Yinping Site

Yinping Site

The Yinping Site is a cultural heritage protection unit of Sichuan Province.

The Yinping Site is located in Xiaoxiba Town. As a relic from the Southern Song Dynasty, it spans an area of 10,000 square meters. It was discovered in 1999 during the construction of the Mian-Guang Expressway, and salvage excavations were carried out by the Provincial Institute of Archaeology from January to April 2001. The cultural layers at the Yinping Site are approximately two meters thick, reaching up to three meters in some areas. The site has yielded a large quantity of architectural remains such as roof tiles, fired earth, and stone components. Over a hundred valuable cultural relics have been unearthed, including pottery bowls, dishes, cups, saucers, jars, and vats, as well as celadon porcelain from the Jingdezhen kilns of the Song Dynasty, celadon from Longquan in Zhejiang, ceramics from Yaozhou Kiln in Tongchuan, Shaanxi, and black-glazed porcelain from Guangyuan Kiln in Sichuan. There were also small quantities of bronze ware, fragmented ironware, and animal bone fragments. The ancient city of Yinping can be traced back to the period when Deng Ai of the Three Kingdoms era launched his campaign against Shu. At that time, the Yinping Ancient Road was rugged with overlapping mountains and crisscrossing valleys, making transportation and camping extremely difficult. The Tong River, originating from the dense forests of Zangwangzhai and Majiaoba in Jiangyou City, forms a large bend in the Yinping Basin. Due to the action of the flowing water, it created a mountain plain covering an area of over 500,000 square meters, providing convenient conditions for the military to set up camps and replenish supplies. Records from the "Zitong County Annals" and "Jiangyou County Annals" state: "During the Yongjia era (307–312 AD) of Emperor Huai of the Western Jin Dynasty, to resettle the people of Yinping County (now Wen County, Gansu), who had fled to Shu due to war, a relocated Yinping County was established in Xiaoxiba’s Yinping Village, along with a relocated Yinping Commandery." Starting from the Western Jin Dynasty, successive dynasties established counties and commanderies in Yinping, continuing through the Liu Song, Southern Qi, Northern Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, and Song periods, spanning over a thousand years of history. By the Song Dynasty, the ancient Yinping Commandery had developed into a fairly large settlement with frequent external interactions. The "Jiangyou County Annals" record: "In the second year of the Duanping era (1235 AD) of Emperor Lizong of the Song Dynasty, the ancient Yinping Commandery was destroyed in a military conflagration and was subsequently abandoned." The discovery of this site is of great significance for studying the daily life, trade activities, and cultural exchanges of local residents during the Song Dynasty.

Further Reading:

· Ninth Batch of Cultural Heritage Protection Units of Sichuan Province