Site of the Ancient State of Huaxia

Site of the Ancient State of Huaxia

The Site of the Ancient State of Huaxia is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Site of the Ancient State of Huaxia is located on a terrace near Huachenghe Village, Fudian Town, Yanshi City, approximately 43 kilometers southeast of Luoyang City in Henan Province. It was originally the capital of the State of Huaxia during the Spring and Autumn Period before being conquered by the Qin.

According to archaeological surveys and excavation reports, the area around the ancient city site is a flat plain, bordered by mountains to the northeast and southeast, which extends northwestward and connects with the Luoyang Basin. On either side of the plain lie the Huacheng River and the Fudian North River, between which lies a boot-shaped terrace where the ancient city is situated. This boot-shaped terrace stretches approximately 2.5 kilometers from north to south and about 0.5 to 1.5 kilometers from east to west. Surrounded by deep ravines on three sides, the terrain resembles a natural peninsula—easy to defend but hard to attack—making it an ideal location for the capital of an ancient small state.

The city is longer from north to south and narrower from east to west, with the northern part extending slightly northwest due to the terrain. The city walls curve in an arc, roughly forming a boot shape, measuring approximately 2,000 meters from north to south and 1,000 meters from east to west, about 700 meters in the middle section, and around 500 meters in the southern section, covering a total area of 140,000 square meters. Intermittent remnants of rammed earth walls appear and disappear.

The city walls are close to the edge of the terrace. Due to years of river erosion, most have collapsed. The lower layers of the eastern section of the southern wall and the northern section of the eastern wall, as well as the northern wall and parts of the eastern wall, feature thinner ramming layers with hard soil, topped by a layer of fabric-patterned tiles. These sections are believed to have been built before the Han Dynasty. The upper layers of the eastern section of the southern wall and the northern section of the eastern wall, along with the western wall and parts of the eastern wall, have thicker ramming layers with softer soil containing pottery shards from the Warring States period and fabric-patterned tiles. These rest above the earlier ramming and tile layers, suggesting construction during or after the Han Dynasty.

A wealth of artifacts has been found near the ancient city, including relics from the Yangshao and Longshan cultures, as well as the Shang, Eastern Zhou, Western Han, and Tang dynasties. Among these, Han Dynasty relics are the most widespread and form the thickest deposits, followed by those from the Eastern Zhou period. Relics from the Yangshao, Longshan, and Shang periods are the least common. Artifacts from the Eastern Zhou and Western Han periods are more frequently found in the southern part of the site, while those from the Eastern Han period are most abundant in the northern part. These relics are of great value for studying the development of ancient Chinese culture.

In June 1963, the Site of the Ancient State of Huaxia was designated as one of the first batch of Key Cultural Relics Protection Units in Henan Province by the Henan Provincial People's Committee. In May 2006, the site was listed as part of the sixth batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units by the State Council.

Further Reading:

· First Batch of Key Cultural Relics Protection Units in Henan Province

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units