Li Xuan of Luoyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology is entitled "New Progress in Archaeological Discovery and Research at longquan cave site in Luanchuan, Henan in 2014-2021".
This project is carried out in cooperation with Luoyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology and Henan University of Science and Technology. The site of Longquan Cave in Luanchuan, Henan is a cave (Rock House) site from the late Paleolithic period. From 2014 to 2021, more than 37,000 relics were unearthed, including a large number of stone products, animal fossils and bone products, and fire relics such as ashes and fire ponds were also found. Studies have shown that the ancient humans of Longquan Cave, about 43,000-31,000 years ago (after correction), have always maintained a simple stone core stone chip technology tradition, and the stripping, repair and use of stone products reflect the flexibility and arbitrariness of ancient humans, and ancient humans will choose different production strategies in the face of different forms and states of stone. The stone tools of this period may not be the main tools in the daily life of the ancient humans of Longquandong, they have the ability to manufacture bone, wooden tools, etc. that may be more suitable, can flexibly use various resources, have a certain spatial planning and mature ability to use fire, and these behaviors reflect their thinking, consciousness and other aspects of the transformation and cognitive progress, so that they can face the complex living environment, stand out and survive. The Longquan Cave site is of great significance for the in-depth discussion of the behavior patterns of modern humans in China and East Asia.
[The report was published at the 2021 Henan Archaeological Work Achievements Exchange Conference, on the morning of December 17, 2021, Nanyang, Henan. 】
Traces of ancient human fire from 30,000 to 40,000 years ago were found in Luanchuan, Henan
World Wide Web Release date: 2019-02-28
Excavation area of the Longquan Cave site. (Courtesy of Luoyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology)
The three fire pits are arranged in the shape of "pins", and each fire pond is surrounded by stones in a nearly circular shape. Archaeologists have conducted experiments, and in such a fire pit, the open flame can still be re-ignited after a period of time.
"Ancient humans, who are about 30,000 to 40,000 years old, have mastered this technique of using fire, using stones to control the extent and extent of flame burning." Gu Xuejun, the main excavation leader of the Luanchuan Paleolithic Site Group project in Henan, said that researchers are extracting and analyzing the residues in the fire remnants in order to restore the ancient human way of life.
After years of efforts, archaeologists have found 1 ash and 4 fire ponds at the Site of Longquan Cave in Luanchuan, which is the first time that fire relics have been found in the Luanchuan Paleolithic Ruins Group, which is famous for ancient human caves. "Most of the sites have only a pile of ashes in the fire traces, and the clear structure of the Longquan Cave fire pit is very rare in archaeological excavations in the same period." Gu Xuejun said.
Remains of a fire pond found at the site of Longquan Cave. (Courtesy of Luoyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology)
"30,000 to 40,000 years ago was a critical period in the formation of modern humans, and Luanchuan was located on the dividing line between the north and south of China's physical geography. The archaeological excavations of Longquan Cave are of great significance to the study of regional early human evolution, the origin of Chinese civilization, and paleoenvironmental changes. Shi Jiazhen, president of the Luoyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, said.
Since 2014, the Luoyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology and the Luanchuan County Cultural Relics Management Institute have conducted continuous excavations of the Longquan Cave site. In the excavation area of about 20 square meters, after "sieve" excavation, more than 23,000 specimens of stone products, animal fossils, bone tools and other specimens have been excavated, and the stone products mainly include stone cores, stone chips, broken blocks, tools, etc.
"Compared with the first site of the Zhoukoudian site' 'Ape Man Cave', the two stone tools are mainly small, the difference is that the first site is mainly based on the smashing method, and the Longquan Cave is mainly based on the hammering method, which reflects the trend of the development of the main industry in northern China - the smashing technology is weakening day by day, and the hammering method is in an absolute advantage." Gu Xuejun said.
According to reports, the Site of Longquan Cave has also unearthed many exquisite bone tools, some of which have traces of fire and grinding. The discovery of fossil animals such as deer, cattle, sheep, rhinoceros and carnivores has been a treasure for archaeologists.
Bone artifacts excavated from the Longquan Cave site. (Courtesy of Luoyang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology)
"The study of animal fossils can analyze and reconstruct the paleoenvironment of the area around the site, and then reveal the tendency, mode and coupling relationship between humans and the environment to obtain meat-eating resources at that time, and understand the survival patterns, habitat forms and group organization forms of ancient humans." Gu Xuejun said.
The Luanchuan Paleolithic Site Group is a rare area where early Homo sapiens and Homo erectus (ape man) fossils coexist in China, and the Longquan Cave site was shortlisted for the 2018 China Top Ten Archaeological New Discoveries Preliminary Review. Shi Jiazhen said that in order to further protect the site and activate the archaeological achievements, the Luanchuan Paleolithic Site will build a comprehensive archaeological base integrating scientific research, science popularization and cultural creation. At present, the project has completed the work of site selection, scientific research and project establishment.
A large number of human activity remains have been found at the site of Longquan Cave in Luanchuan County, Henan
(Originally published in: Luoyang Evening News, August 15, 2017, page A07)
Archaeological site
On the 14th, the Luoyang Evening News reporter learned from the Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology that there have been new advances in the paleolithic archaeological excavations in Luanchuan County: a large number of human activity remains have been found at the Site of Longquan Cave, which is about 30,000 to 40,000 years old, just in the critical period of the formation of modern humans, providing important clues for human evolution research.
The site of Longquan Cave, located on the north side of the west gate of Longquan Mountain Park in Luanchuan County, was discovered during the third national cultural relics census in 2008 and began excavations in 2012. Because Paleolithic sites are so precious, excavations need to be slower and more detailed. The Luoyang Evening News reporter saw at the scene yesterday that the roof of longquan cave has long collapsed, only the outer part of the cave has not been crushed by boulders, and the archaeological staff is seriously cleaning up the area.
With fire relics
At the excavation site of about 20 square meters, archaeologists found 3 traces of fire use, and excavated nearly 13,000 specimens, including stone products, animal fossils and bone tools. Among them, the excavated bone tools are finely made and have grinding marks, reflecting a high level of craftsmanship.
Gu Xuejun, a staff member of the Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, who is responsible for the on-site work, introduced that the most important discoveries of this excavation are 3 fire relics, which are arranged in the shape of "pins", and are surrounded by stones to form a near circle.
"The role of the stone is to control the degree and range of fire, and such a well-structured fire remnant is extremely rare in archaeological excavations of the same period." Shi Jiazhen, president of the Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, said that in the next step, they will extract and analyze the residues in the fire relics, and strive to have a clearer understanding of the activities of ancient humans and the communication between people.
At the recent symposium of archaeologists at the Longquan Cave site, many authoritative archaeological experts from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Peking University and other units gave high praise to the site, believing that the archaeological excavation of the site has clear academic goals, complete planning, standardized, meticulous and rigorous excavations; important relics and relics have been discovered, the specimens unearthed are rich in variety, and the structure of fire relics is clear, providing a basis for restoring the appearance of human activities in the Paleolithic Age.
Experts such as Wang Youping, a professor at Peking University's School of Archaeology and Archaeology, and Gao Xing, a researcher at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said that 30,000 to 40,000 years ago was a critical period of human evolution, and modern humans appeared in this period. Europe has done a lot of excavation and research work in this period, but relatively little work has been done in East Asia, so the discovery of this site will play an extremely important role in the study of modern human origins. (Reporter Pan Lige/Wen Zhang Bin/Photo)