A Systematic Survey in 2001–2003 in the Basin,

The Erlitou Fieldwork Team of Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences

Keywords: Luoyang Basin biological environment settlement pattern

carrying the 伊, Luo , Chan , and Jian 涧 Rivers. The I. Regional Specifics and Survey Initiative and Yi River cut through the entire basin, and The Luoyang 洛阳 Basin is located in western part of the they unite before entering the (Fig. 1). middle reach of the Yellow River, within the limits 34– The Luoyang Basin, comprised primarily of the Yi 35°N and 112–113°. It is situated on the eastern edge and Luo Rivers valleys, looks like a groove sinking of the Plateau, and between the second and third between the Mang plateau in the north and the elevations of the overall topography of . Wan’ 万安山, the tail of the Song Mountains and The Luoyang Basin sits between the Mangshan 邙山 the alluvial foothill in the south. The basin slants gradu- plateau, the division of the Yellow River and Luo River ally from west to east, from 150 m to 110 m by sea level. 洛河 valleys, and the Song Mountains 嵩山, the water- It measures over 1000 sq km. sheds of the Luo River and the Ru– Rivers 汝河, 颍 The first terrace of the Luoyang Basin consists of the 河. In geology it is of the type of depression basin, alluvial lowland between the Yi and Luo Rivers and the

N River

Shijiazhuang

Taiyuan Wenxian ’nan Yellow Mengxian

River Xi’ Mengjin River Xin’an Mang Mountains Yima Jian Luoyang Yanshi River Erlitou Yi–Luo

River

Luo River

Song MountainsDengfeng mountainous area Yichuan survey area

0 20 km Yi

Fig. 1 The map of Luoyang Basin and location of survey area

Volume 5 19 southern bank of the Yi River valley. The second County, or the middle and eastern parts of the Luoyang terrace, 5–10 km wide, constitutes the main body of the Basin, and a part of the territory of the Luoyang City and basin. To the south of the Yi River is often seen hanging Mengjin 孟津 County. cliff of 10 m high between the two terraces. The third The western border occurs at 112°29′E in the south- terrace spreads rather widely in the two sides of the ern part, and 112°31′E in the northern part. Further west basin. The southern side carries steep cliffs, sometimes is the Luoyang City, where the ground has been covered even 10–20 m high, and width up to 2 km. The loess by buildings or cemented roads. highlands farther away are 220–250 m high by sea level The eastern border is located at 112°54′E in the north, and 4–6 km wide. and 112°45′E in the south. The area to the east, in the The Luoyang Basin is among the that have territory of Yanshi and Gongyi 巩义counties, has been received the most intensive archaeological investigation investigated by the Sino-Australian United Archaeo- and yielded the richest data. Archaeological fieldwork in logical Team. this started in the 1950s, and by the time of this The northern and southern borders are marked by the survey, it has brought to light 100 settlements and Mangshan plateau (34°45′N), and the Wan’anshan cemeteries of through the . Mountain (34°32′–33′N) respectively. Among them twenty sites and a great number of burials This survey region spans from east to west for 39.5 and pits of Western and periods km, and from north to south 24 km, altogether 712 sq km. have been excavated. Decades of fieldwork have pre- In this region, the Luo and Yi riverbeds, lowland covered pared a sound ground for archaeological research. The by sandy or silt of 74 sq km, is left out. The actual complete chronology and typological research results set dimension of survey counts 638 sq km. up a solid precondition for this survey. This survey employs the method “systematic regional The Luoyang Basin is the heart of the early dynasties survey” applied in others regions of China in recent of China. In 1,900–1,600 years BC, it saw the rise of the years. For the sake of local environment and site Erlitou site, the largest one of China and even East distribution, compatibility of data and future fieldwork, of the time. The Erlitou site and Erlitou culture assumes we adopted the method used by the Sino-Australian a significant role in the study of the formation of Chinese United Archaeological Team. In the meantime, we re- civilization and early state. The historical significance of vised and complemented topographical and site infor- this dynastic capital cannot be fully comprehended with- mation of the Luoyang Basin. out the natural and socio-historical context of the Erlitou In fieldwork we used a map of the 1:10000 scale, as well site. A study of the settlement pattern and its evolution as as a map of the 1:50000 as reference. Our survey team well as human-environment of the preceding and follow- consists of the members of the Erlitou Team and technical ing periods will provide a key to the question of social assistants, most of whom have been well tuned to ceramic evolution in . chronology of various periods in this region. Within the These observations give rise to the project “Ar- survey area, we collected all the datable ceramics and chaeological Survey and Settlement Pattern in the marked the locations of artifacts and site on maps, docu- Luoyang Basin” as a part of the grand project “Ancient mented all the survey process and discovery. We pro- Biological Environmental Change and Human Life ceeded at a distance of 20–30 m normally, but 50 m at Style and the Evolution of Civilization” of Chinese times when we come to the low-density or empty points Academy of Social Sciences. The Erlitou Fieldwork (known from cliff and ditch walls). When at greater Team of Institute of Archaeology, CASS, is held in distance, we walked in a zigzag manner. We resurveyed charge of this project. the high-density points, defined their periphery, investi- In the period from March of 2001 to June of 2003, the gated the cliff and ditch walls to acquire more information team carried out a systematic survey of the Luoyang of the site, and excavated the exposed sections. We Basin around the Erlitou site. This survey limited itself to applied the criterion of 3–5 pieces of ceramics in a section the pre-Qin period, or from the Peiligang 裴李岗 period of 100 by 100 m in defining a site. But we also collected of the Neolithic Age to the Warring States period. ceramics from areas lower than this criterion and marked them on maps (without cataloguing). We paid attention to II. Survey Territory and Survey Method the preservation of sites, the micro-topography and even This survey area covers the territory of Yanshi 偃师 the owners of the land, the process of distribution of

20 Chinese Archaeology artifacts, and the effect of modern human behaviors. We it shall be called the Yi-Luo River) merges with the took care of the distribution pattern of ceramics, and tried lowlands except for one three-meter-long bank to the to differentiate the territory of one site in different times. south of the Erlitou site. The ancient riverbed of the Yi We employed GPS to locate sites precisely. In the stage of River extends for 5 km wide declining eastward and laboratory work, we examined the date, cultural identity northward. Thus the riverbed of ancient Yi is far wider and phases of collected samples, and identified the terri- than that of the ancient Luo. tory of each culture and each phase. Furthermore, we Apart from Yi and Luo, in the flat area of the Luoyang collected as much as possible geological and environmen- Basin, from the Yi River to the Mangshan Mountain, are tal information from walls of cliffs and quarrying pits. found a number of depressed courses. These courses are empty of cultural deposits, and presumably the site of III. Main Results ancient canals/rivers. 1. Ancient riverbeds From the Song Mountains to the Yi River and the Within the survey area, on the first and second terraces, subsequent Yi-Luo River are located a few seasonal are located a number of ancient riverbeds, which are rivers, which are short and steep. tightly linked with site distribution. 2. General description of sites Previous research has found that the current course of By the time of this survey, there have been discovered the Luo River, from the border of the Luoyang and Yanshi and published 48 pre-Qin sites. This survey discovers 174 cities, further down to the south of the Luoyang City of the new sites, about 78.4% of the total of the known sites. It and dynasties, to the confluence of the Yi and also reinvestigates the already known sites. Among the Luo Rivers, was formed due to canal construction in the altogether 222 sites, 167 sites accommodate remains of Han and Wei dynasties. The earlier course, blocked since two or more periods. 55 sites date to only one period. then, is supposedly located to the south of the current Luo Cemeteries or locations of occasional finds count 6. River, the Han-Wei Luoyang, and the Erlitou site. The numbers of sites of various periods are as follow: the The ancient riverbeds of Yi and Luo are both located (6500–5000 BC), 4; the Yangshao 仰韶 on the first terrace. The western section of Luo preserves culture (5000–3000 BC), 105; the Longshan 龙山 culture a few fragments of ancient river banks. After the Han- (3000–1900 BC), 95; the Erlitou 二里头 culture (1900– Wei Luoyang City, it joined the ancient Yi River coming 1550 BC), 125; the Shang 商 culture (1600–1046 BC), 60; from southwest. The eastern section (precisely speaking, the Zhou 周 culture (1046–221 BC), 158 (Table 1).

Table 1 Sizes of sites of various periods

culture Peiligang Yangshao Longshan Erlitou Shang Zhou size (m2) Up to 10,000 13 7 8 4 14 10,000-50,000 20 22 32 18 34 50,000-100,000 2 25 20 29 13 35 100,000-200,000 16 12 22 11 26 200,000-300,000 11 13 8 2 14 300,000-400,000 3 3 5 2 12 400,000-500,000 2 2 4 1 3 500,000-600,000 2 1 1 1 1 600,000-700,000 1 1 2 4 700,000-800,000 1 1 900,000-1,000,000 1 Above 1,000,000 1 (3,000,000) 1 (2,000,000) 1 (4,800,000) (7,280,000)* Unspecified 2 12 14 12 7 12 Sum 4 105 95 125 60 158

The digits in the brackets represent the concrete sizes of the corresponding sizes. * One city-site in different sizes in different periods.

Volume 5 21 In addition, we documented 84 loci of occasional Peiligang to the Yangshao period. They carry the Yangshao finds (ceramics or stone artifacts), among which several culture, with a few artifacts of Peiligang. Their sizes are uphold remains of two or three periods. Of the Yangshao only a few tens of thousands square meters. Overall, sites culture are 13 sites; of the , 7 sites; of of this period are rare and small (Fig. 2). the Erlitou culture, 5 sites; of the Shang period, 2 sites; The . Sites of this culture dramati- of the Zhou culture, 52 sites. Of the undistinguished cally grow, up to 105. Most of them are located on the Shang-Zhou culture are 8 sites; of stone production is 1 second terrace, and distributed dispersedly. Those on the site. third terrace are close rivers and small in size. The larger 3. Topography and distribution of human remains sites are mostly of the late Yangshao (see Fig. 2). As observed above, the first terrace beyond the river- The Longshan culture altogether has 95 sites. The beds of the Yi and Luo extends for 138 sq km. At several larger ones are located on the second terrace, and con- points are found silt of several meters thick. In the centrated on the southern bank of the Yi River and the historical period prior to the construction of anti-flood confluence of the Yi and Luo Rivers. On other terraces dams, this area had often been flooded, and therefore had sites are rather rare and small. become blank points. The current Yi and Luo riverbeds The largest sites of the Yangshao and Longshan and the first terrace count for 212 sq km, 30% of the culture measure about 600,000–700,000 sq m (Fig. 3). survey territory. The Erlitou culture has altogether 125 sites. In the The second terrace, the main body of the Luoyang survey region they are widely distributed, but concen- Basin, was the primary residential area of prehistoric as trated on the second terrace near the Yi and Luo Rivers. well as contemporary populations. The Erlitou site, The Erlitou site, above 3,000,000 sq m is rightly located Yanshi Shang City, Hanqi 韩旗 Zhou City (refers to the below the confluence of the Yi and Luo Rivers. Unlike early city underneath the Han-Wei Luoyang City. Here in the previous periods, large-scale sites are found on the we comply with the established rule of archaeology, and third terrace south of the Yi River (Fig. 4). name after the small place inside the city where is rich of The Shang culture has altogether 60 sites. They are Zhou remains), Zhou royal city, Han-Wei Luoyang, Sui- rather dispersed, but seem to be concentrated to the north Tang Luoyang and contemporary Luoyang are all lo- of the Yi River. The Yanshi Shang City, above 2,000,000 cated on this terrace to the north of the Basin. The current sq m, arose to the north of the ancient Yi and Luo Rivers course of the Luo River took form after the Han and Wei and to the east of the Erlitou site. Most of the sites date dynasties, cutting through the earlier northern bank of to the Erligang 二里岗 period especially the late phase, ancient Luo River, and therefore has become a belt blank which identify it as the most prosperous time of the Shang of sites. culture. But the dispersedly distributed and small settle- The hind edge of the third terrace, especially the ments contrast sharply with the Yanshi Shang City, alluvial sloping land at the foot of the Wan’anshan which is equipped with sturdy walls and great dimension. Mountains, due to sufficient and stable supply of water, The emergence of this city does not seem to bring about is suitable for human inhabitance. Sites in this terrace are population growth and social prosperity. fairly dense. The frontal edge, possibly due to the greater Sites of the late Shang are rather rare. It is presumed relative height difference and the difficulty of getting that after the abandonment of the Yanshi Shang City, water, is short of sites. population decreased significantly; some areas were This survey ends up in the south at the borderland of simply abandoned (Fig. 5). 300 m high above sea level between Wan’anshan and The Zhou culture. Sites of and Eastern Loess hills. This belt features steep slope, and thin Zhou saw a dramatic increase, altogether 157. They are surface soil, and is not suitable for agriculture. The distributed all over the survey territory. In Western southern slope to the south of the Mangshan plateau, due Zhou, to the west, in the eastern portion of the present- to the steep topography and short gorges, does not hold day Luoyang City and to the north of the Luo River is many sites either. found a vast site up to 6,000,000 sq m. Some scholars 4. The settlement pattern in the six periods relate it to the Luoyi 洛邑; on the second terrace to the The Peiligang culture. Of this period are 4 sites, which north of the Yi-Luo River was raised the Hanqi City. In are all located on the second and third terraces of rivers. All Eastern Zhou, the Zhouwangcheng 周王城 City arose at of them date to the transitional period from the late the confluence of the Jian and Luo Rivers. More large-

22 Chinese Archaeology 034 028 035 029 046 027 047 031 049 052 045 041 043 068 007 086 063 064 066 072 075 055 River 073 074 004 Luo 042 044 056 003 076 077 087 032 093 089 Yi–Luo River 091 085 Old course of Yi-Luo River 081

086 016 106 019 096 017 130 105 095 097 022 River 023 098 024 104 100 134 131 128 026 108 N 126 Taohuadian 099 101 135 143 147 Reservior 127 111 Yi 109 153 152 136 137 116 139 120 0 5000 m 182 183 181 118 184 123 site less than 50,000 sq m 198 168 186 old river course and main river course 164 202 199 221 200 185 222 166 174 Sha 178 217 120 200 280 360 170 216 213 159 195 210 River 215 163 193 218 161

Fig. 2 Map of distribution of Yangshao period sites 076, 134, 178, 183 also contains Peiligang period culture

034 046 027 047

014 050 043 072 041 063 064 River 073 005 Luo 042 074 003 076 094 Yi–Luo River 078 091 079 082 Old course of Yi-Luo River 083 085 015 081 086 084 106 021 130 129 096 016 019 095 017 River 023 131 024 132 107 N 134 128 108 099 150 101 143 Taohuadian 110 Yi 135 147 149 145 Reservior 109 152 153 136 151 137 116 154 139 0 5000 m 156 138 121 155 183 119 181 184 123 site less than 50,000 sq m 198 old river course and main river course 164 221 177 166 Sha 222 159 188 217 212 170 120 200 280 360 173 216 213 195 220 180 River 209219 214 215 193 218 160

Fig. 3 Map of distribution of Longshan period sites

Volume 5 23 029 046 037 034 030 069 032 047 065 058 071 049 059 052 006 043 064 067 041 072 012 008 055 River 063 007 010 039 004 009 Luo 044 057 056 074 013 076 077 001 087 089 090 Yi–Luo River 085 082 081 Old course of Yi-Luo River 083 086 103 021 084 096 102 016 105 095 023 River 132 020 104 107 N 025 134 100 133 108 101 150 145 Taohuadian 099 147 146 111 Reservior 127 112 Yi 148 144 114 109 136 142 124 115 153 140 117 151 154 116 0 5000 m 156 155 120 121 181 183 203 122 187 184 site less than 50,000 sq m 188 201 198 164 171 Sha 205 old river course and main river course 169 165 206 189 188 217 212 166 120 200 280 360 208 216 213 175 170 207 180 195 River 220 196 194 214 197 193 162

Fig. 4 Map of distribution of Erlitou period sites

070 065 058 060 052 040 062 012 055 River 007 008 010 039 Luo

077 001 089 090 Yi–Luo River 082 Old course of Yi-Luo River 083

096 022 River 132 Taohuadian N Reservior 099 147 127 111 150 145 Yi 148 112 144 109 115 137 116 0 5000 m 121 181 183 187 204 123 site less than 50,000 sq m 167 201 198 199 old river course and main river course 164 205 185 166 Sha 158 188 217 120 200 280 360 175 190 208 216 180 220 River 194 214

162

Fig. 5 Map of distribution of Shang period sites

24 Chinese Archaeology 037 038 035 029 046 034 027 069 030 051 036 071 033 047 049 054 061 060 065 045 048 050 052 006 011 053 040 066 012 008 041 055 River 075 007 010 Luo 074 004 005 009 044 057 056 013 003 077 002 094 001 080 088 089 078 Yi–Luo River 085 079 082 Old course of Yi-Luo River 081 015 018 083 084 021 016 103 017 129 096 019 River 098 023 022 N 020 104 025 134 128 100 099 150 149 145 101 111 147 143 Taohuadian 146 127 112 113 148 Reservior Yi 144 109 153 152 136 142 141 140 115 137 151 116 154 139 121 0 5000 m 156 155 120 183 203 125 157 187 122 184 204 site less than 50,000 sq m 168 186 198 205 202 old river course and main river course 164 171 Sha 185 211 210 221 176 222 158 174 188 177 165 189 206 217 212 172 190 120 200 280 360 175 170 208 213 159 173 195 191 207 179 River 220 196 194 209 215 197 163 193 160 162

Fig. 6 Map of distribution of Zhou period sites scale sites emerged on the two banks of the Yi and Luo the flooding area supplies a good example. Rivers. They are also often found on the third terrace to Because a major portion of the survey territory is the south of the Yi River (Fig. 6). heavily inhabited in antiquity as well as in present-day, From the Yangshao period to the Zhou period, the a great number of sites are supposedly concealed by sizes of sites increase in a reverse order to the numbers modern buildings. The Luoyang Basin itself is often of sites. Sites of the sizes of 10,000–300,000 sq m flooded; many sites are covered by silt. The Yanshi constitute the majority, while those above 300,000 sq m Shang City and the sites to its east were discovered in the are much less in quantity. By comparison, in the Gongyi process of coring. Thus the blank areas in the survey map hilly areas to the east of the survey territory from the are not entirely empty of sites. This is an issue that one Yangshao period to the Zhou dynasties sites are rather shall pay attention to regarding the survey data. small (rarely above 100,000 sq m). Besides the natural One shall not ignore the effect of human activities on and cultural factors mentioned above, the contrast be- the settlement pattern. Many sites discovered in the past tween the neighboring two regions may reveal the decades have been thoroughly destroyed; meanwhile the difference of the center and periphery in the process of excavated sites reveal that many sites are concealed social evolution: population concentrated in the central underground and escape our survey. For this reason, a settlements or capitals in the center of the Luoyang systematic survey results cannot be final. Basin. In addition, the sizes of sites are derived from the areas of distribution of artifacts. But the sites are not equiva- IV. Discussion lent to the original settlements; the former simply mir- In the beginning of this survey, we carried out a blanket rors the latter. Our experience has it that the sites on hills survey of the targeted territory, and came to discover the and river banks are easy to demarcate, while those in the extensive blank area in the western section to the south plain, due to the heavy inhabitation in history, are more of the Yi River. This experience indicates that regional difficult to define, as artifacts of these sites are more systematic survey does not apply to the entire territory; subject to subsequent human activities.

Volume 5 25 The Erlitou survey project supplies an illuminating References example. The survey demarcates a size of this site 5,400, 000 sq m. Our coring work in the recent years only comes 1. Xingcan 陈星灿, 刘莉, Lee Yun-kuen李 to locate a size of 3,000,000 sq m, applying the criterion 润权, Henry White 华翰维, Arlene Rosen 艾琳 (2003). of the presence of artifacts. But how did this size “Zhongguo Wenming Fudi de Shehui Fuzahua : difference come about? Outside the site, the lowland Yi Luo He Diqu de Juluo Yanjiu 中国文明腹地的 and riverbeds of the Yi and Luo Rivers, is silt and 社会复杂化进程—伊洛河地区的聚落形态研究 ” alluvial, without any cultural deposit but with some (The Process of Social Complexity of the Heartland of scattering artifacts. The “Yanshi Land Use Monitoring Chinese Civilization: Study of the Settlement Pattern of the Map” shows that the artifact distribution corresponds Yi-Luo River Valley). Kaogu Xuebao 考古学报 2003.2. to the territory of the modern villages around the Erlitou 2. Duan Pengqi 段鹏琦 (1989). “Han Wei Luoyang site. Local informants say that prior to the 1980s, yu Ziran Heliu de Kaifa he Liyong 汉魏洛阳城 villagers used to collect manure to be used in the 与自然河流的开发和利用 ” ( and Utiliza- agricultural land. In the meantime, due to the great tion of the Han-Wei Luoyang and Natural Rivers). height difference within and without the site, land Qingzhu Bingqi Kaogu Wushiwu Nian Lunwenji 庆祝 leveling took place removing the height of terrace and 苏秉琦考古五十五年论文集 (In Memory of the Fifty- filling up the lowlands. We may predict that the arti- fifth Anniversary of Su Bingqi in Archaeology). Beijing: facts found outside the site result from the land leveling Wenwu Chubanshe 文物出版社. and the earth relocation (accompany manure use). Such 3. Hong 许宏, Chen Guoliang 陈国梁, processes are also observed in other sites. Haitao 赵海涛 (2004). “Erlitou Yizhi Juluo Xingtai de The areas to the south and east of the Erlitou site are Chubu Kaocha 二里头遗址聚落形态的初步考察 ”(A rich of artifacts. In contrast, the western portion of the Preliminary Survey of the Settlement Pattern of the site is rather flat, and slightly disturbed. Therefore ce- Erlitou Site). Kaogu 考古 2004.11. ramics were less severely and less widely scattered. In 4. Yanshi Xianzhi Bianzuan Weiyuanhui 偃师县志 certain places the survey territory overlaps with the 编纂委员会 (1992). Yanshi Xianzhi 偃师县志 (Yanshi actual territory of the site. County Chronicle). Beijing: Shenghuo, Dushu, Xinzhi These observations indicate that in the plains where Bookhouse 生活·读书·新知三联书店. frequent human inhabitation took place, the scattering 5. Zhongguo Shehui Kexueyuan Kaogu Yanjiusuo territory of artifacts does not correspond to that of the Luoyang Han Wei Cheng Gongzuodui 中国社会科学院 original settlement. One shall be fully aware of the 考古研究所洛阳汉魏城工作队 (1993). “Beiwei limitations and indirectness of the survey data. A careful Luoyang Wai Guocheng he Shuidao de Kancha 北魏洛阳 study of settlements requires the combination of the 外郭城和水道的勘查”(Survey of the Outside Walls and survey, coring and excavation data. Waterways of the Luoyang). Kaogu 1993.7.

Note: The original report, published in Kaogu 2005.5: 18–37, with 7 illustrations, 1 page of plates, and 1 table, is written by Xu Hong, Chen Guoliang, and Zhao Haitao. The present summary is prepared by Xu Hong and English- translated by Zhang Liangren 张良仁.

26 Chinese Archaeology