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Guandimiao

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Coordinates: 34°47′8.1″N 113°28′12.2″E / 34.785583°N 113.470056°E / 34.785583; 113.470056

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Archaeological site in Henan, China

For temples dedicated to Guandi, see Guandi Temple.

Guandimiao关帝庙遗址 (Chinese)

Location within Henan<br>Show map of Henan

Guandimiao (China)<br>Show map of China

34°47′8.1″N 113°28′12.2″E / 34.785583°N 113.470056°E / 34.785583; 113.470056[[Geographic coordinate system|Coordinates]]: {{#parsoid\u0000fragment:9}}[https://geohack.toolforge.org/geohack.php?pagename=Guandimiao&params=34_47_8.1_N_113_28_12.2_E_type:landmark_region:CN-HA 34°47′8.1″N 113°28′12.2″E&#xfeff; / &#xfeff;34.785583°N 113.470056°E&#xfeff; / 34.785583; 113.470056][[Category:Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas]]"}}'/>TypeVillagePeriodsLate ShangLocationXingyang, Zhengzhou, Henan, ChinaHistoryBuiltc. 1250 BCEAbandonedc. 1100 BCESite notesArea2.5 hectares (6.2 acres)Excavation dates2006–2008<br>GuandimiaoTraditional Chinese關帝廟遺址Simplified Chinese关帝庙遗址Hanyu PinyinGuāndìmiào yízhǐ<br>Literal meaning"Guandi temple ruins"TranscriptionsStandard MandarinHanyu PinyinGuāndìmiào yízhǐIPA[kwán.tî.mjâʊ ǐ.ʈʂɻ̩̀]

Guandimiao (Chinese: 关帝庙遗址; pinyin: Guāndìmiào yízhǐ; lit. 'Guandi temple ruins') is a Chinese archaeological site 18 km (11 miles) south of the Yellow River in Xingyang, Henan. It is the site of a small Late Shang village that was inhabited from roughly 1250 to 1100 BCE. Located 200 km (120 miles) from the site of the Shang dynasty capital at Yinxu in Anyang, the site was first studied as a part of excavations undertaken between 2006 and 2008 in preparation for the nearby South–North Water Transfer Project. Excavation and study at Guandimiao has significantly broadened scholars' understanding of rural Shang economies and rituals, as well as the layout of rural villages, which had received comparatively little attention compared to urban centers like Yinxu and Huanbei.

Calculations derived from the number of graves and pit-houses at Guandimiao suggest a maximum population of around 100 individuals at the site's peak during the early 12th century BCE. The presence of 23 kilns suggests large-scale regional exports of ceramics from the village. Residents used bone tools, including many that were locally produced, as well as sophisticated arrowheads and hairpins likely imported from Anyang, where facilities produced them en masse. Local ritual practice is evidenced by the presence of locally produced oracle bones used in pyromancy and large sacrificial pits where mainly cattle had been buried, alongside a smaller number of pigs and (rarely) humans. Over 200 graves were found at the site. Apart from an almost complete absence of grave goods beyond occasional cowrie shells and sacrificed dogs, they generally resemble shaft tombs found elsewhere in ancient China.

Background and historiography<br>[edit]

Before the 20th century, the ancient Shang dynasty (c. 1600 – c. 1046 BCE) of China was known only from much later accounts such as Sima Qian's Shiji, compiled in the 1st century BCE.[1] Modern scholars reanalyzed traditional historiography in the early 20th century. Archaeological interest in the Shang was spurred on by the discovery of the dynasty's oracle-bone inscriptions, which bore the names of kings largely matching family trees in the Shiji. During the 1920s and 1930s, excavations in Anyang, Henan, revealed Yinxu,[a] the site of the Shang capital under the Late Shang culture. This period is also known as the Anyang period.[4][5] However, despite surveys having revealed the existence of many smaller Shang-era sites, archaeological understanding of the Late Shang was limited to the Shang cities, especially in the heartland around Anyang. Contemporary archaeological and historical study of the Shang within China generally focuses on elite settlements and tombs, often through the lens of Marxist historiography.[6]

While the influence of Late Shang material culture across the North China Plain is evident, the precise extent of their political power in the region is unknown. It was weaker than the state of the earlier Erligang culture (c. 1600 – c. 1400 BCE), which has been controversially identified with the early Shang by Chinese archaeologists. The Late Shang state was unable to achieve full political and military dominance over the surrounding regional states, and instead procured tribute and trade goods without governing them directly. Small statelets likely emerged within the Shang's territory.[7][8][9]

Excavation<br>[edit]

The Guandimiao site was excavated from 2006 to 2008 as part of preparations for the South–North Water Transfer Project.[10][11] A large scale excavation of the site unearthed an area of 2.03 ha (5 acres), revealing an unusually detailed ancient village layout.[12]...