Nanjiancheng

Nanjiancheng

Nanjiancheng is an ancient city. Legend has it that it was built by Emperor Jianwen of the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Sima Yu, and boasts a history of over 1,600 years. Also known as Jianwen Emperor City, locals refer to it simply as Jiancheng. Located 17 kilometers southeast of Banqiaoji Town in Mengcheng County and just 500 meters from Taonan Taozhuang in Taowei Village, Banqiaoji Town, this site was once an important ancient settlement. It is divided into an inner city and an outer city. The inner city features a main east-west thoroughfare lined with bustling shops, serving as a key economic and cultural hub in its time.

Through the vicissitudes of history, Nanjiancheng was unfortunately destroyed in warfare. Today, only ruins remain, covering an area of about 150 meters in diameter, slightly elevated above the surrounding land. The soil here is fine and whitish, remaining moist in dry weather and free from waterlogging when it rains, with good cohesive properties when mixed into mud. During an investigation in 1985, we collected four artifacts: an intact earthenware jar, coarse pottery fragments, city bricks, and tiles, which were handed over to the cultural relics bureau. The unearthed coarse pottery fragments had clear decorative patterns, and the edges of the jar shards curled naturally and smoothly. The recovered city bricks were three inches thick, one and a half feet long, half a foot wide, and weighed eight jin. They bore no patterns, were bluish in color, and had a fine texture. In 1968, during the excavation of ridged farmland, a large number of pottery fragments were discovered, with accumulated layers nearly 50 centimeters thick. More than ten hearths were also found, containing burnt soil and bluish-gray ash inside, along with dozens of paving bricks unearthed.

A local legend tells of a farmhand from Taowei Village who went plowing before dawn. When he broke his plowshare, he noticed a small city in the southeast and drove his oxcart into it. The city’s marketplace ran east-west and was filled with numerous shops. Everyone in the city walked with their heads down and remained silent. Shopkeepers along the streets also kept their heads bowed, faces unseen, and sold goods without speaking or haggling. After buying a new plowshare, he remembered his broken cooking pot at home and bought an iron pot as well, placing both on the cart. As he left the city and the sun rose, he looked back but could no longer see the city. Puzzled, he later noticed that the plowshare and iron pot he had purchased had rusted and become completely unusable. Another tale tells of someone unable to sleep due to the sound of grinding. Following the noise, they arrived at a mill in Jiancheng and saw a golden colt pulling a golden millstone, grinding golden beans—the source of the sound. About 600 meters directly north of Jiancheng lies a strangely winding ditch. Twisting and turning like the trail of a snake, it runs roughly east-west for over 10 li. Locals call it the “Golden Ditch,” believing it was dug by the golden colt after breaking free, dragging a plow behind it.