Henan's contribution to China's Top 10 New Archaeological Discoveries of 2023②丨Yongcheng Wangzhuang Site

Henan's contribution to China's Top 10 New Archaeological Discoveries of 2023 Episode II

2023年度全国十大考古新发现中的河南元素②

Yongcheng Wangzhuang Site

永城王庄遗址

The National Cultural Heritage Administration announced its "Top 10 New Archaeological Discoveries of 2023" on March 22, including 2 items from Central China's Henan province, namely the Shuyuan Street Cemetery at the Zhengzhou Shang City Ruins (1600-1046 BC) and the Wangzhuang Ruins (about 3000 BC) located in Yongcheng city.

3月22日，2023年度全国十大考古新发现揭晓，郑州商都书院街墓地、永城王庄遗址入选。

 

Yongcheng Wangzhuang Site. [Photo provided to dahe.cn]

In September 2023, high-level tombs were discovered at Wangzhuang Site located on the south bank of the ancient Suihe River in Yongcheng, a county-level city of Shangqiu city, Central China's Henan province. The large-scaled tombs belong to the mid to late period of Dawenkou Culture (4500-2500 BC). According to preliminary calculation, the site is 400 meters long from north to south and 300 meters wide from east to west, with a total area of 120 thousand square meters, which is the largest Neolithic Dawenkou Culture site in East Henan. Besides, the remains of the Longshan Culture period (about 3000-2000 BC) and the dynasties of Shang (1600-1046 BC), Zhou (1046-256 BC), Han (202 BC-206 AD), Tang (618-907), Song (920-1279), Jin (1115-1234) and Yuan (1271-1368) were also discovered, spanning over 5 thousand years. From this perspective, it was one of the earliest Neolithic settlements in Yongcheng.

2023年9月，王庄遗址出土了高等级墓葬。该遗址地处古睢水南岸，属于大汶口文化中晚期遗存，总体规模较大。初步测算，遗址南北长400米，东西宽300米，总面积12万平方米，为目前豫东地区最大的新石器时代大汶口文化遗址。该遗址之上同时还覆盖有龙山文化、商、周、汉、唐、宋、金、元时期的遗存，时间跨度达5000余年，是永城最早的新石器时代聚落之一。

 

Pottery wares from Yongcheng Wangzhuang Site. [Photo provided to dahe.cn]

According to Zhu Guanghua, an associate professor at the School of History, Capital Normal University, a large number of cultural relics have been discovered at the Wangzhuang Site, including jade articles, bronze wares, bone implements, stone objects, pottery wares, etc., of which jade articles and painted pottery wares were discovered for the first time from a Neolithic settlement in Yongcheng. Some of the jade wares are exactly the same in material and shape as those unearthed from Gangshang Site (the earliest and largest historical site of Dawenkou Culture discovered so far) in Tengzhou city of East China's Shandong province, while some of them even share the similar features with the objects from the Liangzhu Culture (3300-2300 BC) ruins. It is worth noting that these painted pottery wares have both Yangshao Culture (5000-3000 BC) elements and typical Dawenkou Culture style, which witnessed the integration of eastern and western cultures as well as the exchange of northern and southern cultures in China during prehistoric times. These cultural relics are important materials for studying the origin of Neolithic Culture and Haidai Culture (early Dawenkou Culture) in East Henan, and the fusion of the civilizations of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River.

据首都师范大学历史学院副教授朱光华介绍，王庄遗址出土了一批丰富的遗物，有玉器、铜器、骨器、石器、陶器、蚌器等，初步判定，玉器和彩陶均为永城新石器遗址首次出土。其中部分玉器与山东滕州岗上遗址出土的玉器，不论是材质还是形制完全相同，还有部分玉器具有浓郁的良渚文化特征。值得注意的是，这些彩陶既有仰韶文化元素，又有典型的大汶口文化风格，见证了史前时代中国东西部文化的融合和南北文化的交流，是研究豫东地区新石器文化和海岱文化源流、黄河文明与长江文明融合交汇的重要标本。

 

The discovery of Wangzhuang Site is due to a "Beautiful Village" construction project in Miaoqiao town at the end of 2021. At that time, Wangzhuang village of Miaoqiao town was refurbishing its ponds and pits, while an ancient tomb was found by coincidence on the side of a pit, where a number of jade rings, jade pendants, jade discs, turquoise ornaments, bone arrows, pottery wares were discovered. After preliminary excavation, Wangzhuang Site was approved as a Yongcheng-level cultural relic protection unit. On February 7, 2023, with the approval of the National Cultural Heritage Administration, Capital Normal University, Henan Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and Shangqiu Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology jointly carried out official excavations at Wangzhuang Site.

王庄遗址的发现缘于2021年年底苗桥镇“美丽乡村”建设工程。当时苗桥镇在王庄进行坑塘整治时，在坑边发现一处古墓葬，出土了玉环、玉坠、双联玉璧、绿松石、骨质箭头、陶器等器物。经初步勘探后，王庄遗址被批复为永城市级文物保护单位。2023年2月7日，经国家文物局批准，首都师范大学、河南省文物考古研究院、中国社会科学院考古研究所、商丘市文物考古研究院四家单位联合在王庄遗址展开考古发掘。

 

Yongcheng Wangzhuang Site. [Photo provided to dahe.cn]

"In 2023, the ring trench outside the site we have identified is generally oval in shape and over 10 meters in width, which is about 5 meters from the ground. Besides, from the high-level tombs in the No. 4 archaeological zone, a large number of cultural relics have been discovered, including jade articles, turquoise ornaments, stone gui (an elongated pointed tablet held in the hands by ancient rulers on ceremonial occasions), etc." According to Zhu Guanghua, the archaeological team leader, the discovery of a large number of stone gui and other artifacts of ritual significance indicates that the settlement of Wangzhuang Site is of high grade and is likely to be a local central settlement. The stratification and superposition of the tombs indicate that the site was used for a long time, roughly belonging to the middle and late period of Dawenkou Culture. The tombs of different shapes and structures with different numbers of funerary objects could be a hint that there was a clear social hierarchy at that time. Judging from the types and styles of artifacts that have been restored, Wangzhuang Site was influenced by the Haidai culture in its east and the Central Plain culture in its west, suggesting that it was a witness of the convergence of China's eastern and western culture.

“2023年我们已探明遗址外围的环壕平面呈椭圆形，目前距地表5米左右，环壕宽10余米；第Ⅳ发掘区出土高等级墓葬，出土包括玉器、绿松石、石圭等在内的丰富的随葬品。”该遗址考古队领队、首都师范大学历史学院副教授朱光华告诉记者，具有礼制意义的石圭等器物的普遍出现，表明王庄遗址聚落等级较高，应为地方性中心聚落；墓葬出现分层叠压现象表明其延续跨度较长，大体相当于大汶口文化晚中期；墓葬形制差异及随葬品多寡现象表明当时已经出现明确的社会等级分化；从目前已清理修复完成的器类及装饰风格来看，地处豫东地区的王庄遗址受到来自东方海岱地区考古学文化与西方中原地区考古学文化影响，是东西方文化在此地交汇的成果实证。

文案：赵汉青 杨佳欣

海报：胡翰泽

审校：陈行洁

相关阅读

Henan's contribution to China's Top 10 New Archaeological Discoveries of 2023①丨Shuyuan Street Cemetery

2023年度全国十大考古新发现中的河南元素①丨郑州商都书院街墓地