Longshan culture
Hanyu Pinyin Lóngshān wénhuà | | |
Wade–Giles | Lung-shan wen-hua |
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The Longshan (or Lung-shan) culture, also sometimes referred to as the Black Pottery Culture, was a late
History
A distinctive feature of the Longshan culture was the high level of skill in
Until the 1950s, such black pottery was considered the principal diagnostic, and all of these sites were assigned to the Longshan culture.[5][6] In the first edition of his influential survey The Archaeology of Ancient China, published in 1963, Kwang-chih Chang described the whole area as a "Longshanoid horizon", suggesting a fairly uniform culture attributed to expansion from a core area in the Central Plain.[7][8] More recent discoveries have uncovered much more regional diversity than previously thought, so that many local cultures included within Chang's Longshanoid horizon are now viewed as distinct cultures, and the term "Longshan culture" is restricted to the middle and lower Yellow River valley.[9] For example, the contemporaneous culture of the lower Yangtze area is now described as the Liangzhu culture.[7][9] At the same time, researchers recognized the diversity within the Yellow River valley by distinguishing regional variants in Henan, Shanxi and Shaanxi from the Shandong or "classic" Longshan.[9][10] In the fourth edition of his book (1986), Chang moved from a model centered on the Central Plain to a model of distinctive regional cultures whose development was stimulated by interaction between regions, a situation he called the "Chinese interaction sphere".[11][12] Also in the 1980s, Yan Wenming proposed the term "Longshan era" to encompass cultures of the late Neolithic (3rd millennium BC) across the area, though he assigned the Central Plain a leading role.[13][14]
Agriculture
The most important crop was
The most common source of meat was the pig.[17] Sheep and goats were apparently domesticated in the Loess Plateau area in the 4th millennium BC, found in western Henan by 2800 BC, and then spread across the middle and lower Yellow River area.[18] Dogs were also eaten, particularly in Shandong, though cattle were less important.[17][18]
Small-scale production of
Ritual
Remains have been found in Shaanxi and southern Henan of scapulae of cattle, pigs, sheep and deer that were heated as a form of divination.[20][21] Evidence of human sacrifice becomes more common in Shaanxi and the Central Plain in the late Longshan period.[20][22]
Early period
Excavations in the 1950s in
Miaodigou II sites are found in central and western Henan, southern Shanxi and the Wei River valley in Shaanxi.[26][27] The tools and pottery found at these sites were significantly improved from those of the preceding Yangshao culture. Agriculture was intensified, and the consumption of domesticated animals (pigs, dogs, sheep and cattle) greatly increased.[27] Similarities in ceramic styles of central Henan Miaodigou II with the late Dawenkou culture to the east and the late Qujialing culture to the south suggest trade contacts between the regions.[26] There were also expansions from middle and late Dawenkou sites (3500-2600 BC) toward central Henan and northern Anhui which coincides the era of maximum marine transgression.[28]
Late period
The late period (2600 to 2000 BC) of the Longshan culture in the middle Yellow River area is contemporaneous with the classic Shandong Longshan culture.[25][29] Most scholars regard the Chalcolithic to have began during the Longshan culture from 2600 to 2000 BC.[30][31]
Several regional variants of the late middle Yellow River Longshan have been identified, including Wangwan III in western Henan, Hougang II in northern Henan and southern Hebei, Taosi in the Fen River basin in southern Shanxi, and several clusters on the middle reaches of the Jing River and Wei River collectively known as Kexingzhuang II or the Shaanxi Longshan.[9][32]
As the Neolithic population in China reached its peak, hierarchies of settlements developed.[33] In physically circumscribed locations, such as the basin of the Fen River in southern Shanxi, the Yellow River in western Henan (confined by the Zhongtiao Mountains and Xiao Mountains) and the coastal Rizhao plain of southeast Shandong, a few very large (over 200 ha) centers developed.[34] In more open areas, such as the rest of Shandong, the Central Plain (in Henan) and the Wei River basin in Shaanxi, local centers were more numerous, smaller (generally 20 to 60 ha) and fairly evenly spaced.[35][36] Cities were linked to large networks of surrounding towns and villages, indicating the ability of urban elites to exert control over the countryside and its agrarian wealth.[37]
Settlements developed into cities with clearly demarcated sections for different classes and occupations, as well as large elite residences and ritual structures. Signs of considerable population growth and rising social stratification indicate that the Longshan culture began forming into competing chieftainships, ruled by dynastic lineages with the support of elite kin networks.[37] The technology of well construction in cities improved, while some large houses included rudimentary plumbing through clay pipes.[37] Walls of rammed earth have been found in 20 towns in Shandong, 9 in the Central Plain and one (Taosi) in southern Shanxi, suggesting conflict between polities in these areas.[38] The introduction of the dagger-axe, a purely military weapon that cannot be used for hunting, indicates a heightened prevalence of warfare.[37]
This period also saw increasingly widespread and skilled manufacturing of copper tools, rings and bells, alongside a few bronze and brass objects, paving the way for the emergence of the later Bronze Age cultures.[37]
Shandong Longshan
The center of Shandong is a mountainous area, including Mount Tai (1,545 m) and other several other peaks over 1000 m. Longshan settlements are found on the plains surrounding this massif.[39] To the north are four evenly spaced walled centers, Chengziya, Dinggong, Tianwang and Bianxianwang (from west to east), with the largest, Chengziya, enclosing only 20 ha. A pottery sherd inscribed with 11 symbols was found at Dinggong, but scholars disagree on whether it should be dated to the Neolithic period.[40]
The largest sites yet found in Shandong are Liangchengzhen (273 ha) and Yaowangcheng (368 ha). Both sites are near the southeast coast in the
Relative to other Longshan-era cultures, the gap between rich and poor in the Shandong Longshan was far less pronounced and there seemed to be less violence compared to other Longshan sites.[46] The Shandong Longshan developed out of the Dawenkou culture and was succeeded by the Bronze Age Yueshi culture.[47]
Hougang II
The Hougang II variant of Longshan culture is located in northern Henan and Southern Hebei. The sites of this Longshan subtradition are densely distributed along the rivers in this region, many of the sites being less than 1 km apart. Walled sites include Hougang (10 ha) and Mengzhuang (16 ha). The Hougang II variant is known for having the first wells in the Yellow River area and the method they employed continued to be used by early bronze-age states in the region.[48]
Wangwan III
The Wangwan III variant of the Longshan culture is located in western and central
Taosi
At 300 ha in area, the walled site at Taosi in the Linfen Basin in southern Shanxi, is the largest Longshan settlement in the middle Yellow River area. Mortuary practices indicate a complex society with at least three social ranks.[50]
In the late Taosi period, the rammed-earth wall was destroyed, and there are indications of violence and political upheaval. At around the same time, the new large center of Fangcheng (230 ha) was built 20 km to the southeast of Taosi, on the other side of the Chong Mountains.[51]
Sanliqiao II
Sanliqiao II sites are located on both sides of the Yellow River in western Henan, southwestern Shanxi and eastern Shaanxi. There are nearly a hundred settlements belonging to this regional variant which show three level settlement hierarchy. The largest site (Xiaojiaokou, 10 km southeast of modern Sanmenxia) is 240 ha in area, whereas local centers range from 30 ha to 70 ha.
Dwelling types of Sanliqiao II culture include both aboveground and semi-subterranean type houses as well as homes horizontally dug into loess cliffs with walls frequently coated with plaster.
There is noted similarity between the ceramics of this variant and that of the Kexingzhuang II variant.[52]
Kexingzhuang II
Kexingzhuang II sites are scattered across the
Decline
Towards the end of the 3rd millennium BC, the population decreased sharply in most of the region and many of the larger centres were abandoned, possibly due to environmental change linked to the end of the
Significance of the discovery of Longshan culture
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, there were opposing views on the origin of Chinese culture and civilization: Western origin versus native origin. One of the most representative of "Western Origin" for the culture of prehistoric China was put forward by J. G. Andersson (1874–1960), who excavated the Neolithic site of Yangshao, Henan, in 1921.[citation needed] Many of the unearthed ceramics from Yangshao were painted potsherds. Andersson believed that the Yangshao painted pottery originated from the west, with connections with Anau in Central Asia and Trypillia in Eastern Europe. Heavily flawed, this view has been long abandoned in academia.[58]
The Longshan culture period is an important period in history. The use of bronze ware, the emergence of a large number of city sites, and the wide application of thin-bodied black pottery and quick-wheel pottery-making techniques indicate that the social productive forces achieved unprecedented development during this period, which led to the polarization of the rich and the poor within the society; thus the emergence of class antagonisms.[59]
The Longshan culture had individuals of extraordinary stature who have been dubbed the "Longshan giants". Some samples of Longshan culture males recovered from Shandong fell between the 180 cm to 190 cm height range, making them taller than any other Neolithic population in the world. Modern day inhabitants of Shandong have the tallest heights of any Chinese province.[60] The tallest Longshan individual discovered so far is a 193 cm male, aged approximately 16-18 years old, from Shaanxi.[61]
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Painted Pottery Plate with Dragon Design Taosi Culture, Early Period (2,300—2,100 BCE) Excavated at the Taosi Site, Xiangfen County, Shanxi. Capital Museum, Beijing.
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Painted Pottery Pot Taosi Culture, Early Period (2,300—2,100 BCE) Excavated at the Taosi Site, Xiangfen County, Shanxi. Capital Museum, Beijing.
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Black pottery he ewer. Shanghai Museum
See also
Notes
References
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Works cited
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- Liu, Li; Chen, Xingcan (2012), The Archaeology of China: From the Late Paleolithic to the Early Bronze Age, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-64310-8.
- Shao, Wangping (2005), "The formation of civilization: the interaction sphere of the Longshan period", in Allan, Sarah (ed.), The Formation of Chinese Civilization: An Archaeological Perspective, Yale University Press, pp. 85–123, ISBN 978-0-300-09382-7.
- Shelach-Lavi, Gideon (2015), The Archaeology of Early China, Cambridge University Press, ISBN 978-0-521-19689-5.
- Sun, Bo (2013), "The Longshan culture of Shandong", in Underhill, Anne P. (ed.), A Companion to Chinese Archaeology, John Wiley & Sons, pp. 435–458, ISBN 978-1-4443-3529-3.
- Zhao, Chunqing (2013), "The Longshan culture in central Henan province, c.2600–1900 BC", in Underhill, Anne P. (ed.), A Companion to Chinese Archaeology, John Wiley & Sons, pp. 236–254, ISBN 978-1-4443-3529-3.