Master Archaeologist

Chapter 323 The Importance of Text

Next to the large glass pit of the No. [-] sacrificial pit, Chen Han, who was not wearing protective clothing, was thrusting his waist, looking at the nearby archaeological staff who were conducting field exploration around the sacrificial area.

Compared with Chen Han and the others who cleaned up cultural relics in the pit, these archaeologists who searched for the specific location of the Sanxingdui site and searched for the ancient ruins were undoubtedly more arduous and faced more complicated problems.

Chen Han shook his head in admiration, and praised these archaeologists in his heart.

This kind of work may not necessarily produce great results in five or ten years, but someone must do it.

Everyone who is willing to devote himself to this work is the hero behind the unknown!
Just as Chen Han sighed, Zhuang Yunpeng hurried over with a stack of A4 papers in the distance.

"Junior Brother Chen, the report from the research institute is out."

“研究院对近200个样品进行了碳14测年，测年数据集中在公元前1131年至1012年，除五号坑和六号坑年代稍晚之外，3号坑、4号坑、7号坑、8号坑的埋藏年代一致，为商代晚期，距今约3200年至3000年。”

"This sacrificial pit was all in the late Shang Dynasty."

"However, under the sacrificial area, there are also earlier residential areas superimposed!"

Chen Han took the report from his hand with some surprise, and immediately read it seriously.

This is a report on the phased research results after the re-excavation of Sanxingdui in the last two years.

From 2020 to 2022, a total of 1834 square meters will be excavated in the Sanxingdui sacrificial area.

It is basically confirmed that the sacrificial area is roughly distributed in a rectangular shape from northwest to southeast, parallel to the Sanxingdui city wall adjacent to the north, with an area of ​​nearly 13000 square meters.

According to the study, the remains of the Shang Dynasty distributed in the sacrificial area are all related to sacrificial activities, including the No. 1986 and No. 6 pits excavated in 8 and the [-] newly discovered pits. There are rectangular ditches around the [-] pits. troughs, small circular or rectangular sacrificial pits, ash ditch on the south side, and buildings in the northwest.

The plan of the building in the northwest is rectangular, with an area of ​​only 80 square meters. The construction procedure is complicated. Because there are similar buildings next to it, the building is likely to be part of a large building complex.

Precious cultural relics such as gold wares, copper rings, kneeling stone tigers, kneeling stone men, stone cong, stone bi, jade chisel, turquoise and ivory were unearthed in these ash ditches, building foundations and small sacrificial pits.

Most importantly, however, is the follow-up study of sacrificial pits 3, 4, and 5.

The cultural relics in these sacrificial pits have all been extracted.

However, the completion of the extraction of cultural relics does not mean that the research on these sacrificial pits is over.

Archaeologists, still under these sacrificial pits, continue to dig down!

And this excavation revealed a lot of archaeological surprises!

It can be confirmed that under the surface accumulation of the existing sacrificial area, there are also sacrificial pits where whole ivory or relatively complete jade tools are buried!
In other words, under the sacrificial pit, there is still a sacrificial pit!
This shows that the sacrificial area has been used for a long time. The 6 new pits excavated so far represent the sacrificial remains, which are the remains of the later stage of the sacrificial area, and are the uppermost sacrificial pits.

It is conservatively estimated that Sanxingdui people have used this sacrificial area for 700 years!

For 700 years, sacrifices have been carried out in this sacrificial area. Every time a hole is dug and filled, a new hole will be dug and filled again, layer upon layer!

The researchers found residential remains in the area outside the sacrificial area and in the early accumulations superimposed on the sacrificial area, mixed with more ash, burnt soil particles and broken pottery.

After dating, it can be determined that the residential remains superimposed by the sacrificial area are about 3800-3700 years old at the latest.

The residential remains outside the sacrificial area and superimposed on the sacrificial area date back about 3000 years at the earliest.

In other words, this sacrificial area changed from a residential area to an area dedicated to sacrificial offerings about 3800 years ago.

On the periphery of the sacrificial area, where the sacrificial area is superimposed, the earliest residential remains that can be found are 3000 years ago, indicating that the area outside the sacrificial area became a residential area as early as 3000 years ago.

When these dating figures are put together, a history of the evolution of this area 3000 years ago becomes clear.

As early as 3800 years ago, this sacrificial area was still the place where people from Sanxingdui lived.

Since then, this area has been used by the Sanxingdui civilization for special sacrifices.

By 3000 years ago, this sacrificial area was no longer used by Sanxingdui people for sacrifices, and it became a residential area again!
This shows that the time period when the Sanxingdui culture became extinct should be around 3000 years ago!

After the demise of Sanxingdui, this sacrificial area was no longer used for sacrifices, and was re-used as a place of residence by the descendants of the ancient Shu people!
Why can it be determined that the sacrificial area became the living area because the Sanxingdui civilization perished?

Because, if the Sanxingdui civilization has not perished, even if they do not intend to continue to use this sacrificial area, they will not directly live in this sacrificial area.

You must know that the remains of the residential area discovered 3000 years ago are partially superimposed on the sacrificial area!
In other words, the house was built directly on the sacrificial area!

"Sacrifice" is a very solemn and sacred occasion for this kind of civilization with a strong atmosphere of theocracy!
Let me ask, would the ancestors of Sanxingdui live on the sacrifices they sacrificed to their ancestors and gods?
What kind of audacity is this?
It's like a graveyard dance!

It is only possible that the ethnic groups and civilizations that originally performed large-scale sacrificial acts in this area perished for some reason. At least the main nobles and clergy died and were replaced by the new regime.

And there is a high probability that it is not a regime of Sanxingdui civilization, but a foreign ethnic group!
This makes it possible not to value the sacrificial area of ​​Sanxingdui civilization at all.

For example, even if the Zhou people destroyed the merchants, they did not let the merchants die. Not only did they entrust Wu Geng to manage the old land of the Shang Dynasty, but they also allowed Wu Geng to continue to worship the former emperors of the merchants.

Even if Wu Geng was killed in the rebellion later, the Zhou people also left a "Song State" to the merchants and continued to inherit the sacrifices of the merchants.

Because Zhou and Shang belonged to the same cultural circle, the reform of Shang in the Zhou Dynasty was actually an internal subjugation.

The demise of the Sanxingdui civilization was obviously not caused by an internal regime change, but by external forces.

This also just confirms why these bronze wares of the Sanxingdui civilization have such a unique style, but they only existed in the Sanxingdui period, and no bronze wares of a similar style appeared after that.

Because this civilization was completely destroyed, although the Sanxingdui people may not have completely died, at least the civilization is gone.

Therefore, these Sanxingdui cultures, which have been passed down for thousands of years, no longer survive.

The original bright Sanxingdui culture suddenly disappeared in history.

Because their culture is completely extinct.

Later, the Kingdom of Shu, which was established in the land of Shu, may have inherited the blood of many Sanxingdui people, but it did not inherit the culture of Sanxingdui civilization!
This makes the portraits of "Zongmu", bronze masks, gold masks and so on, only exist in this period and have not been handed down to later generations.

Unlike the various bronze styles of merchants, they were inherited and continued in the Zhou Dynasty.

"By the way, I found the residential area. If we dig deeper into the residential area, I wonder if we can find the text!" Chen Han said with some expectation.

Whether there are words or not is really very important to a civilization!
(End of this chapter)