The Chinese Neolithic: Trajectories to Early States

Description

The Yellow River valley of China, during the period ca. 7000-1500, saw the transformation of egalitarian societies into stratified chiefdoms giving rise to early states. This book examines that transformation, emphasizing the interplay of many factors affecting these processes, such as climatic fluctuation, population movements, inter-group competition, warfare, and long-distance exchange of valuables. Half-title Series-title Title Copyright Dedication CONTENTS ILLUSTRATIONS TABLES PREFACE 1 Setting the scene Constructing the Longshan culture in archaeology Longshan culture and constructing national history The discovery of Longshan culture and nationalism Longshan culture and a changing view of national history Longshan culture in legendary history Evolutionary approaches to the study of Longshan culture Evolutionary models in Chinese archaeology Constructing a cultural-social evolutionary scheme for China Alternative research strategies The scope of the book 2 The changing environmental contexts of Chinas first complex societies Geographic settings Reconstruction of paleoenvironment and cultural development Problems with the reconstruction of paleoenvironment Paleoclimate and cultural development Conclusion 3 Household subsistence and ritual Introduction Household activities: a general survey Gender and functional segmentation in household activities Material possessions in the household Household ritual feasting Case studies Human sacrifice A house at Kangjia Features: houses, pits and burials2 Artifacts Faunal remains Implications of Kangjia archaeological remains Environment and ecology Subsistence and diet Social activities Hunting and warfare Ritual paraphernalia: turtle shells Divinational implements: oracle bones Ritual feasting Summary Conclusions 4 Spatial organization and social relations in communities Introduction Spatial orders of settlements in the Neolithic period Peiligang culture (ca. 7000–5000 BC) Early Yangshao culture (ca. 5000–4000 BC) Middle Yangshao culture (ca. 4000–3500 BC) Late Yangshao culture (ca. 3500–3000 BC) Settlement organization in the late Neolithic period Architectural forms Settlement organization Summary Discussion and conclusions Building form, settlement layout, and residential segregation Control of resources, craft specialization, and social inequality Monumental construction and social organization 5 Community burial patterns Introduction Alternative approaches to Neolithic burial patterns Ancestral cults Social stratification Regional variability in burial patterns The Central Plains Lower Yellow River region Upper Yellow River region Discussion Social hierarchy in kin-based societies Ritual paraphernalia and ritual power Conclusion 6 Development and decline of complex societies in the Central Plains Introduction Methods Data Regional settlement patterns Early Neolithic period: the Peiligang culture Middle Neolithic period: the Yangshao culture Late Neolithic period: the Longshan culture Social complexity in less-circumscribed regions Settlement patterns and social organization Mono-centered centripetal Longshan regional systems Multi-centered competing regional systems Discussion and conclusions 7 Development and decline of social complexity beyond the Central Plains Introduction Regional settlement patterns in Shandong Houli, Beixin, and Dawenkou settlements Longshan settlements Yueshi settlements Regional settlement patterns in Central Shaanxi Laoguantai and Yangshao settlements Longshan settlements Changing settlement patterns Settlement patterns and social organization: a comparison The Shandong region The central Shaanxi region Discussion and conclusions 8 Trajectories toward early states Introduction: from chiefdoms to states The Erlitou culture – searching for the Xia dynasty Origins of the Erlitou culture The development of the Erlitou urban core area Erlitou expansion to the periphery Socio-political transition from Longshan to Erlitou The Erlitou world-system The Proto-Shang culture Conclusions 9 Reconstructing social processes Introduction Development of social hierarchy and integration Administrative hierarchy, population growth, and territorial expansion Residential and mortuary segregations Strategies for controlling resources Dynamics of social change Geographic configurations and cultural–social interaction Social economic systems Political orientations Ritual power Leadership strategies and trajectories to social complexity Conclusions and further research questions NOTES 1 APPENDIXES Appendixes 1 Tool types associated with Neolithic burial Appendixes 7 Distribution in grave size (in sq. m) and number of grave goods from Neolithic burials Appendixes 8 Summary of central places in the Neolithic and Erlitou periods REFERENCES INDEX