Xixinzhang Site

Xixinzhang Site

The Xixinzhang Site is a cultural heritage protection unit of Shandong Province.

The Xixinzhang Site is located about 300 meters southwest of Xixinzhang Village, Lique Town, Guangrao County, Dongying City. It is an ancient cultural site dating from the Neolithic Age to the Han Dynasty. Based on on-site confirmation, we have designated the protection marker stele as the reference point, with coordinates at 118°22′20.1″ east longitude and 37°01′07.1″ north latitude. The area approximately 100 meters west, 400 meters east, 300 meters south, and 100 meters north of this reference point, covering a total area of about 200,000 square meters, has been designated as the key protected zone. An area extending 50 meters north of an east-west farm road located west of the north-south production road in Xixinzhang Village, as well as 150 meters north, 200 meters west, and 500 meters south of the reference point, has been designated as the construction control zone. The site was first discovered in 1980 during a county-wide cultural relics survey conducted by the Guangrao County Cultural Relics Management Team. Later, the Guangrao County Museum carried out multiple surveys, gaining a basic understanding of the site’s cultural content and stratigraphic deposits. The cultural layers, from bottom to top, include those from the Longshan Culture, Yueshi Culture, Shang and Zhou Dynasties, and the Han Dynasty. Cross-sections of the site reveal a rich cultural content, with remains such as ash pits and tombs, and artifacts including pottery gui (a type of vessel) from the Longshan Culture, polished black pottery cups, pottery dou (tripod), pottery jars, stone sickles, stone axes, painted pottery plates from the Yueshi Culture, double-holed stone knives, pottery li (tripod cauldron), pottery gui, pottery dou, and pottery jars from the Shang and Zhou periods, as well as pottery mills and gray pottery pots from the Han Dynasty. Judging from the decorative patterns of unearthed artifacts, those from the Longshan Culture primarily feature string patterns, along with additional stacked patterns; items from the Shang and Zhou periods mainly exhibit rope patterns; while those from the Han Dynasty have relatively fewer decorative elements. The Xixinzhang Site covers a large area and contains abundant remains and artifacts. It provides a wealth of reliable physical materials for the study of the characteristics and features of the Longshan Culture in northern Shandong. In 2013, it was announced as a provincial-level key cultural relics protection unit.

Lique Town: Lique Town is located in the southern part of Guangrao County, 8 kilometers from the county seat. It borders Linzi District of Zibo City to the south, connects to Dawang Town to the east, and adjoins Zibo City and Binzhou City to the west. The provincial-level highway Xinhe Road runs north-south through the town, and the planned local railway — Xingguang Railway — will traverse the area east-west. The total area is 66.44 square kilometers, with cultivated land covering 75,916 mu. There are 57 villager committees, with a total of 10,806 households and a population of 36,768, including 17,197 females and 1,673 non-agricultural residents. The natural population growth rate is 3.89‰, and the family planning rate is 99%.

… More detailed information about Lique Town ++

Further Reading:

· Fourth Batch of Shandong Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units