The Dawenkou culture was a Chinese
Neolithic
The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...
culture primarily located in the eastern province of
Shandong
Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region.
Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
, but also appearing in
Anhui
Anhui , (; formerly romanized as Anhwei) is a landlocked province of the People's Republic of China, part of the East China region. Its provincial capital and largest city is Hefei. The province is located across the basins of the Yangtze River ...
,
Henan
Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
and
Jiangsu
Jiangsu (; ; pinyin: Jiāngsū, Postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Kiangsu or Chiangsu) is an Eastern China, eastern coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province of the China, People's Republic of China. It is o ...
. The culture existed from 4300 to 2600 BC, and co-existed with the
Yangshao culture
The Yangshao culture (仰韶文化, pinyin: Yǎngsháo wénhuà) was a Neolithic culture that existed extensively along the middle reaches of the Yellow River in China from around 5000 BC to 3000 BC. The culture is named after the Yangsh ...
.
Turquoise
Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrated phosphate of copper and aluminium, with the chemical formula . It is rare and valuable in finer grades and has been prized as a gemstone and ornamental stone for thousands of yea ...
,
jade
Jade is a mineral used as jewellery or for ornaments. It is typically green, although may be yellow or white. Jade can refer to either of two different silicate minerals: nephrite (a silicate of calcium and magnesium in the amphibole group of ...
and
ivory
Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals is ...
artefacts are commonly found at Dawenkou sites. The earliest examples of
alligator drum
The alligator drum () is a type of drum once used in Neolithic China, made from clay and alligator hides.
Alligator drums have been found over a broad area at the Neolithic sites from modern Shandong in the east to Qinghai in the west, dating to ...
s appear at Dawenkou sites.
Neolithic signs, perhaps related to subsequent scripts, such as those of the
Shang dynasty
The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty founded by Tang of Shang (Cheng Tang) that ruled in the Yellow River valley in the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and ...
, have been found on Dawenkou pottery.
Chronology
![Painted Pottery Dou with Octagram Design](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0b/Painted_Pottery_Dou_with_Octagram_Design.jpg)
Archaeologists commonly divide the culture into three phases: the early phase (4100–3500 BC), the middle phase (3500–3000 BC) and the late phase (3000–2600 BC). Based on the evidence from grave goods, the early phase was highly egalitarian. The phase is typified by the presence of individually designed, long-stemmed cups. Graves built with earthen ledges became increasingly common during the latter parts of the early phase. During the middle phase, grave goods began to emphasize quantity over diversity. During the late phase, wooden coffins began to appear in Dawenkou burials. The culture became increasingly stratified, as some graves contained no grave goods while others contained a large quantity of grave goods.
The type site at Dawenkou, located in
Tai'an
Tai'an () is a prefecture-level city in Western Shandong Province of the People's Republic of China. Centered on Mount Tai, the city borders the provincial capital of Jinan to the north, Zibo to the east, Linyi to the southeast, Liaocheng to ...
, Shandong, was excavated in 1959, 1974 and 1978. Only the middle layer at Dawenkou is associated with the Dawenkou culture, as the earliest layer corresponds to the
Beixin culture
The Beixin culture (5300–4100 BC) was a Neolithic culture in Shandong, China. It was the successor of the Houli culture (6500–5500 BC) and precursor of the Dawenkou culture (4100–2600 BC).
The type site at Beixin was discovered in Tengzh ...
and the latest layer corresponds to the early Shandong variant of the
Longshan culture
The Longshan (or Lung-shan) culture, also sometimes referred to as the Black Pottery Culture, was a late Neolithic culture in the middle and lower Yellow River valley areas of northern China from about 3000 to 1900 BC. The first archaeological fi ...
.
Political organization
The term "chiefdom" seems to be appropriate in describe the political organization of the Dawenkou. A dominant kin group likely held sway over Dawenkou village sites, though power was most likely manifested through religious authority rather than coercion. Unlike the Beixin culture from which they descend, the people of the Dawenkou culture were noted for being engaged in violent conflict. Scholars suspect that they may have engaged in raids for land, crops, livestock and prestige goods.
Agriculture and diet
The warm and wet climate of the Dawenkou area was suitable for a variety of crops, though they primarily farmed millet at most sites. Their production of millet was quite successful and storage containers have been found that could have contained up to 2000 kg of millet, once decomposition is accounted for, have been found. For some of the southern Dawenkou sites, rice was a more important crop however, especially during the late Dawenkou period. Analysis done on human remains at Dawenkou sites in southern
Shandong
Shandong ( , ; ; alternately romanized as Shantung) is a coastal province of the People's Republic of China and is part of the East China region.
Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history since the beginning of Chinese civilizati ...
revealed that the diet of upper-class Dawenkou individuals consisted mainly of rice, while ordinary individuals ate primarily millet.
The Dawenkou people successfully domesticated chicken, dogs, pigs and cattle, but no evidence of horse domestication was found. Pig remains are by far most abundant, accounting for about 85% of the total, and are thought to be the most important domesticated animal. Pig remains were also found in Dawenkou burials also highlighting their importance. Seafood was also an important staple of the Dawenkou diet. Fish and various shellfish mounds have been found in the early periods indicating that they were important food sources. Although these piles became less frequent in the later stages, seafood remained an important part of the diet.
Culture
Dawenkou's inhabitants were one of the earliest practitioners of
trepanation
Trepanning, also known as trepanation, trephination, trephining or making a burr hole (the verb ''trepan'' derives from Old French from Medieval Latin from Greek , literally "borer, auger"), is a surgical intervention in which a hole is drill ...
in prehistoric China. A skull of a Dawenkou man dating to 3000 BC was found with severe head injuries which appeared to have been remedied by this primitive surgery. Alligator hide drums have also been found in Dawenkou sites.
File:Dawenkou Culture Jade Necklace 01.jpg, Jade necklace, dated between 3500 and 2600 BC
File:20210529 Red pottery animal-shaped pot on display at Zhengzhou Museum.jpg, Red animal-shaped vessel
File:镂雕弦纹象牙梳08773.jpg, Ivory comb with openwork design
File:Yanzhou Museum 2015.08.13 15-22-17.jpg, Ceramic bracelets or rings
File:Bowl, Dawenkou Culture, 3500 BCE Nanjing.jpg, Painted bowl, dated circa 3500 BC
File:Dawenkou Culture Stone Adze.jpg, Stone adze
An adze (; alternative spelling: adz) is an ancient and versatile cutting tool similar to an axe but with the cutting edge perpendicular to the handle rather than parallel. Adzes have been used since the Stone Age. They are used for smoothing ...
Interactions with other cultures
The Dawenkou interacted extensively with the
Yangshao
The Yangshao culture (仰韶文化, pinyin: Yǎngsháo wénhuà) was a Neolithic culture that existed extensively along the middle reaches of the Yellow River in China from around 5000 BC to 3000 BC. The culture is named after the Yangsh ...
culture. "For two and a half millennia of its existence the Dawenkou was, however, in a dynamic interchange with the Yangshao Culture, in which process of interaction it sometimes had the lead role, notably in generating Longshan.
Scholars have also noted similarities between the Dawenkou and the
Liangzhu culture
The Liangzhu culture (; 3300–2300 BC) was the last Neolithic jade culture in the Yangtze River Delta of China. The culture was highly stratified, as jade, silk, ivory and lacquer artifacts were found exclusively in elite burials, while pottery ...
as well as the related cultures of the Yantze River basin. According to some scholars, the Dawenkou culture may have a link with a pre-
Austronesian language.
Other researchers also note a similarity between Dawenkou inhabitants and modern
Austronesian people
The Austronesian peoples, sometimes referred to as Austronesian-speaking peoples, are a large group of peoples in Taiwan, Maritime Southeast Asia, Micronesia, coastal New Guinea, Island Melanesia, Polynesia, and Madagascar that speak Austrones ...
in cultural practices such as
tooth avulsion
Dental avulsion is the complete displacement of a tooth from its socket in alveolar bone owing to trauma. Normally, a tooth is connected to the socket by the periodontal ligament. When a tooth is knocked out, the ligament is torn.
Avulsed perma ...
and architecture. However, the Dawenkou appeared to be genetically distinct from the pre-Austronesian cultures to their south.
Physical characteristics
The physical similarity of the
Jiahu people to the later Dawenkou (2600 BC±4300 BC) indicates that the Dawenkou might have descended from the Jiahu, following a slow migration along the middle and lower reaches of the Huai river and the Hanshui valley. Other scholars have also speculated that the Dawenkou originate in nearby regions to the south. The Dawenkou culture descends from the
Beixin culture
The Beixin culture (5300–4100 BC) was a Neolithic culture in Shandong, China. It was the successor of the Houli culture (6500–5500 BC) and precursor of the Dawenkou culture (4100–2600 BC).
The type site at Beixin was discovered in Tengzh ...
, but is deeply influenced by the northward expanding Longqiuzhuang culture located between the Yangtze and Huai rivers.
The people of Dawenkou exhibited a primarily
Sinodont
In anthropology, Sinodonty and Sundadonty are two patterns of features widely found in the dentitions of different populations in East Asia and Southeast Asia. These two patterns were identified by anthropologist Christy G. Turner II as being ...
dental pattern.
The Dawenkou were also physically dissimilar to the Neolithic inhabitants of
Hemudu
The Hemudu culture (5500 BC to 3300 BC) was a Neolithic culture that flourished just south of the Hangzhou Bay in Jiangnan in modern Yuyao, Zhejiang, China. The culture may be divided into early and late phases, before and after 4000 BC respecti ...
, Southern China and Taiwan.
DNA testing revealed that neolithic inhabitants of Shandong were closer to northern East Asians.
Gallery
File:Jinan 2009 1143.jpg, Painted bowl and beaker
File:National Museum of China 2014.02.01 15-02-56.jpg, Two white ceramic pitchers (''guī'' 鬹)
File:National Museum of China 2014.02.01 15-03-26.jpg, Two painted red jars
File:National Museum of China 2014.02.01 14-57-21.jpg
File:Zoucheng Museum 2015.08.14 16-25-27.jpg
File:Dawenkou black pottery goblets. Jinan museum.jpg, Black stemmed goblets
File:新石器時代大汶口文化 陶鬹-Tripod Vessel (Gui) MET DP-12552-001.jpg, Tripod pitcher
File:Dawenkou suncloud.svg, Symbol found on numerous Dawenkou pottery sherds, sometimes interpreted as a sun and cloud
See also
*
List of Neolithic cultures of China
This is a list of Neolithic cultures of China that have been unearthed by archaeologists. They are sorted in chronological order from earliest to latest and are followed by a schematic visualization of these cultures.
It would seem that the defin ...
*
Longshan culture
The Longshan (or Lung-shan) culture, also sometimes referred to as the Black Pottery Culture, was a late Neolithic culture in the middle and lower Yellow River valley areas of northern China from about 3000 to 1900 BC. The first archaeological fi ...
*
Richard J. Pearson
Richard Joseph Pearson (born May 2, 1938) is a Canadian archaeology, archaeologist.
He grew up in Toronto and Oakville, Ontario, and graduated with a bachelor's degree at the University of Toronto in 1960. Richard Pearson studied at the Univers ...
– this Canadian archaeologist has published extensively on Dawenkou burials and social status (see Selected Bibliography of Pearson).
*
Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors
The Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors were two groups of mythological rulers in ancient north China. The Three Sovereigns supposedly lived long before The Five Emperors, who have been assigned dates in a period from 3162 BC to 2070 BC. Today ...
*
Yangshao culture
The Yangshao culture (仰韶文化, pinyin: Yǎngsháo wénhuà) was a Neolithic culture that existed extensively along the middle reaches of the Yellow River in China from around 5000 BC to 3000 BC. The culture is named after the Yangsh ...
References
* Allan, Sarah (ed), ''The Formation of Chinese Civilization: An Archaeological Perspective'',
* Liu, Li. ''The Chinese Neolithic: Trajectories to Early States'',
* Underhill, Anne P. '' Craft Production and Social Change in Northern China'',
{{Neolithic cultures of China
Neolithic cultures of China
History of Shandong
5th-millennium BC establishments