Luojiaba Ba People Cultural Site

　　Luojiaba Ba People Cultural Site is a national key cultural relics protection unit approved by the State Council in the fifth batch of such designations. The first excavation was conducted in 1999, uncovering a Ba people cultural site with extremely deep cultural strata—11 layers in total, with the deepest layer reaching 2.75 meters. These strata span the late Neolithic Age, as well as the Xia, Shang, Zhou, and Han dynasties. This excavation brought widespread fame to the Luojiaba site, which, along with the Jinsha Site in Chengdu and the large ancient Shu boat-coffin and log-coffin burial site on Commercial Street in Chengdu, has been hailed as “three radiant pearls of ancient Bashu culture following the Sanxingdui Site.” By 2004, over 20,000 square meters of living quarters and burial areas had been discovered, including 24 ash pits and 23 tombs. These tombs exhibit typical characteristics of Ba people burials: they are densely and orderly arranged, oriented either north-south with an eastward deviation or south-north with a westward deviation. All are narrow vertical earthen pit graves with supine, extended burials, and most skeletal remains are well-preserved. The tombs often overlap and cut into one another, all dating to the middle to late Warring States period. All excavated tombs contain typical combinations of Ba people grave goods. Male tombs mainly include weapons such as bronze swords, spears, arrowheads, as well as pottery items like cauldrons and jars, while female tombs contain spinning whorls, beads, jade tubes, and the like. Preliminary statistics indicate that more than 30 pieces of bronze ware, over 40 pieces of pottery, and hundreds of pottery fragments have been unearthed at the site, many of which were found at Luojiaba for the first time.

　　The Luojiaba Site is located in Jinhua Village, Puguang Township, Xuanhan County, Sichuan Province, covering a total area of 500,000 square meters. The site features rich cultural strata, spanning from the Neolithic Age, Shang and Zhou periods, the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, all the way to the Han Dynasty. Unearthed bronze items include swords, cauldrons, axes, chisels, spears, belt hooks, and arrowheads, in addition to pottery such as zun vessels, cauldrons, dou vessels, and spinning whorls, as well as various jade and stone artifacts.

　　The cultural characteristics of the Luojiaba Site are distinctly local, making it extremely valuable for the study of ancient Ba culture and its interactions with Central Plains culture, Chu culture, Qin culture, and Shu culture. The clearly stratified tombs unearthed here provide a basis for addressing the chronological classification of Bashu culture. With its vast area, excellent preservation, and rich content, the Luojiaba Site has become an important base for studying the primitive cultures of northeastern Sichuan, particularly ancient Ba culture. In July 2001, the Luojiaba Site was designated by the State Council as a fifth batch national key cultural relics protection unit.

　　The Luojiaba Site covers a total area of 750 mu, including the inner and outer Luojiaba dams and Zhangjiaba, situated in a hilly mountainous region surrounded by water on three sides and backed by a mountain, with lush forests. The site is naturally protected by surrounding rivers and remains well-preserved. Between 1999 and 2003, two large-scale excavations were carried out, unearthing 39 tombs, 50 ash pits, 31 postholes, one house foundation, and three hearths. Nearly 700 artifacts made of bronze, pottery, jade, stone, bone, and iron, as well as over 1,000 fragmented items, were discovered. Surveys identified a site area and burial zone spanning over 20,000 square meters. The second excavation uncovered 33 tombs, 31 ash pits, 28 postholes, with the deepest cultural layer reaching 2.5 meters. Nearly 600 funerary artifacts made of bronze, pottery, jade, iron, bone, and stone were unearthed, including approximately 300 pieces of bronze ware from the tombs. For the first time in eastern Sichuan Ba people tombs from the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, traces of what are believed to be lacquered coffin boards—possibly boat coffins—were found. Also for the first time in this region and period, a noble Ba person tomb was discovered, measuring 9 meters in length and 7.3 meters in width, containing nearly 200 funerary items. These included weapons such as ge (dagger-axes), spears, swords, arrowheads, and axes; ritual and daily-use vessels such as fu (ceremonial boards), dui (tripod vessels), fu (wine vessels), he (boxes), and ding (cauldrons); tools such as chisels and saws; Ba state pictographic seals; bronze, jade, and stone ornaments; a hollow bronze stand; fangs; and bones related to ritual sacrifices, including those of cattle, sheep, fish, and the remains of two women and one man likely buried as human sacrifices. These findings indicate the special and noble status of the tomb’s occupant and demonstrate the close connections between Ba culture and Chu, Shu, and Central Plains cultures. Major points of interest for visitors, aside from the site and tombs, include the Ba People Street and the ancient town square.