Page 40 - The Golden Age of Chinese Archaeology: Celebrated Discoveries from the People’s Republic of China

veyed and excavated, and ancient cities, architectural plans, scales, and technology were docu-
mented, all since the 19505. 81
Although planned archaeological activities were infrequent or sporadic during the Cul-
tural Revolution, extraordinary accidental discoveries and rescue excavations continued to oc-
cur. The jade shrouds from the tombs of Prince Liu Sheng and his wife at Mancheng, Hebei
(second century BCE); a bronze galloping horse from Leitai, Wuwei, Gansu (186 CE); an almost
intact corpse of a noblewoman, textiles, silk paintings and documents, and lacquers from
Mawangdui, Changsha, Hunan (second century BCE); and the life-size terra-cotta army from the
burial pits (third century BCE) near the First Emperor's mausoleum at Lintong, Shaanxi, were
82
all unexpected discoveries. These finds confirmed the prodigious capability of the ancient
Chinese people to create astonishing works of art. Gradually, exhibitions were organized and
sent abroad, beginning in 1972. These have attracted huge numbers of visitors, and have
increased interest in and understanding of Chinese culture and art. Perhaps more important,
such exhibitions heralded China's eventual reopening to the world.

1977 TO THE PRESENT: MATURATION
83
The arrest of the Gang of Four in late 1976 marked the end of the Cultural Revolution. In the
wake of sweeping reforms initiated by Deng Xiaoping (1905-1997), China has fundamentally
changed. Under this favorable climate, archaeology in China has achieved maturity, owing in
part to the diverse means of scientific chronometric dating (and particularly the full utiliza-
tion of radiocarbon and carbon-14 dating techniques).
In 1977, Xia Nai used the information provided by carbon-14 dating to produce a chrono-
logical framework for prehistoric cultures in seven regional clusters. He substantiated his 1962
thesis that several cultural systems had coexisted in the Yellow River and Yangzi River areas —
84
rice cultures flourished in the south, and millet cultures in the north. In 1984, Xia further
suggested that a sophisticated and highly stratified society had emerged prior to the Shang
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period (and no later than the Erlitou period). Xia spurred rethinking of when, how, why, and
from where Chinese civilization was formed and developed. Xia Nai's 1977 study had recourse
to a mere ninety-four items dated by radiocarbon analysis; by 1991, radiocarbon dates had been
86
established for more than 2,100 objects. Chronometric dating techniques other than radio-
carbon dating — amino-acid racemization, archaeomagnetism, dendrochronology, fission track,
obsidian hydration, potassium-argon, thermoluminescence, and uramium series — began to
be employed.
Epochal archaeological discoveries of early and middle Neolithic cultures in the Yellow
River watershed and the lower Yangzi River delta were realized in the 19708. In the north,
Neolithic cultures dated to the sixth millennium BCE were excavated at Dadiwan, Qin'an,

Gansu province; Peiligang, Xinzheng, Henan province; and Cishan, Wuan, Hebei province. 87

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