Shang-Dynasty Town Discovered in Northern China

SHAANXI PROVINCE, CHINA—Traces of a Bronze Age town covering more than a square mile and a cemetery containing aristocratic tombs have been discovered at the Zhaigou archaeology site in northern China's Shaanxi Province, according to a Live Science report. In the past, individual structures and tombs had been found by local people, but the extent of the settlement has now become clear, explained Xu Lianggao of China’s Institute of Archaeology. Artifacts recovered from the 3,000-year-old site include bronze drinking vessels, painted pottery, ornaments inlaid with turquoise, and carved jade. Bronze pieces of horse chariots and horse remains have also been recovered from some of the tombs. The town is now thought to have been the largest in the Yellow River basin at the time, and may have been captured by the rulers of the Shang Dynasty, who were based in what is now neighboring Henan province. To read about another major recent discovery in Shaanxi Province go to "Top 10 Discoveries of the Decade: Neolithic City of Shimao."