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Recently, tourists took photos in Nihewan National Archaeological Site Park. Photo by Hebei Daily reporter Guo Xiaotong
The sun shines on the Sangan River. On July 28th, we walked into the northwest of Hebei Province and walked into the Nihewan National Archaeological Site Park in Datianwa Township, Yangyuan County, Zhangjiakou City, and explored the footprints of oriental humans in the Nihewan Ruins Group, a ravine-crisscrossing place that has gone through the vicissitudes of time.
Exploring the origin and evolution of human beings and the origin and development of civilization is a scientific topic of worldwide significance. In the twenties of the last century, when Yangshao Village and other sites were first excavated, a group of paleontological fossils officially entered the field of vision of scientists in Nihewan Village in northwest Hebei. Since then, the evolution process of oriental human beings and the history of civilization development nurtured by this mysterious land have gradually been revealed to the world.
So, what is the charm of the Nihewan ruins? What kind of public cultural space is Nihewan National Archaeological Site Park?
At the entrance to the park, the first thing that catches your eye is the south gate, which is designed in the shape of a paleolithic "pointed scraper". "You see, the design here is unique - the entrance eaves are lifted, which means that the door to the origin of mankind is opened, and the mysterious journey of exploring millions of years of ancient humans in Nihe Bay is embarked." Ji Chunru, the docent of Nihewan National Archaeological Site Park, introduced.
The ruins of Xiaochangliang in the ruins park are important places to visit. When you walk to the edge of the cliff, there are already many tourists looking at the mountains in the distance. "The sky is high and the clouds are light, there are thousands of ravines, and a million years at a glance - when you come here, you really feel like you have returned to ancient times, and a sense of pride arises spontaneously." Liu Yueqian, a tourist from Beijing, told us that many years ago, on the first step of the Chinese historical bronze corridor at the China Millennium Monument in Beijing, we saw the name of the Xiaochangliang site engraved with it. Since then, I have always been full of yearning for Nihe Bay, and this time I specially brought my family to explore the footprints of ancient humans.
"In recent years, more and more people have come here to find the roots of civilization." Ji Chunru said that the results of paleomagnetic dating confirmed that the Xiaochangliang site was 1.36 million years old, and it was the first ancient human cultural site found in the Nihewan site group that was more than one million years old. This important milestone in the history of paleolithic archaeology in China has now become an important sample to tell the story of human development in the East for millions of years.
July 10, Nihewan National Archaeological Site Park. Photo by Hebei Daily reporter Gong Zhenglong
Over the past 100 years, Nihewan research has made a series of important discoveries: the Maquangou site 1.76 million years ago, the Xiaochangliang site 1.36 million years ago, the Donggutuo site 1.1 million years ago, the Maliang site 790,000 years ago, the Shandui site group more than 300,000 years ago, the Houjiayao site 200,000 to 160,000 years ago, the Banjingzi site 90,000 to 80,000 years ago, the Xibaimaying site 45,000 years ago, and the Hutouliang site group 16,000 to 5,000 years ago......
"At present, the number of paleolithic sites in the Nihewan basin has increased to more than 300. These large, centrally distributed, and continuous cultural relics of ancient human beings have constructed a nearly complete cultural sequence of the Paleolithic in East Asia. Wang Fagang, a researcher at the Hebei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, said that outside of Africa, Nihewan is the most complete and continuous record of human evolution in the world. ”
Bringing to life the heritage that is on display on the vast land. In recent years, Nihewan has made efforts to create a national archaeological site park, strengthen the protection of cultural resources, and play a leading role in the reality of ancient ruins. At the end of 2022, Nihewan was included in the fourth batch of national archaeological site parks, and the site park was officially put into operation in June 2023.
Today, the quaint heritage park has become a beautiful cultural business card. In the ruins park square, the iconic building, the statue of the ancient apes, has a deep gaze, watching all living beings. The 20 steps in front of the sculpture are the image display of the Quaternary international standard strata of Nihewan deposited by fluvial-lacustrine facies, representing nearly 2 million years of human evolutionary history.
"The heritage park is a specific public cultural space, which has the functions of scientific research, education, and recreation. Let people 'come and see' is the direction of our efforts. Sun Yongchun, head of the Cultural Relics and Environmental Protection Bureau of the Management Committee of the Nihewan Ruins Group Conservation Area in Hebei Province, told us that the Nihewan National Archaeological Site Park has become an important carrier for exploring cultural roots and a living landmark for displaying splendid civilization.
Under the leadership of the staff, we walked into the Nihewan Research Center of Hebei Province. Through the bright glass, I saw scientific researchers from all over the world operating precision instruments, concentrating on the study of stone cores, stone leaves and other stone tools. In an exhibition hall, stone tools and animal fossils are displayed, and on the wall are hung maps of Nihewan, research results of phases, and photos of Chinese and foreign scientists who have carried out research in Nihewan. At the excavation site of Maquangou site, the huge steel structure protection shed shrouds the "elephant dining table", vividly presenting to people the "meal" scene of ancient human groups dismembering animal remains, scraping meat for food, knocking bones and sucking marrow 1.76 million years ago, which can be called "the first meal of oriental human beings......
A statue of an ancient ape in the Nihewan National Archaeological Site Park on July 10. Photo by Hebei Daily reporter Gong Zhenglong
Nihewan is a group of heritage sites with global influence, how to further play the social function of the heritage park and tell the story of Nihewan?
"On the one hand, we will continue to promote the implementation of site display and interpretation, and on the other hand, we will continue to expand the ways and channels of storytelling." Sun Yongchun said that in recent years, authoritative experts have been invited to plan and compile a series of popular science books such as "Archaeological Dictionary of Nihewan" and "Yangyuan Nihewan - Oriental Humans Come from Here", and completed the production of 10 episodes of micro-documentaries "Dreaming of Nihewan · Visiting the Hometown of Oriental Humans", providing interesting display and interactive experience for young people's research and education through immersive digital films...... This year, the "International Symposium on the 100th Anniversary of Scientific Discovery in Nihewan" will also be organized, and the series of documentaries "Searching for Ancient China · Millions of Years of Oriental Mankind" will be filmed.
"Since its listing more than a year ago, it has received 150,000 Chinese and foreign tourists. There are 10,000 acres of apricot forest in the park, the apricot blossoms are fragrant in spring, and the apricot fruits are full of branches in summer, which has also become a beautiful scenery of cultural tourism. Li Zhijun, executive deputy director of the Management Committee of Hebei Nihewan Ruins Group Conservation Area, said that the Beijing-Zhangjiakou sports and cultural tourism belt is accelerating, and Nihewan is accelerating the formation of a comprehensive national archaeological site park integrating scientific research, education and tourism, which is expected to become the leader of the integrated development of local culture and tourism.
In January this year, Nihewan National Archaeological Site Park was rated as a national 4A-level tourist attraction; The Maquangou site display and upgrading project approved by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage has completed the design plan in June and has been approved by the Hebei Provincial Bureau of Cultural Heritage; The Nihewan Site Museum, which has attracted much attention, is currently fully entering the stage of interior decoration and exhibition, and is scheduled to be put into trial operation in November this year, which will become an important window to display the million-year human history, 10,000-year cultural history and more than 5,000-year civilization history of the Nihewan Basin......
Ruins, mountains, and excavation scenes are being combined; The ancient, the present, and the future are running through ...... "Nihewan is a rare complex heritage site with a high degree of integration of natural and cultural heritage in China and even in the world. Last year, we officially launched the inscription process. I believe that the day when Nihewan will be included in the World Heritage List will be closer and closer! Li Zhijun is full of expectations for the future of Nihewan.
Source: Hebei Daily