Settlement site of the Neolithic Age

Location: Lintong County, Shaanxi Province

Period: 4600-4400 BC

Excavated from 1972 to 1979

Significance: It is the largest Neolithic site excavated in China up to now.

 Introduction

Both Jiangzhai village and Banpo village (excavated in the 1950s) are of Yangshao Culture. Jiangzhai, excavated in the 1970s at Lintong County, Shaanxi Province, is perhaps the best-preserved site. 

Gourd-shaped painted pottery jar with fish and bird designs: water vessel (height 25 cm); Pottery jar with pointed bottom: vessel for drawing water (height 54 cm)

Occupying an area of nearly 50,000 square meters, Jiangzhai Site comprises of more than 100 dwellings discovered surrounding the remains of a community center, a cemetery, and a kiln. Dating back to about 4000 BC, the ruins point to the existence of a highly developed early society. In the site excavated more than 10,000 pieces of production tools such as stoneware, pottery, bronze ware and bone ware. The symbols on the painted pottery are of great importance to research work on the origin of Chinese characters.

Three ditches were dug separately to the north, south and east, to protect the village, and to the southwest is a river that functioned as a natural defense. These large moated Neolithic settlements revealed an already sophisticated organization of space, and the moats themselves, built primarily for defensive purposes, led to the construction of fortified walls.

Two major aspects of social structure in the Neolithic Age are monogamy replacing polygamy and other forms of clan mating, and people organizing from small groups to a large tribal clan community. Jiangzhai is the best example of this social structure.