Zhoudi Ruins

Zhoudi Ruins

The Zhoudi Ruins are a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

Era: Neolithic Age to Shang and Zhou Dynasties

The Shang Dynasty ruins at Zhoudi are located in Group 5, Shiping Village, Zhaoshi Town, Shimen County, 18 kilometers from the county seat. The site lies on the north bank of the Xieshui River, on a terrace about 5–6 meters above the riverbed, covering an area of approximately 70,000 square meters.

It was discovered in 1959 during a cultural relics survey conducted by the provincial museum. A small-scale trial excavation was immediately carried out, confirming that it was a Shang Dynasty cultural site rich in artifacts. Formal excavations were conducted from the end of 1977 to the beginning of 1978, followed by a second excavation in 1981 and a third large-scale excavation in 2001. The first two excavations covered an area of 1,300 square meters, while the third covered 1,200 square meters, making a total of 2,500 square meters over the three excavations.

The cultural layer varies in thickness from 1 to 2 meters. The eastern and western ends of the site distribution area contain cultural accumulations from the Neolithic Age, Shang Dynasty, and Eastern Zhou Dynasty. The Shang Dynasty cultural layer is relatively thick, with abundant artifacts. Some test pits have yielded cultural remains from the transition between the Shang and Zhou Dynasties.

During the 1977–1978 excavations, red-fired clay blocks with copper slag were discovered. In 1980, a copper smelting furnace was found, along with large pieces of copper slag and two stone molds beside the furnace. Additionally, four bronze artifacts were unearthed. In 2001, bronze arrowheads, fishhooks, and small bronze ornaments were discovered, confirming that the site had entered the Bronze Age.

In some test pits, thin cultural remains from the transition between the Shang and Zhou Dynasties were found. During this period, gray pottery increased slightly, while false-rimmed bean-shaped vessels and gui disappeared. Instead, basins and zun-shaped vessels with imitation bronze flange decorations appeared. The basins often featured shallow incised horizontal human-shaped patterns and net patterns, along with gourd-shaped high-stemmed beans. Two tombs from this period were also discovered.

The bronze artifacts unearthed at the Zhoudi site are the earliest found in Hunan to date, indicating that the Dongting Lake region had entered the Bronze Age by the middle Shang Dynasty. This provides important clues for resolving the provenance of the scattered Shang and Zhou Dynasty bronze artifacts previously found across Hunan. The discovery of commoner tombs at the Zhoudi site fills a gap in Hunan’s archaeological record, thereby completing the timeline of tombs from the Neolithic Age to the Ming and Qing Dynasties in the province. The excavation of the Zhoudi site is of great value for understanding the ancient cultures of the northwestern shore of Dongting Lake and the southwestern part of the Jianghan Plain in Hubei during the Shang and Zhou periods. The Zhoudi site has been listed in Guo Moruo’s *Draft History of China*, Volume 2. In October 1981, the Zhoudi site was designated as one of the first batch of cultural relics protection units in Shimen County, and in 1983, it was announced as a cultural relics protection unit by the People’s Government of Hunan Province.

In 1983, it was listed as a provincial-level key cultural relics protection unit. In May 2013, it was approved and announced by the State Council as part of the seventh batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units.

The Zhoudi ruins were discovered in 1958. The Hunan Provincial Museum conducted two excavations in 1977 and 1981, unearthing a large number of stone tools such as stone axes, stone hammers, stone adzes, stone cores, stone flakes, scrapers, pointed tools, and choppers, as well as a large number of pottery items including pots, jars, bowls, plates, pedestals, and supports. The manufacturing techniques, shapes, and decorative patterns of the pottery all exhibit primitive characteristics. The remains also include bones of more than 10 types of animals such as wild boars, wild oxen, and deer, reflecting the significant role of hunting in the economy.

The excavation of the lower-layer cultural remains at Zhoudi pushes the Neolithic culture of the Dongting Lake region back to 7,000 years ago.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units