Bai Sha Beach Paleolithic Site

Bai Sha Beach Paleolithic Site

Bai Sha Beach Paleolithic Site is a cultural relic protection unit of Jilin Province.

Bai Sha Beach Paleolithic Site

Batch and announcement date: Sixth batch, May 31, 2007

Address: Left bank of the Nenjiang River, Bai Sha Beach, Zhenlai County

Era: Paleolithic

Category: Ancient site

Managing authority: Zhenlai County Cultural Relics Management Office

Open to public: No

The Bai Sha ancient human activity site is situated on the left bank of the Nenjiang River, approximately 2 kilometers north of Dandai Township, Zhenlai County, Jilin Province, and about 2 kilometers northwest of Xiwujiazi Village in Tailai County, Heilongjiang Province. It lies at the border between the two provinces (mainly within Jilin Province). The geographical coordinates are 123°54′ east longitude and 46°17′ north latitude. The elevation is 157.6 meters, located on the second terrace of the Nenjiang River. A total of 86 stone artifacts and 45 animal fossils were discovered at the Bai Sha ancient human activity site. Among the stone artifacts are typical wedge-shaped and boat-bottom-shaped stone cores; tools include long oval scrapers, burins, and adze-like implements. Ten identifiable species of animal fossils have been identified, all belonging to the Late Pleistocene Mammoth–Woolly Rhinoceros fauna of northeastern China. The cultural period dates to the late Paleolithic or slightly later. The discovery of this cultural remnant is of significant importance for studying the transition from the Paleolithic to the Neolithic and the spread of microlithic technology.