Site of the Neolithic Age
Location: Xiangfen County, Shanxi Province
Period: 2,500-1,900 BC
Excavated from 1975 to the present

Painted pottery tray with dragon design: water vessel (up, mouth diameter 37 cm, height 8.8 cm); Pottery object: function unknown (bottom, height 83.6 cm); Cong, a cuboid jade with a hole in the middle: ritual object (in the background, the side is 7 cm in length)

Significance: It plays the key role in exploring the origin of ancient Chinese civilization, and the social development and history of the period of Yao and Shun, two legendary figures in ancient documents.

Introduction

Taosi Site is located in the middle reaches of the Yellow River, covering an area of about 3 million square meters. The site has relics mainly of the Longshan Culture, some of Miaodigou Ⅱ Culture and a few from the Warring States Period, Han, Jin and Yuan dynasties. Large quantities of pottery, stone, copper and wood wares buried in unearthed tombs, pottery kilns and wells were excavated in the site. So far, over 70 sites of the Taosi kind have been discovered in Shanxi Province.