Ruins of the Shenguo State

Ruins of the Shenguo State

The ruins of the Shenguo State are a cultural heritage site protected at the provincial level in Anhui Province.

The ruins of the Shenguo State are located in Linquan County, Fuyang City, dating back to the Spring and Autumn period through the Song and Yuan dynasties.

Also known as the Ancient City of Shenqiu, the site is surrounded by rivers on three sides — bordered by Quanhe River to the north, Liuanhe River to the southeast, with a moat on the west and connected via a river to the Laqiudui ruins to the south. The site is an elevated rectangular platform, stretching 500 meters from north to south and 300 meters from east to west, covering an area of 150,000 square meters. Remnants of the city walls can still be faintly seen; they were built with rammed earth, standing 1–2 meters high at their highest remaining sections, with corner fortresses rising over 2 meters. The site is divided into two parts: the northern part is Guicheng Village, and the southern part is Baiguoshu Village. Parts of the ancient city area have been converted into farmland, and wells dug more than 3 meters deep still reach cultural layers. A large number of surface artifacts have been found, including leg fragments of li and ding tripods, red and gray pottery shards with sand inclusions, as well as more common brick and tile fragments and ancient coins (such as ant nose coins and yingyuan coins from the Chu Kingdom). In recent years, artifacts such as rope-patterned pottery jars and pots with arc-shaped bases, as well as bronze swords, spears, halberds, and ancient coins, have been collected. About 2 kilometers northwest of the site, on the north bank of Quanhe River in Zhoulou Village, since 1985, locals digging soil for brick-making have uncovered a cluster of Shang Dynasty tombs. The burial ground spans 150 meters from east to west and 300 meters from north to south, covering about 45,000 square meters. More than 10 earthen pit tombs have been excavated, yielding relics such as pottery gui containers, bronze jue and gu vessels, bronze halberds and spears, jade huangs, jade axes, jade yue battle-axes, and jade ben adzes. About 300 meters west of the ancient city site, in Zhanglou Village, there is a brick kiln that sits atop a cluster of Warring States period tombs, spanning 400 meters from east to west and 300 meters from north to south, covering 120,000 square meters. Collected relics include stamped-pattern pottery jars and pots, as well as bronze swords from the Warring States period. On the eastern bank of Liuanhe River, 300 meters east of the city site, there is also a cluster of Warring States period tombs extending into the territory of Linquan County. During local construction such as home-building and foundation digging, many artifacts have been unearthed, including bronze swords with tortoiseshell patterns, Chu-style ding tripods, female figurine pottery attendants, pottery cranes, and ding tripods — all precious artifacts from the Warring States period. Approximately 1 kilometer south of the city site, in the villages of Zengzhuang and Zhuangzhuang, there is a cluster of Han Dynasty tombs. Artifacts excavated during production and construction include a gold-inlaid bronze basin inscribed with "Made in the Fourth Year of Yongyuan," a bronze inkstone dropper, and Han dynasty seal matrices. According to historical texts and local chronicles, this city was the Shenguo State during the Spring and Autumn period. The Zuo Zhuan records: “In the spring of the third year of Duke Wen of Lu (624 BCE), Zhuangshu led allied forces to attack Shen because it submitted to Chu. Shen fell.” “In the fourth year of Duke Ding of Lu (506 BCE), the people of Shen did not attend the meeting at Shaoling. The Jin ordered Cai to attack Shen. In summer, Cai destroyed Shen. In autumn, Chu besieged Cai in retaliation for Shen.” Shen perished by Cai, and Cai perished by Chu. The Qin established Qinxian County, which was renamed Qinxian (浸县) during the Western Han. In the second year of the Jianwu era of the Eastern Han (26 CE), Emperor Guangwu changed Qinxian to Gushi County. In the third year of the Kaihuang era of the Sui (583 CE), Shenzhou was established. In the fourth year of the Wude era of the Tang (621 CE), it was reinstated but later incorporated into Ruyin County (modern-day Fuyang County). In the second year of the Shenlong era (706 CE), Ruyin County was divided to establish Shenqiu County, which remained under Yingzhou throughout the Five Dynasties, Song, Jin, and Yuan periods. In the early Ming Dynasty, Shenqiu County was abolished and merged into Yingzhou. In the 13th year of the Yongzheng era of the Qing Dynasty (1735 CE), Yingzhou was elevated to a prefecture, with Fuyang County under it, and Shenqiu becoming part of the western rural area of Fuyang. In the 24th year of the Republic of China (1935 CE), a new county was established 60 li west of Fuyang County, with the county seat set in Shenqiu Town. Since the town lies north of Quanhe River, it was named Linquan County. In March 1982, the People's Government of Linquan County declared it a county-level key cultural heritage protection unit.

In 2012, the ruins of the Shenguo State were designated as a seventh batch provincial-level cultural heritage site by the People's Government of Anhui Province.

Protected Area: Between 33°04′07.9″N – 33°04′32.5″N and 115°14′01.3″E – 115°14′22.3″E, covering an area of 414,000 square meters.

Construction Control Zone: A 20-meter buffer zone surrounding the city site.