Research Articles

A preliminary study of the multi-crops planting system in the central plains of the early Shang Dynasty: Taking the Wangjinglou site in Xinzheng of Henan as an example

  • Ning WANG ,
  • Zhecheng SANG ,
  • Xiaobin LIU ,
  • Qian WU
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  • 1. School of History, Culture and Tourism, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou 221116
    2. Zhenjiang Museum, Zhenjiang 212002
    3. Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology of Zhengzhou, Zhengzhou 450007

Received date: 2020-04-30

  Online published: 2021-04-09

Abstract

The development of the agricultural economy is one of the most important prerequisites for the formation of the Chinese civilization. As the core area of the capital of the Xia and Shang dynasty, the Zhengluo area has always been the focus of academic research. Related research shows that the emergence of multi-crop planting systems in the Central Plains during the Longshan period may have played a vital role in the formation of the Chinese civilization. In order to explore the application of this planting system in the Central Plains in the early Shang Dynasty, this paper selects 29 cases of limbs and 23 cases of ribs of human at the Wangjinglou site, Xinzheng, Henan Province belonging to the Xia and Shang dynasty (from Erlitou culture to Erligang culture) and carry out the C and N stable isotope analysis. The results show that the δ13C value of the human bones varied from -18.1‰ to -7.0‰, with an average value of -9.5‰±2.1‰ (n=52), and the δ15N value varied from 7.3‰ to 10.5‰, with an average value of 8.9‰± 0.7‰ (n=52), indicating that people still relied primarily on C4 foods, but also contained a small amount of C3 foods, proving that the multi- crop planting system that emerged in the Central Plains since the Longshan period was continued in the Shang dynasty. However, the dominant position of millet-based agriculture has not changed significantly, which may be related to the traditional habit of dry farming in the Central Plains.

Cite this article

Ning WANG , Zhecheng SANG , Xiaobin LIU , Qian WU . A preliminary study of the multi-crops planting system in the central plains of the early Shang Dynasty: Taking the Wangjinglou site in Xinzheng of Henan as an example[J]. Acta Anthropologica Sinica, 2022 , 41(01) : 96 -107 . DOI: 10.16359/j.1000-3193/AAS.2021.0004

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