|
The Liangzhu culture (3400–2250 BC) was the last Neolithic jade culture in the Yangtze River Delta of China. The culture was highly stratified, as jade, silk, ivory and lacquer artifacts were found exclusively in elite burials, while pottery was more commonly found in the burial plots of poorer individuals. This division of class indicates that the Liangzhu Period was an early state, symbolized by the clear distinction drawn between social classes in funeral structures. A pan-regional urban center had emerged at the Liangzhu city-site and elite groups from this site presided over the local centers. The Liangzhu culture was extremely influential and it's sphere of influence reached as far north as Shanxi and as far south as Guangdong.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://en.people.cn/90001/6313887.html )〕 The type site at Liangzhu was discovered in Yuhang County, Zhejiang and initially excavated by Shi Xingeng in 1936. A 2007 analysis of the DNA recovered from human remains shows high frequencies of Haplogroup O1 in Liangzhu culture linking this culture to modern Austronesian and Tai-Kadai populations. It is believed that the Liangzhu culture or other associated subtraditions are the ancestral homeland of Austronesian speakers.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Lost Maritime Cultures: China and the Pacific )〕 The Liangzhu Culture entered its prime about 4000 ~ 5000 years ago, but suddenly disappeared from the Taihu Lake area about 4200 years ago when it reached the peak. There are almost no traces of the splendid culture created by the Liangzhu people in the following years ever found in this area. Recent research has shown that the development of human settlements was interrupted several times by rising waters. This led researchers to conclude the demise of the Liangzhu culture was brought about by extreme environmental changes such as floods, as the cultural layers are usually interrupted by muddy or marshy and sandy–gravelly layers with buried palaeotrees. ==City-building and agriculture== The culture possessed advanced agriculture, included irrigation, paddy rice cultivation and aquaculture. Houses were often constructed with stilts on rivers or shorelines. A new discovery of ancient city wall base relics was announced by the Zhejiang provincial government on November 29, 2007. It was concluded the site was the center of the Liangzhu culture. A new Liangzhu Culture Museum was completed in 2008 and opened late in the year. The Liangzhu Ancient City is located in a wetland environment on the plain of river networks between Daxiong Mountain and Dazhe Mountain of the Tianmu Mountain Range. This ancient city is said to be the largest city during this time period. Its interior area is 290 hectares, surrounded by clay walls which had six city gates. Two gates were located in the north, east and south walls. At its center was a palace site that spanned 30 hectares and there was also evidence of an artificial flood protection design implemented within the city. Both of these constructions are said to be indicators of the social complexity developing in Liangzhu at the time. A granary may have been in place containing up to 15,000 kg of rice grain. There are numerous waterway entrances both inside and outside of the city, linking it to the river networks. Inside the city were artificial earth mounds and natural hills. Outside of the walled area, remains are found for 700 hectares, the residences are said to be built in an urban planning system. 8 kilometers to the north various dam-like sites were found and are speculated to be an ancient flood protection system. Also discovered inside and outside the city are a large number of utensils for production, living, military and ritual purposes represented by numerous delicate Liangzhu jade wares of cultural profoundness; the remains including city walls, foundations of large structures, tombs, altars, residences, docks and workshops. The Liangzhu city-site is said to have been settled and developed with a specific purpose in mind since this area has very few remains that can be traced back to earlier periods. A typical Liangzhu community, of which there are over 300 found so far, chose to live near rivers. There have been boats and oars recovered which indicate proficiency with boats and watercrafts. A Liangzhu site has provided the remains of a wooden pier and an embankment thought to have been used for protection against floods. Houses were raised on wood also to help against flooding, although houses on higher ground included semi-subterranean houses with thatched roofs. Well technology at the Miaoqian site during this period was similar to that of the earlier Hemudu period. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Liangzhu culture」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|