The Caowangchengzi Site

The Caowangchengzi Site

The Caowangchengzi Site is located southwest of Xiaotan Village in Xiangyang Township, Jiangpu County, with the Shiqi River flowing westward into the Yangtze River. The site is mound-shaped, approximately 5 meters high, with a gourd-like plan and a total area of about 16,000 square meters. It was discovered in 1958, and trial excavations were conducted by the Nanjing Museum in 1983. The stratigraphic accumulation is nearly 5 meters thick, containing remains from the Western Zhou and Spring and Autumn periods.

Among the Western Zhou remains, a house foundation was discovered, featuring a hard and smooth red-fired earthen floor, with postholes also subjected to fire, and bases at the bottom of the holes. The pottery assemblage is dominated by sand-tempered red pottery, followed by sand-tempered gray pottery, while gray, red, and black pottery of clay texture are less common. There is also a very small amount of geometric patterned pottery. Vessel types include li tripods, jars, basins, [unknown vessel], dou stem-cups, bowls, and urns. Cooking vessels are mainly li tripods with sunken partitions, mostly decorated with intermittent cord marks. Stone tools include stone knives and stone chisels.

No architectural remains were found from the Spring and Autumn period, but the pottery assemblage still primarily consists of sand-tempered red pottery, with a decrease in gray pottery and an increase in plain-surfaced ware, and a significant rise in the proportion of geometric patterned pottery. Main vessel types include li tripods, [unknown vessel], jars, dou stem-cups, cups, and cylindrical vessels. The decorative patterns on the geometric patterned pottery include mat weave, checkered, scroll, filled-line scroll, leaf vein, combinations of mat weave and checkered, scroll and other combinations, as well as scroll with zigzag lines, and diamond patterns. Based on the forms of plain li tripods, basins, jars, dou stem-cups, and bowls, along with other factors, the site contains a notable amount of Hushu Culture elements. However, the Western Zhou remains show a stronger influence from Central Plains culture.