Part One: Late Prehistoric China Table of Contents | Start Section
More about Archaeology, Jade, Early Pottery Production
Objects
Where and when did civilization arise in China? Earlier this century, archaeologists theorized that the Central Plains area around the Yellow River valley was the single birthplace of Chinese civilization. But with later finds, first of a group of cultures on the east coast, and then of more and more regional groups, the theory of a single birthplace became untenable. Scholars today speak of several "interaction spheres" that were responsible for the development of what we now call China. Archaeologists have recorded the material remains of a number of distinct regional cultures from c. 6000-5000 B.C. These Neolithic cultures developed following the introduction of agriculture, the earliest traces of which date as far back as 8000 B.C. Agriculture -- the cultivation of certain plants and the domestication of animals -- meant a shift from hunting and gathering to a more settled lifestyle. These changes brought new kinds of social organization, which, in turn, influenced material culture. Settlements were capable of accumulating surpluses that had to be stored and allocated. Labor was divided, first at the household level, then more broadly within the community. The resultant specialization led to the development of new or improved methods in pottery production, stone working, and other technologies. By c. 4000 B.C., the archaeological record shows more indications of cross-cultural contacts and influences. Knowledge was shared -- but, with increased contact, defense also became more important, and eventually many communities were walled for protection. Building these defenses required greater coordination of resources and labor, which, in turn, contributed to social stratification. |
Toward the end of this period, there is clear evidence of a hierarchy in the marked contrast between the lavish burials of a few individuals and the majority of graves at any given site. A ruling group had emerged, and with it came the beginnings of dynasties. Initially this ruling group appears to have been a theocracy; by the Bronze Age it would give way to a military elite, headed by a series of kings whose right to rule was based on ancestral lineage.
The objects described in this section date to Late Prehistoric times (at the end of the Neolithic period in China). They come from the Hongshan, Yangshao, Liangzhu, and Taosi Longshan cultures (see map 1) and were recovered from gravesites near encampments or the remains of ancient villages. The vast majority of finds at these sites are pottery vessels and, to a lesser extent, tools and other objects made of jade, bone, and stone. No texts, and only a few undecipherable -- and tantalizing -- marks on some objects, survive from the Late Prehistoric period. We cannot be sure exactly how any of these objects functioned outside the funerary context and can only speculate about the marks' meaning.
Late Prehistoric China | Bronze Age China | Chu and Other Cultures | Early Imperial China
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