Page 33 - Deydier Early Chinese Bronzes

Such pieces have been found at the Meishan site in Linru Township in
Henan province 河南省汝州臨汝鎮的煤山遺址 as well as at the Yanshi
Erlitou site偃師二里頭遺址. From the material excavated at both of these
sites, it is quite obvious that the pottery of these two earliest periods of
the Erlitou culture was strongly influenced by the Neolithic pottery of
the Liangzhu 良渚文化 and Longshan 龍山文化 cultures.

Period I

During this period, Erlitou became a regional centre covering an area of
about 100 hectares (app 247 acres). The pottery excavated from the
strata belonging to this period are either grey, or more often black, some
of which are polished. They take the forms of pen 盆 basins, zeng 甑 rice
steamers, guan 罐 jars and tripod pan 盤 trays. These vessels are
decorated with rope or hoop patterns and sometimes with pressed-on
patterns.

In strata from this period unearthed at Xiawanggang, Xichuan, in Henan
河南省淅川下王崗, bronze residue and fragments were discovered.

The strata in Period I sites have been dated by carbon 14 to around
1900 B.C.

Period II

Period II corresponds to the time when Erlitou was being urbanized, by
which time the total area had expanded to some 300 hectares (app 741
acres). Among the remnants of buildings excavated from this strata was
a ‘palace’ of 12 hectares (app 29.65 acres) in area, set off on each of its
four sides by a road.

Archaeologists noticed an increase in the proportion of grey pottery
found in this strata and a corresponding decrease in the amount of
polished black pottery. The bodies of the vessels also became less large
and more cylindrically vertical in shape with the rims of their necks
turned inwards and their bottoms usually fat. Grey pottery he 盉 spouted
vessels also began to appear in these strata during this period.

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