Maozhong Primitive Settlement Site

　　Located at the eastern end of Maozhong Village, at the northwest corner of Chenzhangzhuang. The site was originally an oval-shaped mound, protruding 2 meters above the ground surface. This mound’s real name is Pingzhong; Maozhong was actually a Han Dynasty tomb located behind the village, 70 meters east of Pingzhong. It was rumored to be the tomb of “Marshal Mao,” but according to investigations in old local records from Xiangcheng, as well as the “Book of Han” and “Records of the Grand Historian,” there is no mention of any “Marshal Mao.” During the Cultural Revolution, the tomb was completely excavated. According to surveys, it was a multi-chambered brick tomb from the Han Dynasty, yielding a large number of pottery items and coins. There was a hole in the roof of the tomb chamber, suggesting it had likely been looted multiple times in earlier years. Today, the site has been leveled to the ground, though chunks of white lime can still be found lying around. Due to the grave destruction, the identity of this once presumably high-status individual remains unknown. Since the original “Maozhong” no longer exists, the name was shifted to “Pingzhong,” becoming a customary reference. In recent years, however, few people know about Pingzhong. Historical records indicate that Pingzhong predates Maozhong by several thousand years, so it is possible that the original reference to Maozhong may have actually been to Pingzhong. The so-called Pingzhong simply refers to a mound with a relatively flat terrain. Therefore, it is still called Maozhong today.

　　This is a primitive settlement site, measuring 198 meters from east to west and 300 meters from north to south. The southern part had already been quarried away by the kiln factory in SunDian Township before 1976. After it was designated as a county-level key cultural relics protection unit in 1978, the northern part was preserved. The remaining section is 198 meters long from east to west and 146 meters wide from north to south. Shang Dynasty tombs located in the western part of the kiln factory have yielded objects such as bronze dous (measuring vessels), bronze jue (wine vessels), and bronze ge (dagger-axes) from the middle to early Shang period. Clear stratigraphic relationships and cultural remains—including kilns, ash pits, and artifacts from the Yangshao, Longshan, and Shang-Zhou periods—can be observed in roadside ditches and excavated soil sections. Based on unearthed artifacts and collected samples, the original Yangshao culture remains include sand-tempered pottery tripods, plain clay-rimmed red pottery bowls, double-handled gray pottery basins, and ring-footed red pottery bowls. The original Longshan culture remains consist of gray pottery jars with grid patterns, polished black pottery basins, ring-footed or flat-bottomed gray pottery bowls, and ring-footed high-stem perforated gray pottery dou (food vessels). The original Shang-Zhou culture remains feature sand-tempered gray pottery jars with added clay bands, finely cord-marked gray pottery, pottery dous, li (tripod cauldrons), spiral-patterned black pottery basins, and ring-footed gray pottery dou.