Global InformationGuandimiao information
关帝庙遗址 | |
  Location within Henan  Guandimiao (China) | |
| Location | Yulong, Xingyang, Zhengzhou, Henan, China |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 34°47′8.1″N 113°28′12.2″E / 34.785583°N 113.470056°E |
| Type | Village |
| Area | 2.5 hectares (6.2 acres) |
| History | |
| Founded | c. 1250 BCE |
| Abandoned | c. 1100 BCE |
| Periods | Late Shang |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 2006–2008 |
| Guandimiao | |||||||
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| Traditional Chinese | 關帝廟遺址 | ||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 关帝庙遗址 | ||||||
| Hanyu Pinyin | Guāndìmiào yízhǐ | ||||||
| Literal meaning | Guandi temple ruins | ||||||
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Guandimiao is a Chinese archaeological site 18 km (11 miles) south of the Yellow River in Xingyang, Henan. It is the site of a small Shang dynasty village that was inhabited from roughly 1250 to 1100 BCE during the Late Shang period. Located 200 km (120 miles) from the Shang capital at Yinxu, the site was first studied as a part of excavations undertaken between 2006 and 2008 in preparation for the nearby South–North Water Transfer Project. Excavation and study at Guandimiao has significantly broadened scholars' understanding of rural Shang economies and rituals, as well as the layout of rural villages, which have received comparatively little attention in the field of Shang archaeology compared to urban centers like Yinxu and Huanbei.
Calculations derived from the number of graves and pit-houses at Guandimiao suggest a maximum population of around 100 individuals at the site's peak during the early 12th century BCE. The presence of 23 kilns at the site suggests significant regional exports of ceramics from the village. Residents used bone tools, including many that were locally produced, as well as sophisticated arrowheads and hair-pins likely imported from Yinxu, where facilities had produced them en masse. Local ritual practice is evidenced by the presence of locally produced oracle bones used in pyromancy, as well as large sacrificial pits where mainly cattle had been buried, alongside a smaller number of pigs and humans. Over 200 graves were found at the site; they generally resemble the shaft tombs attested elsewhere, save the almost complete absence of grave goods beyond occasional cowries and sacrificed dogs.