Tashan Site

Tashan Site

The Tashan Site is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Situated at the southeastern foot of Tashan in Dancheng, Xiangshan County, Zhejiang Province, the site slopes down toward the sea and covers an area of about 30,000 square meters. After its discovery in 1988, two excavation phases were conducted in 1990 and 1992 under the direction of the Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, uncovering a total of 601 square meters. These efforts revealed that human activity in the Xiangshan region dates back not to the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, but to 6,000 years ago during the Neolithic Age.

Located along the southeastern coast of Zhejiang, Xiangshan is at the southernmost tip of Ningbo. Historical records such as the various editions of the Xiangshan County Annals suggest that human activity in the area only began during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, leading to the long-held belief that Xiangshan does not have a particularly long history. However, the discovery and excavation of the Tashan Site have pushed its history back 6,000 years.

The Tashan Site is situated on a gentle slope at the southern foot of Tashan in Xiangshan County, facing the sea. Geological surveys indicate it lies just dozens of meters from the ancient coastline, covering a total area of about 20,000 square meters. Excavations carried out in 1990 and 1992 under the direction of the provincial archaeological institute confirmed that the Tashan Site is a late Neolithic cultural site. The cultural layers at the site are 80–230 cm thick and divided into ten strata, belonging to three major historical periods. The early period corresponds to Phase III of the Hemudu Site, with a higher proportion of clay red pottery, carbon-tempered pottery, and sand-tempered pottery. The middle period shows cultural elements close to those of the Liangzhu Culture, with abundant appearances of clay gray pottery and black-surfaced pottery. The late period, dating to the Shang and Zhou dynasties, features a large quantity of geometric patterned pottery. Major artifact types include dou (food containers), fu (cauldrons), ding (tripod cauldrons), guan (jars), bo (bowls), wan (dishes), hu (pots), pen (basins), bu (vessels), pottery rings, pedestals, stone knives, stone axes, stone plows, stepped stone spades, soil-breaking tools, hoeing tools, arrowheads, net sinkers, stone balls, stone chisels, stone tubes, jade earrings, jade tubes, jade beads, and jade gui ornaments, among others. Items such as crescent-shaped perforated brown pottery dou and single-handled short-footed ring-footed jars exhibit distinctive characteristics of the Tashan Site. Decorative patterns are abundant in the early cultural layers of the Tashan Site, including rope patterns, awl-punched patterns, fish motifs, bird motifs, crescent decorations, vortex patterns, and appliqué patterns, all indicating that the Tashan people had already learned to beautify their lives.

The discovery of the Tashan Site not only pushes the history of Xiangshan County back by 3,000 years, but also holds significant academic value for ancient cultural research. This is first reflected in the site’s location on the Ningbo-Shaoxing Plain—its excavation has supplemented and enriched the understanding of Hemudu Culture and provided valuable material for studying its successor cultures. Secondly, as one of the coastal sites closest to the sea, the Tashan Site offers physical evidence for the study of ancient hydrology and geological changes. Notably, a clan burial complex dating back 6,000 years was discovered at the site, consisting of vertical earthen pit tombs with individual burials. The number of burial objects per tomb ranged from one to seven, generally quite balanced, with most tombs and skeletal remains well preserved. This not only provides valuable archaeological data for studying the customs and living conditions of the Tashan people, but also offers highly significant physical material for the study of physical anthropology.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units