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Ancient Town of Military Importance Found in Central China
A rare and remarkably well- preserved town of military importance has been discovered in central China's Henan Province.
The square-shaped town, surrounded by a 1,200-meter rampart, occupies less than 90,000 square meters of land. The northern and western walls, built from mud and sticks, stand two to three meters high -- probably their original height, according to experts.
Archaeologists said it's the smallest town ever discovered in the province, which they believed was built in the early Shang dynasty (around 1500 B.C.). The town, which locates between the Yellow River and the Taihan Mountain, was targeted to control the then east-west traffic in the area and serve as a shelter to major cities.
Henan Province was once the most prosperous area in ancient China, and several of its cities have served as provincial capitals over the past thousands of years.
More than 100 pieces of pottery, stone, bone, and mussel wares were also unearthed at the ruins.
The ancient town will provide new data for studying the connection between dynasties of Xia (about 2000 B.C.-- 1500 B.C.) and Shang (about 1500 B.C. - 1000 B.C.), and the history of Shang Dynasty, said chief scientist Li Boqian who has been working for archaeological evidence for dating the Xia and Shang dynasties.
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