Dayao Site
Dayao Site is located near Dayao Village in the northeast of Hohehot
Municipality, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
Lying in the highlands in front of Daqing Mountain, the site comprises two
stoneware workshops -- one from the early Paleolithic Age and the other from the
late Paleolithic Age. The Inner Mongolia Museum team carried out the first
excavation at the site in 1976, and the second followed in October 1978.
Many large flint stones were unearthed in the early Paleolithic workshop,
where pieces of chipped stone gallets, broken fragments and stone blocks were
scattered around the site. There are some stone gallets typical of the age and a
few well-shaped stone implements.
At the late Paleolithic site are many typical gallets and stone kernels, and
a few stone implements, most of which are semi-manufactured or left over. The
stone implements are simply designed and only a few varieties include chopping,
sharp-pointed and scraping tools. Among the most common scraping tools, the
tortoise-back-shaped ones are the most particular: they have a thick back shaped
like that of a tortoise. These tools, typical of the age, can be used for
skinning, slicing meat and processing leather.
The discovery of the Dayao Site provides important, concrete materials for
the study of the stone-manufacturing process and crafts from the Paleolithic Age
in China.
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