A Middle Yangshao Cemetery of the Yangguanzhai Settlement

Summary

In order to better understand the moated settlement of Yangguanzhai (ca. 5300-4800 B.P.) in the Wei River Valley of China, the archaeological team surveyed east of the moated area in 2015. A large number of pit burials with side chambers were found. The cemetery is so far the first known adult cemetery of this period (Miaodigou Phase of Yangshao Culture). Based on C14 dating and funerary goods, the cemetery is contemporaneous with the Yangguanzhai settlement. This discovery provides important data for future research on Miaodigou settlement pattern, burial custom, social organization, and relatedness of populations at the time. The side chamber burials of Yangguanzhai date to several hundred years earlier than other known burials of this type found in western China. They can therefore provide important archaeological data for further inquiry into this burial type’s origins, as well as possible links between the ancient residents of the Wei River Valley and other groups to the west.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• New Discoveries and Multidisciplinary Research at Yangguanzhai, China   •
• Society for American Archaeology 82nd Annual Meeting, Vancouver, BC (2017)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 13180