5,000-year-old Neolithic relics discovered in SW China

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Dozens of cultural relics, dating back up to 5,000 years, have been unearthed in southwest China's Sichuan Province.

The excavation started in October and led to 122 major discoveries including 15 structural remains, 93 ash pits and eight tombs, with a total coverage of 800 square meters, at the Guijiabao relic sites in Yanyuan County, according to Chengdu Cultural Relics and Archaeology Research Institute.

The unearthed potteries /Chengdu.cn Photo

Many exquisite stone wares and potteries were also unearthed.

"Some remains of grains such as corns, rice and wheat, as well as animals such as pigs, chickens and deer were also discovered, which means that ancient residents could have created both agricultural and fishing economies at the time," said Zhou Zhiqing, a researcher with the institute.

The unearthed arrowhead in different shapes and sizes /Chengdu.cn Photo

The Yanyuan basin, located at the eastern border area of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, has been an important part of the cultural corridor connecting northwest and southwest China.

Zhou said the new discovery had traced the history of the basin back to the Neolithic period. The relics has sophisticated cultural connotations, related to both the Neolithic culture of the northwest and the southwest, meaning the two regions had communication with each other as early as 5,000 years ago.

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Source(s): Xinhua News Agency