Jiaojia Site

Jiaojia Site

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

The Jiaojia Site is located west of Jiaojia Village, Longshan Subdistrict, Zhangqiu District, and is mainly distributed across farmland areas between villages such as Jiaojia, Suguang, Dongjia, and Heyangdian. It lies about 5 kilometers south of the famous Longshan and Yueshi cultural site — Chengziya. Its eastern boundary extends to the gully at the eastern end of Jiaojia Village in Longshan Subdistrict and its southern extension line; its southern boundary extends to the irrigation channel 300 meters southwest of Dongdong Village in Longshan Subdistrict and its east-west extension line; its western boundary follows the north-south rural road west of Heyangdian Village, Tangwang Town, Licheng District, and its southern extension line; its northern boundary is the Huang (Sangyuan)–Fu (Jiacun) rural road. The construction control zone is the same as the protected area.

The Jiaojia Site spans 800 meters from east to west and 700 meters from north to south, covering a total area of 560,000 square meters. It is situated on the piedmont plain north of the Taiyi Mountain Range, with a slight elevation in the central part of the site. Approximately 400–500 meters to the west, the Juye River flows from southeast to northwest. The site lies at the core of an area with profound historical and cultural development. The discovery of city walls, moats, and a number of large tombs, along with a considerable quantity of Dawenkou culture jade artifacts and white pottery, indicates that during the middle to late Dawenkou culture period, the Jiaojia Site was an important center of politics, economy, and culture in northern Shandong. The site has a long duration of occupation, with major remains dating to the middle and late Dawenkou culture, extending down to the Han Dynasty.

The Jiaojia Site was discovered during an archaeological survey in 1987, and some investigation and trial excavations were carried out in the 1990s. From spring to summer 2016 to 2017, the Department of Archaeology and Museology at the School of History and Culture, Shandong University, conducted systematic surveys, explorations, and excavations at the site. A wealth of middle to late Dawenkou cultural remains were discovered, including one rammed-earth wall and moat, 215 tombs, 116 house foundations, and one pottery kiln. Additionally, among the 974 ash pits found, most belong to the Dawenkou culture, with a small number attributed to the Longshan, Yueshi, and Han cultures. The excavation of the site in 2017 was selected as one of China’s Top Ten Archaeological Discoveries of the Year. In October 2019, it was designated as a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Jiaojia Village: Jiaojia Village…… More details about Jiaojia Village++

Further Reading:

· Second Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Eighth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units