Wenji Site

Wenji Site

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

The Wenji Site is located southwest of Wenji Natural Village, Changcun Township, Yexian County, Pingdingshan City. The site is generally situated on a second-level terrace on the north bank of the Li River, covering a total area of approximately 600,000 square meters. From May 2006 to October 2008, the Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, together with the Pingdingshan Municipal Bureau of Cultural Relics and the Yexian County Bureau of Culture, formed an archaeological team that conducted extensive and long-term excavations at the Wenji Site in Yexian. The excavation area reached 11,300 square meters. More than 1,470 various types of remains were discovered, including building foundations, house bases, ash pits, storage pits, ash ditches, roads, ground hearths, fire pits, brick pools, wells, tunnels, and tombs. Among them, the most significant remains are mostly located within the cultural layers dating from the Jin Dynasty to the early Yuan Dynasty. The Wenji Site is a settlement relic that existed from the Tang Dynasty through the Yuan Dynasty and developed into a sizable hub for civilian commodity circulation and trade—a kind of market town—during the Jin Dynasty.

The clear and distinct stratigraphic relationships at the site, along with its abundant relics and artifacts, will undoubtedly enhance our understanding of porcelain from the Jin Dynasty in the Central Plains region. It also provides a valuable collection of materials for studying the historical and cultural landscape of the region from the Tang to the Ming Dynasties, especially the development of economic trade, cultural exchanges, and social life among the populace during the Jin and Yuan periods. In addition, the discovery of Southern Song Dynasty coins in a hoard pit fully reflects the historical relationship between the Southern Song and Jin dynasties, characterized by political confrontation but simultaneous economic and cultural exchanges. In 2013, it was designated as part of the seventh group of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units by the State Council.

Further Reading:

· Fourth Group of Henan Provincial Cultural Relics Protection Units

· Seventh Group of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units