Archaeologists discover ancient pottery workshop in China's Shaanxi

Tourists visit Shaanxi History Museum in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province, May 11, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Yibo)

XI'AN, Jan. 17 (Xinhua) -- Archaeologists have discovered an ancient pottery workshop dating back to the late Western Han Dynasty (202 BC-25 AD) in Dayuan Village in Xi'an, capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Pottery relics, such as pottery kilns and ash pits, along with tomb and well remains, were unearthed at the workshop site, according to the researchers from the Institute of Archaeology under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The site covers an area of about 80,000 square meters and is believed to be a pottery-making workshop with relatively less diversified products and of relatively high production quality.

More than 200 pieces of pottery were found during the recent excavation, providing important physical material for studying the pottery-making industry of that era, according to experts.

The site revealed a collection of pottery-making rooms, along with tomb and well remains, indicating an integrated workspace-residence model during that time, according to the researchers.

The workshop site is part of the Fengjing site, one of the ancient capital cities of the Western Han Dynasty.