SEAA News Blog: China

A UCLA Chinese Archaeology Workshop presented by Center for Chinese Studies, Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, Global Antiquity, and the UCLA East Asian Library. It will take place on March 28, from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM, at Young Research Library Presentation Room.

Speakers: Tian Yaqi and Chen Aidong (Shaanxi Provincial Academy of Archaeology)

Commentators: Lothar Von Falkenhausen, David Schaberg, Li Min (UCLA)

Topics:
Recent Archaeological Study of the City Yong of the Qin State
Tian Yaqi (Researcher, Shaanxi Provincial Academy of Archaeology)

Northwest China is known for its Majiayao-style Neolithic painted pottery which has received much praise for its high level of craftsmanship, yet its chain of production, in particular the step of raw material selection, is still poorly understood. To fill this lacuna, the present study explores the raw materials used in producing these wares from a geological and technological perspective.

Horse Power will examine the complex interactions between the eastern steppe and China from the second millennium BCE to the formation of the Xiongnu empire in Mongolia and the Qin state in China after 300 BCE. To examine the connections between the steppe, Mongolia and China’s Central Plains we will combine the latest scientific techniques in genetics and metallurgical analysis with theory concerning politics and power within and between China and its northern neighbours.

This book by Evgenia Dammer is the first comprehensive study of the technological knowledge needed to produce Neolithic Majiayao-style pottery (5300-4000 cal yr BP) which is famous for its painted designs in black and red. It examines the technological choices in the production of fine and coarse Majiayao-style pottery found across three river valleys, all located near the border area of Chinese provinces Gansu and Qinghai.