Ancient Site of the Neolithic Era at Yuchi Temple, Mengcheng

Ancient Site of the Neolithic Era at Yuchi Temple, Mengcheng

The Ancient Site of the Neolithic Era at Yuchi Temple in Mengcheng is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Wuhe River basin is a region rich in culture and steeped in history, often hailed as the cradle of Taoist culture. When the “Top Ten Archaeological Discoveries of 1994” were announced, the Ancient Site of the Neolithic Era at Yuchi Temple in Mengcheng ranked fourth.

Yuchi Temple is an ancient shrine located about 22 kilometers northeast of Mengcheng, in Bijicun Village, Xutun Town, built to commemorate the great Tang Dynasty general Yuchi Gong. The temple was situated on a high earthen mound. Today, the temple no longer exists, leaving only the mound, which rises over three meters above the ground and is known as the “Yuchi Temple Mound.” In the early 1980s, cultural relics authorities in Mengcheng County discovered that this mound was a Neolithic site, and thus it came to be called the “Ancient Site of the Neolithic Era at Yuchi Temple.”

After repeated investigations by the Anhui Provincial Archaeological Team and the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, it was determined that the site dates back to the middle and late periods of primitive society, approximately 4,500 to 5,000 years ago. The central area of the site covers about 100,000 square meters, bordered by the Sümeng Highway to the north, an irrigation canal to the east, and rural dirt roads to the west and south. The entire site remains largely well-preserved.

In the autumn of 1989, the Anhui Work Team of the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences began scientific excavations at the site, continuing until 1995. Over the course of seven years and nine excavation seasons, nearly 10,000 square meters were unearthed, yielding a large number of artifacts. These included 52 house foundations, 168 tombs, and 149 ash pits from the Dawenkou Culture period. Additionally, a large circular ditch was discovered, spanning 230 meters from north to south, 200 meters from east to west, 20 meters wide, and 4.5 meters deep.

Other important features uncovered include flat activity areas, sacrificial pits, and animal pits.

Among the more than 10,000 unearthed artifacts were stone tools such as stone axes, chisels, and adzes; pottery items including pottery beans, ancestral figurines, wine vessels, ding tripods, steamers, and uniquely shaped, exquisitely crafted pottery gui vessels. Notably, the small-mouthed, long-necked, bulging-bellied, eared, flat-bottomed, ring-footed water-carrying pots were especially charming. When placed in water, they could automatically tilt to fill up and then stand upright again without sinking—a marvel of ancient craftsmanship. There were also bone tools such as bone needles, hairpins, and curved bone fishhooks. These fishhooks were very sharp, with barbs at the tips and loops for tying fishing lines, remarkably similar to modern designs, leaving observers in awe. Many other exquisite artifacts made of shell, jade, and more were also found.

It is said that the temple was built to commemorate the Tang Dynasty general Yuchi Gong, who stationed troops here, hence the name “Yuchi Temple.”

The site features a convex terrain with lower surroundings and a higher center. The red-fired clay row houses found here represent the most complete, abundant, and largest prehistoric architectural remains discovered in China to date. This site is the best-preserved and largest late Neolithic settlement remains of primitive society in the country, stretching approximately 370 meters from east to west and 250 meters from north to south, covering a total area of about 100,000 square meters. From 1989 to 1994, the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences conducted eight large-scale excavations, uncovering over 7,000 square meters. They cleared ten rows (groups) of red-fired clay house foundations, totaling 41 rooms, 217 tombs, as well as ash pits, sacrificial pits, animal pits, and activity squares. Nearly 10,000 artifacts made of pottery, stone, and bone were unearthed, leading historians to refer to the site as a “resource comparable to a gold mine.” In July 17, 2001, the site was listed as part of the fifth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

From 1989 to 1994, the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences conducted eight large-scale excavations, uncovering over 7,000 square meters. They cleared ten rows (groups) of red-fired clay house foundations, totaling 41 rooms, 217 tombs, as well as ash pits, sacrificial pits, animal pits, and activity squares. Nearly 10,000 artifacts made of pottery, stone, and bone were unearthed, leading historians to refer to the site as a “resource comparable to a gold mine.” In July 17, 2001, the site was listed as part of the fifth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

From 1989 to 1994, the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences conducted eight large-scale excavations, uncovering over 7,000 square meters. They cleared ten rows (groups) of red-fired clay house foundations, totaling 41 rooms, 217 tombs, as well as ash pits, sacrificial pits, animal pits, and activity squares. Nearly 10,000 artifacts made of pottery, stone, and bone were unearthed, leading historians to refer to the site as a “resource comparable to a gold mine.” In July 17, 2001, the site was listed as part of the fifth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

The discovery of large-scale, row-upon-row red-fired clay houses shocked the archaeological community. Among the 52 houses excavated, some still retained walls made of red-fired clay standing 50 to 80 centimeters high, with post holes in between containing traces of wooden pillars—evidence of the then highly advanced “wattle-and-daub” construction technique. The inner walls and surfaces of the red-fired clay were coated with white, gray, or red paint, smooth and flat. Some house foundations even preserved collapsed roofs, within which rice and millet were found. All the houses faced southwest, were connected in rows and groups, and featured thresholds under their doors. Inside, there were hearths and spaces for storing daily necessities and utensils. Activity areas were also discovered—spaces as large as basketball courts, tamped and leveled, still solid today, with a grayish-red surface.

The animal bones found in the animal pits, identified by experts, included those of deer, pigs, sheep, as well as domesticated yellow cattle and water buffalo. This proves that during the middle and late periods of primitive society, Mengcheng already had a developed animal husbandry industry and a tradition of raising livestock, pushing the history of yellow cattle farming in Mengcheng back 4,500 years. Mengcheng was called “冡” (Měng) during the Shang Dynasty, possibly for this reason. Analyzing the character’s form and meaning, “冡” depicts livestock kept under a shelter.

The discovery and excavation of this site have drawn widespread attention from scholars both in China and abroad. Numerous media outlets, including China Central Television, China National Radio, People’s Daily, China Cultural Relics News, and Guangming Daily, have reported on it multiple times. Many experts and scholars have visited the site for research and guidance. Professor Yang Hongxun, an expert in ancient architecture from the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, likened the site to a “gold mine.”

On August 4, 1994, the Mengcheng County Committee, County Government, and the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences jointly hosted the “Archaeological Symposium on the Ancient Site of the Neolithic Era at Yuchi Temple, Mengcheng, Anhui Province” in Beijing. Experts referred to the site as the “First Primitive Village in China” and identified it as belonging to the Mengcheng type of the Dawenkou Culture. This filled a gap in Dawenkou Culture research and provided crucial physical evidence for understanding and studying the conditions of primitive society in northern Anhui during the middle and late periods, as well as its relationship with neighboring prehistoric cultures. The site holds significant academic value.

The nine excavations up to 1995 can be considered the first phase of archaeological work at the Yuchi Temple site. In April to October 2001, the second phase of excavation began. In the same year, the Yuchi Temple site was designated a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit by the State Council. During the twelfth excavation in March to May 2002, a rare artifact was unearthed, temporarily named the “Bird-Shaped Divine Artifact” by experts. The thirteenth excavation, conducted from October to December 2003, uncovered an even rarer “Seven-Legged Hollow Artifact.” This marked the conclusion of the second phase of archaeological work at the Yuchi Temple site.

It is imaginable that in the near future, a uniquely distinctive museum of primitive settlement ruins will stand in the hometown of Zhuangzi, becoming a shining pearl on the vast Huaihai Plain.

Protected Area: North to the midpoint of the east-west horizontal extension line at the corner of the Sümeng Highway, east to the Old Flood Diversion Canal, south to the Old Water Diversion Canal in Bijicun and the east-west road crossing Bijicun, west to the Sümeng Highway.

Construction Control Zone: Outside the protected area, east to the north-south road passing east of Zhangxiaozhuang, south to the east-west water channel crossing Xiaozhuang, west to the north-south water channel west of Lichangzhuang, a section of the Sümeng Highway, north to the east-west water channel north of Lichangzhuang.

Yuchi Temple Village: Located in the southeastern part of Xutun Town, Yuchi Temple Village was formed by merging the former Bijicun and Dazhaocun. It borders Xinshanguan Village in Banqiaotown to the south and Laohuangcun to the north. Known as the First Primitive Village in China, Provincial Road 305 runs through the village. The village currently has a population of 3,400, with 6,500 mu of arable land, encompassing 10 natural villages and 18 villager groups. The village Party branch has two Party branches and seven Party groups, with a total of 72 Party members, including 27 under 45 years old, 60 with junior high school education or above, and five female Party members.

Wang Zongyuan, Secretary of the General Branch … More details about Yuchi Temple Village ++

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units