengdian Site in Pingdingshan: Two Ancient City Ruins Discovered

平顶山蒲城店遗址：续写“远古双城记”

 

Located in the north of Puchengdian village of Pingdingshan city, Henan province, the Puchengdian Site with rich cultural relics and area of some 200 thousand square meters was discovered in the 1950s and listed as one of the first batch of provincial key cultural relics in 1963. From 2004 to 2005, because of the Lankao-Nanyang Expressway construction, the Puchengdian Site was excavated for protection purpose. Particularly, two city ruins of the late Longshan Culture period and the Xinzhai Phase (or the transition period from the Longshan Culture to the Erlitou Culture) were discovered. The one of the early Erlitou Culture was rarely found in China at that time, so it should be one of the earliest discoveries of its kind then.

蒲城店遗址，位于平顶山市卫东区东高皇乡蒲城店村北，遗址面积约20万平方米，文化遗存十分丰富，于上世纪50年代末发现，1963年被列为河南省文物保护单位。2004年到2005年，因为配合兰（考）南（阳）高速公路平顶山连接线建设工程的文物保护工作，对这个遗址进行了发掘，最主要的收获是发现了龙山文化晚期和龙山向二里头文化过渡时期的两座城址。尤其是二里头早期或者过渡期的城址，当时在全国发现还很少，应该是当时最早发现的城址之一。

The remains of houses, trenches, ash pits, tombs, wells, cooking benches, etc. Another important discovery is the row house remains of the early Erlitou Culture period. Orderly arranged, the row houses, in large numbers, cover a broad area, which explains why they are important. The remains of more than 20 row houses (each with 1 to 6 rooms) were discovered in an area of more than 170 meters in length and 20 meters in width, reflecting the social transformation from group life in a primitive society to family life in a slave society. The Puchengdian Site is of great value to study the features of the late Neolithic Age and the early Erlitou Culture period in Central and South Henan, so it was listed among the sixth batch of national key cultural relics in 2006.

遗址中发现有房址、壕沟、灰坑、墓葬、水井灶等遗迹。其中二里头文化早期的房址最为重要，其面积大、数量多、排列有序，在长170多米、宽20米的范围内发现20余处房址，房间1—6间不等，反映从原始社会的群居生活到奴隶制社会一家一户生活的转变，对于研究豫中南地区新石器时代晚期及二里头文化早期的文化面貌具有特别重要的价值。2006年，蒲城店遗址被列为全国重点文物保护单位。

 

Henan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology has carried out archaeological investigations in the Shahe River basin, hoping to gain a deep understanding of the cultural implications of the site with the remains of the two cities and other cultural relics. Now, the systematic investigation is underway.

为了做好夏文化研究工作，更深入地了解两座城以及遗址、认识遗址的文化内涵，河南省文物考古研究院启动了沙河流域考古调查，对蒲城店遗址的进一步系统勘探工作正在进行。

 

Major discoveries include the remains of the two cities and more than 20 row houses.

重要遗迹遗物：两座城址，20多座排房。

 

For more information, please click The Puchengdian Site: Two Ancient City Ruins Discovered

A drinking vessel discovered at the Yuzhuang Site

The Yuzhuang Site in Yexian: Unveiling the Noble Life 4,000 Years Ago

叶县余庄遗址：探寻4000年前的“贵族气息”

 

Located in the south of Yuzhuang village of Pingdingshan city, Henan province, the Yuzhuang Site was discovered in 2020, which is about 1,800-meter long from east to west and around 1,400-meter wide from south to north with an area of nearly 2 million square meters.

余庄遗址，位于平顶山市叶县盐都街道余庄村村南，于2020年发现，初步调查勘探确认，遗址东西长约1800米，南北最宽约1400米，面积接近200万平方米。

The Yuzhuang Site is a large site of the Longshan Culture period, with more than 100 remains like tombs, housing foundations, ash pits, cellars or caves and trenches discovered, of which the M10 tomb enjoys the most abundant burial objects, the highest grade and the most definite ritual system. The well-preserved tomb, with an area of 3.12 square meters, has one coffin in which lies a man. To the north of the coffin discovered a new skeleton, believed to buried with the tomb owner. Within the tomb, 33 cultural relics were discovered, one of which was found on the left of the tomb owner's waist while the rest in tomb's eastern area. Divided into 7 groups, the burial objects are mainly vessels for food and liquor with different but specific types, reflecting a relatively mature and standardized ritual system.

该遗址是一处规模较大、文化内涵较单纯的龙山文化聚落遗址，目前已清理出墓葬、房基、灰坑、窖穴及壕沟等各类遗迹100余处。其中，龙山文化M10墓葬是迄今河南境内已发现的随葬器物最丰富、等级规格最高、礼制色彩最明确的龙山文化墓葬。该墓葬保存完好，面积3.12平方米，单棺，棺内葬有一人，仰身直肢葬，头东向，颅骨上有朱砂。棺外北侧还陪葬一人。墓内随葬器物有33件，其中1件摆在墓主腰部左侧，其余均在墓室内东侧。器物分为食器、酒器两大类，豆、觚器物排列有序，器类成组，数量为7组，呈现出鲜明的礼制色彩。

 

The remains of the Longshan Culture period discovered at the Yuzhuang Site can be traced back to 2100-1900 BC, belonging to the Xia Dynasty. It is one of the five new achievements of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage's major project of "Archaeological China" released on November 26, 2020, which is of great significance to study the etiquette, social development and culture of the early Xia Dynasty.

余庄遗址已清理的部分龙山文化遗存年代约属于煤山二期（约公元前2100年至公元前1900年），进入夏代纪年。该遗址的发掘，对研究龙山时期中原地区的礼制、社会复杂化以及早期夏文化具有十分重要的意义，是2020年11月26日国家文物局“考古中国”重大项目的5项新成果之一。

 

Major discoveries include the M10 tomb of the Longshan Culture period, groups of burial objects, etc.

重要遗迹遗物：龙山文化贵族墓葬、随葬成组明器。

For more information, please click The Yuzhuang Site: Unveiling the Noble Life 4,000 Years Ago

The Shizhuang Site

The Shizhuang Site in Huaiyang: 'National Granaries' of the Xia Dynasty

淮阳时庄遗址：夏王朝的“国家粮仓”

 

Located in Shizhuang village of Zhoukou city, Henan province, the Shizhuang Site was a place for storing grains during the early Xia Dynasty with rammed earth walls.

时庄遗址，位于周口市淮阳区四通镇时庄村，其主体是以夯土墙围合的夏代早期粮仓遗存。

On a man-made foundation covering an area of about 5,600 square meters in Shizhuang, the remains of 29 granaries were discovered. Archaeologists not only found the remains of corn and millet at the bottom of the granaries, but also those of reed bed or knitting fabric which are believed to be the direct bedding. Such findings prove that the site was planned purposefully for storing grains.

在时庄遗址南部约5600平方米的人工垫筑台地上发掘出了29座仓储遗迹，分为地上建筑和地面建筑两类。在废弃堆积的底部检测出粟、黍类作物的颖壳和用于直接铺垫或编织物的芦苇类植物的植硅体，土壤中也检测出黍素成分。结合仓储遗迹的建筑形制，判断其性质为粮仓。

 

The Shizhuang Site has China's earliest facilities of centralized grain storage discovered so far. Although such granary remains also found at the sites of Lutaigang, Erlitou and Dongxiafeng as well as the capital site of the Shang Dynasty in Luoyang's Yanshi district, the Shizhuang Site is the earliest with a clear structure and a single function among them, providing significant physical evidence for the study of the grain storage and management system at that time.

这是我国目前发现的年代最早的粮食集中存储的“仓储城邑”。根据以往的考古发现，同类性质的遗迹还见于夏商文化核心分布范围内的杞县鹿台岗、偃师二里头、夏县东下冯和偃师商城，但以时庄遗址的发现年代最早、最为集中、功能和结构最为清晰，为研究中原地区早期国家的粮食管理和赋税制度等提供了绝佳的实物材料。

 

The granary remains of the Shizhuang Site can be traced back to the Xinzhai Phase in the Central Plains or the early Xia Dynasty, which is of great value for refreshing the current understanding of the social structure, administration and governance capacity of the early Xia Dynasty. On April 13, 2021, the Shizhuang Site was listed among China's top 10 major archaeological discoveries of 2020.

时庄遗址粮仓遗存的年代相当于中原地区的“新砦期”阶段（公元前2000年至公元前1700年左右），即文献记载的“太康失国、后羿代夏”的夏王朝早期。时庄遗址的发掘和研究对我们在早期夏文化的研究中，重新认识夏王朝的社会组织结构、管理水平和早期国家治理能力等具有极其重要的价值。2021年4月13日，时庄遗址入选“2020年度全国十大考古新发现”。

 

Major discoveries include the remains of 29 granaries.

重要遗迹遗物：29座仓储遗迹。

For more information, please click The Shizhuang Site in Huaiyang: 'National Granaries' of the Xia Dynasty

A vessel unearthed at the Dongzhao Site

The Dongzhao Site in Zhengzhou: 'Bridgehead' of the Xia Dynasty

郑州东赵遗址：夏都“东方桥头堡”

 

The sites and ruins of the Xia and Shang dynasties are densely distributed in Northwest Zhengzhou, one of the key areas for the study of many important academic issues related to China's Bronze Age. To explore the formation and development of the early states in the Central Plains, a team led by the Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology of Zhengzhou and the School of Archaeology and Museology of Peking University has conducted large-scale fieldwork at the Dongzhao site since 2012 with relics of the late Longshan Culture (around 2500 BC-2000 BC), the Xinzhai Phase (around 1870 BC-1720 BC), the Erlitou Culture (around 1735 BC-1530 BC), the Erligang Culture (around 1600 BC-1400 BC), the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC-771 BC) and the Eastern Zhou Dynasty (770 BC-256 BC) discovered. Because of its long-lasting and complete archaeological cultural remains, the site is rare of its kind in the Central Plains. At the ruins of three ancient cities in different periods which are stacked on top of one another, many important cultural relics were unearthed. The relics unearthed from the small and the medium cities are related to the Xia Dynasty, while those discovered from the large city belong to the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. The Dongzhao Site was listed among China's top 10 archaeological discoveries of 2014.

郑州市西北郊密布夏商时期遗址，是解决中国青铜时代诸多重大学术问题的关键区域之一。为探讨“中原腹心地区早期国家的形成与发展”，郑州市文物考古研究院与北京大学考古文博学院联合组成考古队，从2012年开始，持续对东赵遗址进行了大规模的田野工作，发现了龙山文化晚期、新砦期、二里头时期、早商二里岗期、两周时期文化遗存。该遗址考古学文化延续时间之长、文化序列之连续完整，在中原地区同类遗址中甚为罕见。大、中、小三座“叠套”在一起的古城里，均有十分重要的文化遗迹出土，其中的小城、中城和夏文化有关，大城则是东周时期的。东赵遗址曾获2014年度中国考古十大新发现之一。

First built in the early Xinzhai Phase (the early Xia Dynasty), the small city was completely abandoned in the first stage of the Erlitou Culture (the middle Xia Dynasty). It is the first city site of the Xinzhai Phase discovered in the north of Songshan Mountain. First built in the second stage of the Erlitou Culture, the medium city was completely abandoned in the fourth stage of the Erlitou Culture (the late Xia Dynasty). Since there are not many city ruins of the Erlitou Culture discovered at present, the city ruins at the Dongzhao Site are indispensable for the study of the regional settlement form and geopolitical structure of the Xia Dynasty.

小城始建年代为新砦期早段（夏代早期），二里头一期（夏代中期）时完全废弃。东赵遗址的这座城址是嵩山以北区域第一座新砦期城址。中城城址始建于二里头二期，废弃于二里头四期（夏代晚期）。目前所见二里头文化城址不多，东赵二里头文化城址，对于夏的区域聚落形态及政治地理结构研究，是不可回避的重点对象。

 

The Dongzhao Site might be an important military base. The sites of Dashigu, Wangjinglou and Dongzhao are all located to the east of the Erlitou Site, forming a fan shape, aiming to protect the royal families of the Xia Dynasty from the invaders of the later Shang Dynasty.

东赵遗址可能是重要的军事据点。与大师姑、望京楼的夏代城址都在二里头都邑的东方，呈扇形拱卫态势，是夏王室为了防范来自东方的商和东夷族群进行的特殊防卫措施。

 

Major discoveries include the remains of three ancient cities in different periods which are stacked on top of one another, bone pits, sacrificial pits, distinctive flat-mouth pot, etc.

重要遗迹遗物：大中小“三套城”、卜骨坑、祭祀坑、极具特色的扁嘴壶等。

For more information, please click The Dongzhao Site in Zhengzhou: 'Bridgehead' of the Xia Dynasty

A pottery ware painted with cinnabar discovered at the Huadizui Site

The Huadizui Site in Gongyi: 'The Songs of the Five Sons' Composed in Luorui

巩义花地嘴遗址：《五子之歌》起洛汭

 

Located in Luorui area (where the Luohe River flows into the Yellow River) in Gongyi city of Henan province, the Huadizui Site was first discovered in 1984 and called the Shuigou Site at that time. As one of the projects aimed at tracing the origins of Chinese civilization, it was listed as one of the seventh batch of national key cultural relics by the State Council in May 2013.

位于巩义洛汭地区的花地嘴遗址是1984年发现的，当时定名为“水沟遗址”。2013年5月，被国务院核定公布为第七批全国重点文物保护单位，近年被列为“中华文明探源工程”研究项目之一。

From 2001 to 2007, Zhengzhou Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology had launched several investigations and excavations at the Huadizui Site and discovered many important cultural relics, including ring trenches, sacrificial pits, house ruins, ash pits and pottery-kiln remains. Besides, implements made of stones, bones and clamshells were also unearthed along with pottery wares, jade products, pottery wares painted with cinnabar, many animal bones and grains. The four ring trenches (with southeast gates) and sacrificial pits are of great significance. With rounded corners and square shape, the three inner trenches are quite close to each other, but have different width. There seems to be a northwest-southeast road linking the people within the 4 trenches with other places, since gaps have been found in the southeast part of all the trenches. These gaps should be the trenches' southeast gates. Near the outer gate discovered multiple sacrificial pits which are irregular and nearly round in shape due to repeated usage, with a number of human bones, animal skeletons and various burial implements found.

2001年至2007年，郑州市文物考古研究院联合相关单位先后对花地嘴遗址进行多次调查与发掘，共发现重要遗迹有：环壕、祭祀坑、房址、灰坑及陶窑。出土有骨、石、蚌器、陶器、玉器、朱砂绘陶礼器、诸多动物骨骼及农作物颗粒。花地嘴的环壕和祭祀坑非常重要，共发现四条环壕和环壕东南大门，四条环壕中的内三条相距颇近，四条环壕与外界的连接通道均在东南部位，并且都在一条西北—东南方向的直线上，这里的缺口应该是东南大门。大门附近有多个祭祀坑，系多次祭祀形成，发现其中有数具人骨、动物牺牲骨骼和各类器物。

 

The Huadizui Site can best represent the Xinzhai Phase remains. The less than 100-year-long history from Taikang's lose of power and Shaokang's restoration of Xia's governance is just in line with the usage duration of the Huadizui Site. The Huadizui Site of the early Xia Dynasty is believed to be the place where the 5 younger brothers of Taikang, the third king of the Xia Dynasty, composed the reputational poem Songs of the Five Sons after Taikang lost power and was driven out of the city by tribal leader Yi (around 1998 BC-1940 BC).

花地嘴遗址是新砦期遗存的代表性遗址，新砦期遗存是“后羿代夏”时期的文化，有研究者认为，花地嘴遗址可能是“后羿代夏”之后，夏国君太康的五个弟弟困于洛汭作《五子之歌》的地方。

 

Major discoveries include the remains of four ring trenches, sacrificial pits, southeast gates, a teeth-shaped Zhang (a kind of blade used as ritual implement) made of black jade and two pottery wares painted with cinnabar.

重要遗迹遗物：四条环壕、祭祀坑、东南大门、墨玉牙璋和朱砂绘陶瓮。

For more information, please click The Huadizui Site: 'The Songs of the Five Sons' Composed in Luorui

The Shaochai Site

The Shaochai Site in Gongyi: Uncover Secrets of the Xia Dynasty under the Ordinary Field

巩义稍柴遗址：伊洛河边夏的密码

 

Many historical documents record that Henan's western part was a main living area for the people of the Xia Dynasty. Since Zhenxun (斟鄩), a capital city of the Xia Dynasty, was located between the Yihe River and the Luohe River, Gongyi therefore became one of the main areas of the people at that time. The Shaochai Site is located in Shaochai village (1.5 kilometers east of Xiaozidian viallge) with the Yiluo River to its north. The Wuluo River flows into the Yiluo River from the southeast of the site. That is to say, the site is located on the tableland where the Wuluo River meets the Yiluo River. Around Shaochai village, there are many places that probably have some relationship with Zhenxun, such as Xunxi (鄩溪), Shangxun (上鄩) and Xiaxun (下鄩). The family name of Xun (寻) also originated from here.

史书中记载夏人在今河南豫西地区活动甚多。夏都斟鄩位于伊洛之间，巩义地区即成为史书记载中夏人的主要活动地域之一。稍柴遗址位于巩义市西南10公里处芝田镇稍柴村及小訾殿村，北面紧临伊洛河，坞罗河从遗址东南向西北流入伊洛河，遗址即在坞罗河与伊洛河交汇的台地上。稍柴村附近和斟鄩有关的地名不少，有鄩溪、有上鄩、下鄩，这里是寻姓的起源地之一。

In 1960 and 1963, the Shaochai Site was excavated twice. Although only 690 square meters was excavated, a large number of relics of the Erlitou Culture (around 1735 BC-1530 BC), the Erligang Culture (around 1600 BC-1400 BC), etc., were discovered. The remains are mainly of the Erlitou Culture (covering three stages), including house foundations, ash pits and tombs. More than 500 pieces of pottery wares, stone tools, bone implements and clam artifacts were unearthed. The discovery of large bones used in sacrificial rituals and proto-porcelains indicates that the settlement at the Shaochai area during the Erlitou Culture and the Erligang Culture not only was of higher rank, but also occupied an important position. Therefore, the site is not only significant for China's Xia-Shang-Zhou Chronology Project and the Project for Tracing Chinese Civilization Origins, but also indispensable for the study of the Xia Dynasty. Currently the focus is to make a thorough investigation of the site. Fortunately, the investigation has made a lot of discoveries, one of which is the finding of a large trench with a length of several hundred meters at the edge of the distribution area of the relics of the Xia and Shang dynasties in the north of the village. Therefore, it is clear that the site was a high-level settlement in the Xia and Shang dynasties.

考古工作者曾对稍柴遗址进行过两次发掘，发现的遗迹数量较多。遗址包含有二里头文化、二里岗文化等时期遗存。以二里头文化遗存为主，核心堆积是二里头文化一期、二期、三期的堆积，已经发现的遗迹类型主要有房基、灰坑和墓葬等，出土陶、石、骨、蚌等各类遗物500余件。尤其是大型卜骨和原始瓷的发现表明，稍柴聚落在伊洛河下游地区二里头文化时期和二里岗文化时期的聚落群中等级较高且占有重要地位，被列为夏商周断代工程与中华文明探源工程的重要研究对象和我国夏文化研究的重点遗址之一。目前正在进行的调查勘探中，在夏商遗存分布区的边缘发现了长达数百米的大型围沟，足以证明这里是夏商时期一处等级较高的聚落。

 

Major discoveries include the large bones used in sacrificial rituals, proto-porcelains and a large ring trench.

重要遗迹遗物：大型卜骨和原始瓷，大型围沟。

For more information, please click The Shaochai Site: Uncover Secrets of the Xia Dynasty under the Ordinary Field

 

A bronze Jue (an ancient wine vessel) discovered at the Erlitou Site

The Erlitou Site in Yanshi: A 'Dynasty' in a Small Village

偃师二里头遗址：小村落里的“王朝气象”

 

In 1959, Xu Xusheng, a famous Chinese archaeologist, discovered the Erlitou Site. Over the past almost 6 decades, more significant discoveries were made. It is generally believed that the Erlitou Site is the earliest large capital city during the Bronze Age (at least 4,000 years ago) in East Asia so far uncovered, a key to the exploration of the Xia and Shang (1600 BC-1046 BC) dynasties. The Erlitou Culture (around 1635 BC-1565 BC) represented by the Erlitou Site is the earliest "core culture" in China and even East Asia at that time. Featured by its groundbreaking layout, broadness and cultural influence, Erlitou became the earliest sovereign state and established itself as the core and leader of the overall process of Chinese civilization.

1959年，著名考古学家徐旭生先生为调查“夏墟”发现二里头遗址，随后近60年的发掘，发现了丰富而高级别的文化内涵。学界多认为二里头遗址是迄今所知东亚地区青铜时代最早的大型都城、探索夏王朝的关键性遗址，以二里头遗址为代表的二里头文化，是中国乃至东亚地区最早的“核心文化”、最早的广域王权国家、“中华文明总进程的核心与引领者”。

It was like a dynasty, not only because of the Erlitou Site itself, but the overall distribution of the Erlitou Culture sites. Among 400 settlements of the Erlitou Culture, the 300-square-meter Erlitou was their capital (the largest one in China and even East Asia at that time), which indicates that the ritual system had been formed at that time. Besides, its overall orderly planning, palace system embodied by the large rammed-earth foundations, burial system indicated by the aristocratic tombs and sacrificial system represented by the places dedicated to sacrificial activities and relevant remains can also prove the core position of Erlitou.

二里头文化核心地位的确立，首先在于自身的“王朝气象”。最突出的表现是现存面积为300万平方米、是当时中国乃至东亚地区最大的二里头文化都邑，表明独具中国古代政治文明特质的王朝礼制已经形成。这些发现包括二里头都邑整体严整有序的规划，大型夯土基址为代表的宫室制度，贵族墓葬显示出的墓葬制度，专门祭祀区域和祭祀遗存体现的祭祀制度等。

 

The Erlitou Site has many groundbreaking findings with many "earliests" in China, such as the country's earliest main stem network, imperial city, central axis, rammed-earth building complex with multiple yards, high-level sacrificial remains, official handicraft workshop area, bronze-casting workshop, turquoise-processing facility, and a horde of ritual bronze vessels and weapons. All of them are core elements of Erlitou, the capital city.

二里头遗址有很多“中国最早”：中国最早的城市主干道路网络、宫城、中轴对称和多进院落的夯土建筑群、高等级祭祀遗迹、最早的官营手工业作坊区、铸铜作坊、绿松石器加工作坊和青铜礼器、兵器群，这些都是二里头都城的核心要素。

 

Many scholars pointed out that the Erlitou Site was the location of Zhenxun (斟鄩), a capital city of the middle and late Xia Dynasty. The excavation at the Erlitou Site is still in progress with many new discoveries. For example, the east-west roads were found to stretch further to the west with the remains of walls discovered on the roadsides, indicating a broader grid layout.

很多学者认为，二里头遗址就是夏代中晚期都城斟鄩。目前，考古发掘还在进行当中，有不少新的发现，二里头遗址可能有比井字形更大的网格道路布局。

 

Major discoveries include the remains of crisscross roads, foundations for palace buildings, rammed-earth building complex with multiple yards, Turquoise-inlaid Bronze Plaque, Turquoise-inlaid Dragon-shaped Bronze Object, Bronze Jue (an ancient wine vessel), jade knife with seven holes, teeth-shaped Zhang (a kind of blade used as ritual implement) made of jade, etc.

重要遗物遗迹：井字形大道、宫殿基址、多进院落建筑群、绿松石铜牌、绿松石龙形器、青铜爵、七孔玉刀、玉牙璋等。

For more information, please click The Erlitou Site in Yanshi: A 'Dynasty' in a Small Village

策划：魏剑

统筹：陈茁 孙勇

执行：张体义 温小娟 刘春香 胡春娜 黄晖 李悦 张冬云

插图：王皓

制图：单莉伟

编译：赵汉青

播音：王家琦

视频/海报：王君艺

本版图片均为河南日报资料图片