New Hongshan culture sites found in northeast China

SHENYANG, March 10 (Xinhua) -- Archaeologists have recently discovered multiple Hongshan culture sites in the city of Lingyuan, northeast China's Liaoning Province, according to the Liaoning provincial institute of cultural relics and archaeology.

Through sample collection and analysis, these findings provide new evidence of the evolutionary process of Hongshan culture.

The recently found sites are located in the Wubaiding site complex, where archaeologists from the institute have conducted a systematic archaeological survey covering approximately 285,000 square meters.

During this survey, archaeologists collected pottery shards and stone artifacts from various periods and found a total of 53 sites, including 38 cultural remnants ranging from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age.

"This archaeological survey provides key coordinates for exploring settlement sites that evolved in coordination with the core area of Hongshan culture," said Yu Huaishi, a researcher from the institute.

Hongshan culture is an important prehistoric archaeological culture dating back roughly 5,000 to 6,000 years. Its distribution covers three regions located in the west of Liaoning Province, the north of Hebei Province and the east of Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Among these, Liaoning is the core area in terms of Hongshan culture distribution and the focal region for studying this culture. ■