Longnan Site

Longnan Site

The Longnan Site is located in Longnan Village, Meiyang Town, 29 kilometers southwest of Wujiang County, on the north side of Pinghu Highway, about 2 kilometers north of the Yuanjiadai Site in Meiyang. It was discovered in 1984, with a total area of approximately 40,000 square meters. From December 1987 to January 1989, the Suzhou Museum and the Wujiang County Cultural Relics Management Committee conducted two excavations, uncovering an area of about 800 square meters. The site's cultural deposits include three periods: the transitional phase between the Songze and Liangzhu cultures, the early Liangzhu culture, and the Liangzhu culture.

The stratum from the transitional phase between the Songze and Liangzhu cultures, based on radiocarbon dating and calibration, dates back to around 5,360 years ago. One house foundation was found in this layer. The pottery is mainly black-coated ware, followed by sand-tempered gray-brown pottery. Artifacts unearthed include adze-footed tripods, low-ring-footed dou (bean-shaped vessels), and a small number of high-ring-footed dou; there were also large quantities of net sinkers, arrowheads, a small number of stone fishing weights, as well as triangular stone knives.

The early Liangzhu culture stratum, based on radiocarbon dating and calibration, dates back to approximately 5,240–5,135 years ago. This layer primarily consists of components of a settlement, with three grouped house foundations distributed along both sides of an ancient river channel, each with distinct characteristics. There were 11 semi-subterranean and shallow subterranean house foundations, various types of ash pits, as well as wells and paths paved with pottery shards. Riverbanks featured docks and protective embankments for houses. The pottery is mainly sand-tempered red pottery and clay gray pottery. The main artifacts unearthed include adze-footed tripods and fish-fin-footed tripods, with a small number of loop-handled ewers; there were also many net sinkers, arrowheads, a small number of inverted-basin-shaped spinning whorls, and stone adzes. In addition, domesticated japonica and indica rice, as well as plant seeds, were found.

The Liangzhu culture stratum, based on radiocarbon dating and calibration, dates back to around 4,750 years ago. A total of 15 Liangzhu culture period tombs were excavated from this layer. The tombs show clear signs of wealth disparity—some contained numerous artifacts with accompanying burial pits, while others had no artifacts at all. The main artifacts unearthed include fish-fin-footed tripods, loop-handled ewers, and field-cultivating tools.