This article examines state formation and urbanisation in China from an archaeological perspective. It explains that modern archaeology conducted by Chinese archaeologists began in the 1920s and it was the result of an interplay between the Chinese traditions of historiography, the introduction of western scientific methodology, and rising nationalism. The first site excavated by a Chinese-led archaeology team was Yinxu (the ruins of Yin/Shang) in Anyang, Henan and the excavations revealed a large urban site, which is known as a capital of the late Shang dynasty. During the second half of the twentieth century, Chinese archaeology developed dramatically, not only as the results of salvage archaeology in response to nationwide construction, but also as the result of topic-oriented research.
This article focuses on the archaeology of East Asia. It explains that Chinese archaeology dominates interpretations of all archaeology in the region because of the sheer size of China and the importance of its historical influence. However, an analysis of East Asian archaeology based on China alone would be inadequate because the nation-states of South and North Korea, Japan, and Russia also practised their own archaeology. This article describes the archaeology of these nation-states.
This article introduces evidence for religion in both late Neolithic and early historic China, mainly relying on archaeological sources. Religion is used here as a general term for human beliefs in the supernatural which may have had its visual expression in acts of veneration, sacrifices, and rituals.
Paul S.C. Taçon
This chapter discusses the rock art of South and East Asia, with particular emphasis on India, China, and Southeast Asia. It begins with an overview of early research and first discoveries of rock art in China, India, and various parts of Southeast Asia such as Indonesia and Malaysia. It then considers the range of techniques employed in the region, including painting, drawing, stencilling, printing, engraving, and bas-relief, as well as the subject matter and dating attempts. It also examines a number of key rock art–related issues that need to be addressed across India, China, and Southeast Asia, as well as concerns for different regions; these include the problem of regionalism, contact period rock art, and conservation and management. The chapter concludes by assessing the global significance of South, Southeast, and East Asian rock art, especially with respect to human diversity, cultural change, migration, and natural landscapes.
Li Liu and Xiaolin Ma
China is one of the few primary loci of animal domestication and of emergent agriculture in the world; Chinese society has been predominantly agrarian for thousands of years, a process that began in the Neolithic (7000–2000 cal bc). Among the most important domestic animals known in Neolithic China, pig and dog were first domesticated indigenously. Sheep, goat, cattle, and horse were introduced into northern China later through the Eurasian steppes. The zebu and buffalo were probably introduced first into southwest China. The chicken is the least understood domesticate. Domestic animals not only played crucial roles in the subsistence economy, but were also used as ritual offerings at various ceremonial events, facilitating social elites’ negotiation for power.