Big dig findings pull in the people
The discovery of thousands of cultural relics at the Sanxingdui site in Guanghan, Sichuan province, was probably last year’s biggest archaeological surprise in China.
An aura of mystery has shrouded this 3,000-year-old site since myriad exotic bronze masks, believed to have been used for sacrificial rituals, were unearthed from two pits in 1986.
While offering clues to the belief system, social structure and communication with other cultures, the excavation of six other pits at Sanxingdui has triggered even more questions about the past, archaeologists said.
Masks, many more than previously seen among this type of bronze ware, exquisite jade artifacts, silk remnants and many other examples of rare relics were discovered in a new round of excavations.
Public interest in the excavations, which continue, was triggered by two livestream broadcasts from the six pits by China Central Television in March and September.
Numerous related short video clips were widely viewed, and virtual reality technology was used by newsrooms to explain the findings. Animated illustrations and other platforms featuring Sanxingdui led to the site becoming a major cultural attraction.
Ran Honglin, an archaeologist at the Sanxingdui site, credited its popularity to the use of new facilities to meet the demands of complex multidisciplinary research.
Laboratories set up at the site enable real-time conservation and analysis of findings, and tailored shields have been provided through 3D printing technology to protect unearthed relics.
Ran said: “When archaeology is mixed with popular science, people find it more interesting. Having an open mind is key to promoting archaeology among the public, and archaeologists need to unveil their latest findings promptly.”
Last year marked the centenary of the birth of modern Chinese archaeology. In 1921 the Yangshao site, about 5,000 years old, was found in what is now Sanmenxia, Henan province. The discovery not only revealed a stunning collection of painted pottery, but also created the foundations to study the Neolithic period in China.
For Chinese scholars, the term public archaeology, meaning presenting and interpreting archaeological data to the public, has become key in recent years, particularly following the launch in 2017 of The Nation’s Greatest Treasures, an acclaimed CCTV variety show.
Numerous positive comments about the show were posted on social media platforms, thanks to its blend of cultural heritage knowledge and mass entertainment.
In each episode three key exhibits from a museum were introduced by celebrities, and behind-the-scenes stories of the items were also told by experts and conservators. In the three seasons of the show to date, 81 cultural relics have been highlighted.
Despite this breakthrough, Liu Guoxiang, director of the scientific research department at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences’ Institute of Archaeology, said basic artifacts are now insufficient alone to satisfy the public’s fast-growing appetite.
As a result, the academy’s Institute of Archaeology joined with CCTV to present a new variety show, Chinese Archaeology Assembly, to mark the centenary. The program debuted in November, featuring 12 popular archaeological sites. These range from key locations that witnessed the infancy of Chinese archaeology in the 1920s, the Zhoukoudian site in Beijing, where the famed Peking Man skull fossil was found, and the Yinxu Ruins in Henan, home to China’s earliest-known written characters to the recent discoveries at Sanxingdui.
A lineup of the nation’s leading archaeologists and cultural scholars appeared on the show to explain the main findings at these sites.
Pan Yujia, the program’s director, said: “China has had nearly 1 million years of human activity, 10,000 years of cultural history, and a civilization of more than 5,000 years, so we chose the 12 sites that represent this entire timeline to reflect these three themes.”
With the latest discoveries, the number of visits to the Sanxingdui Museum last year rose to 1.5 million, about double the number before the COVID-19 pandemic emerged in 2019.
Liu said: “Archaeology-themed tourism is a new trend… Developing such tourism can encourage local governments to place even stronger emphasis on protecting heritage sites, and is also a way to make heritage ‘come alive’.”
From 2016 to 2019 an average of 40 million annual visits were made to the 36 nationallevel archaeological ruins parks, the National Cultural Heritage Administration said. It plans to include 10 to 15 additional sites on this list by 2025 as the basis for public archaeology education.
The Archaeological Ruins of the city of Liangzhu, Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, became a World Heritage Site in 2019. The site, thought to be the remains of a regional state capital dating back 4,300 to 5,300 years, was home to a jade-worshipping civilization and the world’s oldest-known dams.
An archaeological ruins park opened at the site when it gained World Heritage status. More importantly, visitors can also experience being an archaeologist. Every Saturday and during major holidays, those who register in advance join archaeological studies at the park.