Chengziya Site

Chengziya Site

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

The Chengziya Site Museum is located 1 kilometer west of the Longshan Town Government in Zhangqiu City. In 1994, Jinan and Zhangqiu jointly invested over 6 million yuan to construct the museum, which covers a floor area of more than 5,000 square meters. Designed by Yang Hongxun, a renowned ancient architecture expert from the Institute of Archaeology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, it is the only earthen fortress-style building in China, modeled after the architectural style of primitive society earthen cities.

In 1928, Mr. Wu Jinding, one of China’s earliest archaeologists, discovered a late Neolithic cultural site from primitive society at Chengziya. The first excavations were carried out in 1930 and 1931, and the site was named “Longshan Culture.” The Chengziya Site became the naming site for Longshan Culture and was listed among the first batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units by the State Council in 1961. In 1990, the Shandong Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology conducted a second excavation and discovered that the Chengziya Site contains three cultural layers from different periods. The overlapping city walls indicate that Chengziya has long been an ideal location for establishing cities and states since ancient times.

From a distance, eight bold characters reading “Chengziya Site Museum,” inscribed by Mr. Zhou Gucheng, shine brilliantly under the sunlight above the entrance hall. Inside the museum, there are three exhibition halls. The first hall prominently displays artifacts unearthed from the Xihexi site of the Longshan culture, primarily red pottery dating back about 8,000 years. Various uniquely shaped pottery items such as cauldrons, ring-footed bowls, grinding plates, and pestles retain a distinct ancient charm. The second hall is the Longshan Culture Exhibition Hall, highlighting the major findings from the two excavations at the Chengziya Site. Artifacts on display include pottery, stone tools, shell tools, and bone or horn implements.

Among the many pottery items, the bird-headed pottery zun is particularly typical. With a spout shaped like a bird’s beak and three bulbous feet resembling plump breasts, it forms the image of a large bird standing tall and proud with an arrogant demeanor. This design, unique in shape and dignified in style, is referred to by archaeologists as the “upward-spouting” style.

There is also the world-renowned eggshell-thin pottery goblet with a high stem, praised globally as “the most exquisite craft of Earth’s civilization 4,000 years ago” for being “as black as lacquer, as shiny as a mirror, as thin as paper, as hard as porcelain—feeling almost weightless when lifted yet producing a crisp sound when struck.” The third hall showcases densely packed rammed earth pits of the Yueshi city walls, iron double-arrowheads from Pingling City, Han Dynasty human-faced roof tiles, and a rich variety of artifacts from different periods. Especially notable are the legendary “five horses and three carts” main road on the city walls and the smelting area within Pingling City, which further enrich the deep cultural heritage of Zhangqiu, the hometown of blacksmiths.

Travel Tips

Public Transport Guide: Take bus k50 (or k58, 4, 5, 35, or 32) in the city area and get off at Zhigexi Street Station. Walk 280 meters to the South Terminal of Jinan Long-Distance Bus Station, then take bus k902 and get off at Longshan Office Station. Walk 130 meters to transfer at Longshan Office Station to Zhangqiu Route 2, get off at Longshan Industrial Park Station, and walk 620 meters to reach the Chengziya Site Museum.

Transportation Guide

Public Transport Guide: Take bus k50 (or k58, 4, 5, 35, or 32) in the city area and get off at Zhigexi Street Station. Walk 280 meters to the South Terminal of Jinan Long-Distance Bus Station, then take bus k902 and get off at Longshan Office Station. Walk 130 meters to transfer at Longshan Office Station to Zhangqiu Route 2, get off at Longshan Industrial Park Station, and walk 620 meters to reach the Chengziya Site Museum.

Further Reading:

· National Third-Class Museum of China

· First Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units