Lithic Production and Early Urbanism in China: A case study of the lithic production at the Neolithic Taosi Site (ca. 2500–1900BCE) 9781407309767, 9781407339542

Table of contents :
Front Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Table of Contents
List of Figures
List of Tables
Abstract
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1: Background and Research Questions
Chapter 2: Theories and methods
Chapter 3: Lithic Artefacts from Previous Excavations at Taosi and Mount Dagudui
Chapter 4: Lithic Artefacts from the 2008 Surface Survey and Test Excavations at Taosi
Chapter 5: Replication Experiments of Stone Tool Manufacture
Chapter 6: Raw Material Selection and Technology of Lithic Production
Chapter 7: Production Capacity, Exchange and Organisation of Production
Chapter 8: Conclusion
Appendix
Bibliography

Citation preview

l na tio ne di nli ad l o ith ria W ate m

BAR S2384 2012

Lithic Production and Early Urbanism in China

ZHAI LITHIC PRODUCTION AND EARLY URBANISM IN CHINA

A case study of the lithic production at the Neolithic Taosi Site (ca. 2500–1900BCE)

Shaodong Zhai

BAR International Series 2384 9 781407 309767

B A R

2012

Lithic Production and Early Urbanism in China A case study of the lithic production at the Neolithic Taosi Site (ca. 2500–1900BCE)

Shaodong Zhai

BAR International Series 2384 2012

Published in 2016 by BAR Publishing, Oxford BAR International Series 2384 Lithic Production and Early Urbanism in China © S Zhai and the Publisher 2012 The author's moral rights under the 1988 UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act are hereby expressly asserted. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be copied, reproduced, stored, sold, distributed, scanned, saved in any form of digital format or transmitted in any form digitally, without the written permission of the Publisher.

ISBN 9781407309767 paperback ISBN 9781407339542 e-format DOI https://doi.org/10.30861/9781407309767 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library BAR Publishing is the trading name of British Archaeological Reports (Oxford) Ltd. British Archaeological Reports was first incorporated in 1974 to publish the BAR Series, International and British. In 1992 Hadrian Books Ltd became part of the BAR group. This volume was originally published by Archaeopress in conjunction with British Archaeological Reports (Oxford) Ltd / Hadrian Books Ltd, the Series principal publisher, in 2012. This present volume is published by BAR Publishing, 2016.

BAR PUBLISHING BAR titles are available from:

E MAIL P HONE F AX

BAR Publishing 122 Banbury Rd, Oxford, OX2 7BP, UK [email protected] +44 (0)1865 310431 +44 (0)1865 316916 www.barpublishing.com

Table of Contents Table of Contents List of Figures List of Tables Abstract Acknowledgements Main Text Appendix Bibliography Chapter 1 Background and Research Questions ……………………………………………………………......…… 1 1.1 The Taosi site and the Taosi culture ………………………………………………………………………..………2 1.2 Current studies on the Taosi culture………………………………………………………………………………9 1.3 Current studies on stone tools in Neolithic China ………………………………………………………............12 1.4 Current studies on Early Chinese urbanism ………………………………………………………………….....13 1.5 Main research issues addressed in this study ……………………………………..........………………….......14 Chapter 2 Theories and Methods ………………………………………………………......…………........................17 2.1 City and urbanisation …………………………………………………………………….......…………………..17 2.2 Craft production ………………………………………………………………………………………………….21 2.3 Methods ..……………………………………………………………………………………………………......28 2.4 Summary …………………………………………………………………………………………………….......31 Chapter 3 Lithic Artefacts from Previous Excavations at Taosi and Mount Dagudui …………………………32 3.1 Lithic assemblage from previous excavations at Taosi……………………………………………………..........32 3.2 Lithic assemblage from the Mount Dagudui site…………………………………………………….....................38 3.3 Chronology of Mount Dagudui …………………………………………………….........……………….............48 Chapter 4 Lithic Artefacts from the 2008 Surface Survey and Test Excavations at Taosi …………………………..52 4.1 Methodology applied in the field work ……………………………………………….........……………….........52 4.2 Test excavations …………………………………………………………………….........……………….........…53 4.3 Artefacts uncovered during the survey ……………………………………………………….........………..........58 4.4 Raw materials ……………………………………………….........……………….........……………….........…66 4.5 Conclusion ……………………………………………….........……………….........……………….........…….69 Chapter 5 Replication Experiments of Stone Tool Manufacture ..................................................................................71 5.1 Experiments on ground stones ……………………………………………………........………….........………...71 5.2 Experiment design …………………………………………….........……………….........………………..........72 5.3 Experiment procedure …………………………………………….........……………….........………………....73 5.4 Conclusion ..…………...…………………………….........……………….........……………….........……….82 5.5 Summary ..………………………………………….........……………….........……………….........………...88 Chapter 6 Raw Material Selection and Technology of Lithic Production ...............................................................90 6.1 The strategy of raw material selection during the Taosi Culture........................................................................91 6.2 Technology of lithic production at Taosi ...........................................................................................................95

i

6.3 Lithic production and cost benefit analysis .....................................................................................................104 6.4 Summary ............................................................................................................................................................107 Chapter 7 Production Capacity, Exchange and Organisation of Production.........................................................108 7.1 The production capacity of the stone tools at Taosi: a trial .................................................................................108 7.2 Exchange of stone tools in the Linfen Basin .....................................................................................................114 7.3 The organisation of lithic production at Taosi ......................................................................................................118 7.4 Summary .............................................................................................................................................................127 Chapter 8 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................................128 8.1 Specialisation of lithic production at Taosi ..........................................................................................................128 8.2 Contributions of lithic production to the economy at Taosi .................................................................................131 8.3 Lithic production and social complexity at Taosi ..............................................................................................137 8.4 Taosi and early urbanisation in China .................................................................................................................142 8.5 Directions for further research ............................................................................................................................148 Appendix Appendix I The features in the four terraces test excavated at Taosi in 2008 ..........................................................149 Appendix II Raw materials of the stone tools from the storeroom of CASS at Taosi ..............................................150 Appendix III The published lithic artefacts fromTaosi .....................................................................................................151 Appendix IV Samples of flakes discovered atTaosi in 2008 ..............................................................................................154 AppendixV The stone tools discovered atTaosi based on previous reports........................................................................158 Appendix VI The lithic blanks, preforms and tools uncovered at Taosi in 2008.......................................................161 Appendix VII The metric data of the spear-shaped blank samples from Dagudui....................................................163 Appendix VIII The details of the flake samples from Dagudui (on disc*) Appendix IX The database of the replication experiments (on disc*) Appendix X The petrographic identification of the lithic samples from Taosi and the Mount Dagudui quarry (on disc*) Bibliography.....................................................................................................................................................................166

*Please note that the CD referred to above and in the text has now been replaced with a download available at www.barpublishing.com/additional-downloads.html

ii

List of Figures Figure 1.1 Location of Taosi in the Linfen Basin ................................................................................................................2 Figure 1.2 Location of Mount Dagudui .............................................................................................................................2 Figure 1.3 Location of the excavation squares at Mount Dagudui .....................................................................................3 Figure 1.4 Outcrops of metamorphic sandstone and andalusite hornfels .............................................................................3 Figure 1.5 Distribution of the excavation squares at Mt. Dagudui ......................................................................................3 Figure 1.6 The pottery assemblages in different phases of the Taosi Culture .......................................................................4 Figure 1.7 Examples of Early Taosi Remains .....................................................................................................................5 Figure 1.8 Examples of Middle Taosi Remains ..................................................................................................................6 Figure 1.9 The writing on a pottery bianhu flat kettle at Taosi .............................................................................................7 Figure 1.10 Locations of the discoveries at Taosi ...............................................................................................................10 Figure 3.1 Diagram of the numbers of lithic artefacts in CASS ........................................................................................33 Figure 3.2 Axes .................................................................................................................................................................34 Figure 3.3 Adzes ..............................................................................................................................................................34 Figure 3.4 Chisel .............................................................................................................................................................35 Figure 3.5 Wedge ...........................................................................................................................................................35 Figure 3.6 Wedge ...........................................................................................................................................................35 Figure 3.7 Shouldered spade .........................................................................................................................................35 Figure 3.8 Spades .........................................................................................................................................................35 Figure 3.9 Knives ..........................................................................................................................................................36 Figure 3.10 Arrowheads ...................................................................................................................................................36 Figure 3.11 Stone balls ....................................................................................................................................................36 Figure 3.12 Chime stone .................................................................................................................................................37 Figure 3.13 V-shaped knife ............................................................................................................................................37 Figure 3.14 Grinding stone ..........................................................................................................................................37 Figure 3.15 Hammer stone ............................................................................................................................................37 Figure 3.16 Drill bits ....................................................................................................................................................37 Figure 3.17 Axe-preforms .............................................................................................................................................38 Figure 3.18 Spade –preform .........................................................................................................................................38 Figure 3.19 The range of flake sizes at Mt. Dagudui ....................................................................................................40 Figure 3.20 Type AI spear-shaped blanks ....................................................................................................................41 Figure 3.21 Wedge uncovered at Taosi ........................................................................................................................41 Figure 3.22 Type AII spear-shaped blanks .......................................................................................................................42 Figure 3.23 Type BI and BII spear-shaped blanks ...........................................................................................................42 Figure 3.24 Type C spear-shaped blanks ........................................................................................................................43 Figure 3.25 Axe-shaped blanks ....................................................................................................................................44 Figure 3.26 Spade-shaped blanks .................................................................................................................................44 Figure 3.27 Knife-shaped blanks .................................................................................................................................44 Figure 3.28 Adze-shaped blanks ..................................................................................................................................45 Figure 3.29 Chisel-shaped blanks ................................................................................................................................45 Figure 3.30 Hoe-shaped blanks ...................................................................................................................................46 Figure 3.31 V-shaped knife blank ..............................................................................................................................46 Figure 3.32 Cores ........................................................................................................................................................47 Figure 3.33 Hammer stones .......................................................................................................................................47 Figure 3.34 Lithic artefacts from Beihan ................................................................................................................48 Figure 3.35 Lithic artefacts from Taosi ...................................................................................................................49 Figure 3.36 Comparison between the lithic artefacts from the Middle and the Latephases of Taosi and Mount Dagudui.. .50 Figure 3.37 Lithic artefacts from Dachai .........................................................................................................................50 Figure 4.1 The distribution of the recorded locations from the survey in 2008 at Taosi ..................................................54

iii

Figure 4.2 The distribution of the artefacts from the 2008 survey at Taosi ....................................................................54 Figure 4.3 TS2008PM01 profile ....................................................................................................................................55 Figure 4.4 TS2008PM02 profile ...................................................................................................................................57 Figure 4.5 TS2008PM03 profile ..................................................................................................................................57 Figure 4.6 TS2008PM04 profile ..................................................................................................................................57 Figure 4.7 The activity surface of PM04 in plan view ............................................................................................58 Figure 4.8 The frequency of flakes at different phases of Taosi ..............................................................................59 Figure 4.9 Flakes in the Early Phase of Taosi ........................................................................................................60 Figure 4.10 Flakes in the Middle Phase of Taosi ...........................................................................................................60 Figure 4.11 Flakes in the Late Phase of Taosi ................................................................................................................61 Figure 4.12 Blanks, preforms and tools in the Early Phase of Taosi ............................................................................62 Figure 4.13 Blanks, preforms and tool in the Middle Phase of Taosi .........................................................................63 Figure 4.14 Spear-shaped blanks in the Late Phase of Taosi ......................................................................................64 Figure 4.15 Preforms in the Late Phase of Taosi ..........................................................................................................65 Figure 4.16 Preforms and tools in the Late Phase of Taosi ..........................................................................................66 Figure 4.17 Blanks, preforms and tools of indeterminate phase ....................................................................................67 Figure 4.18 Photomicrographs of the raw materials used for making stone tools at Taosi .............................................68 Figure 4.19 The consumption proportions of the various raw materials during Taosi ....................................................69 Figure 5.1 The knife production process ..........................................................................................................................74 Figure 5.2 No. 3 axe production process ........................................................................................................................76 Figure 5.3 No. 7 adze production process .......................................................................................................................78 Figure 5.4 No. 9 wedge production process .................................................................................................................80 Figure 5.5 The chisel production process ...................................................................................................................81 Figure 5.6 Protuberance formed by unsuccessful flaking ............................................................................................81 Figure 5.7 Spear-shaped blanks replicas and raw materials .........................................................................................83 Figure 5.8 The Huang pendant production process .....................................................................................................85 Figure 5.9 No. 3 hammer stone before and after use .................................................................................................87 Figure 5.10 Drill-bits used in the experiment ................................................................................................................87 Figure 5.11 Truncated cross-section of a blank in experiment ........................................................................................87 Figure 6.1 The usage frequency of raw materials of the stone tools at Taosi ......................................................................91 Figure 6.2 Sources of lithic raw materials used at Taosi .................................................................................................93 Figure 6.3 Correlation between distance and abundance of the raw materials ................................................................95 Figure 6.4 Abandonment of No. 29 sample ...................................................................................................................96 Figure 6.5 Abandonment of No. 30 sample ..................................................................................................................96 Figure 6.6 Comparison between flakes from the experiment and Taosi ..................................................................97 Figure 6.7 Flint arrowheads with negative flake scars ...................................................................................................98 Figure 6.8 A truncated blank ...........................................................................................................................................98 Figure 6.9 Truncating method ........................................................................................................................................98 Figure 6.10 No. 1 hammer stone ......................................................................................................................................99 Figure 6.11 No. 2 hammer stone .....................................................................................................................................99 Figure 6.12 A knife after primary grinding and fine grinding .........................................................................................100 Figure 6.13 A chime stone with a chiseled and drilled hole .........................................................................................101 Figure 6.14 Prismatic drill bit used in the experiment and conical drill bits unearthed from Taosi .................102 Figure 6.15 A knife with a solid drilled hole .................................................................................................................102 Figure 6.16 A knife with a tubular drilled hole ............................................................................................................102 Figure 6.17 Production sequence in lithic manufacture at Taosi ..................................................................................103 Figure 7.1 The time and the number of flakes used for calculating the time taken to detach one flake .......................111 Figure 7.2 The selection of the time consumed to make one blank in the experiment..................................................113 Figure 7.3 Distribution of the sites dating to the Late Taosi Culture .............................................................................117 Figure 7.4 The distribution of lithic production locations over the Taosi Culture .................................................120-121

iv

Figure 7.5 The concentration of the nucleated bronze-casting workshop at Erlitou.......................................................121 Figure 7.6 The activity area ...........................................................................................................................................122 Figure 7.7 The house remains discovered at Taosi .....................................................................................................123 Figure 7.8 Cubic quantities of flakes in typical archaeological features at Taosi......................................................125 Figure 8.1 Metric variables measured on spear-shaped blanks ....................................................................................129 Figure 8.2 Comparison between the lithic artefact variations of Mt. Dagudui and Jiahu .......................................... 130 Figure 8.3 The change of the maximum positions of the East Asian Monsoon frontal during the Holocene .........131 Figure 8.4 Holocene temperature changes in Northern China ......................................................................................132 Figure 8.5 Archaeological sites with rice and/or millet remains in North China.............................................................133 Figure 8.6 The number of stone tools discovered at Taosi .............................................................................................135 Figure 8.7 The necessary area for Taosi self-sufficiency in its Early, Middle and Late phases .....................................141 Figure 8.8 The distribution of the Taosi Culture and the Erlitou Culture ......................................................................145 Figure 8.9 Idealised layout of a Zhou capital from the Kaogongji ................................................................................147

v

List of Tables Table 1.1 Relations between strata in individual squares ......................................................................................................4 Table 1.2 Chronological sequence of the archaeological cultures mentioned in this thesis .....................................................8 Table 3.1 Number of the lithic artefacts in CASS collection ...............................................................................................33 Table 3.2 Quantities of the lithic artefacts from Mount Dagudui .........................................................................................38 Table 3.3 Quantities of the flakes from Mount Dagudui ......................................................................................................39 Table 3.4 Types of spear-shaped blanks .............................................................................................................................41 Table 3.5 Chronological construction in the Linfen Basin during the Neolithic and Erlitou period .....................................48 Table 4.1 The statistics on the flakes (1-15cm) and debitage (≤1cm) unearthed from Taosi ..........................................59 Table 4.2 The numbers of various raw materials at Taosi ..................................................................................................69 Table 5.1 Time consumed during the knife replication ....................................................................................................73 Table 5.2 Time consumed during axe replications ...........................................................................................................75 Table 5.3 Time consumed during adze replications ..........................................................................................................77 Table 5.4 Time consumed during wedge replications ........................................................................................................79 Table 5.5 Time consumed during the chisel replication ...................................................................................................82 Table 5.6 Time consumed during the spear-shaped blank replications ...........................................................................82 Table 5.7 Time consumed during the ornament replications ...........................................................................................84 Table 5.8 Information about the hammer stones used in the experiment ......................................................................86 Table 5.9 Usage of drill-bit 2 in the experiment ...........................................................................................................87 Table 6.1 Sources and proportion of the raw materials used at Taosi .............................................................................95 Table 6.2 The number of wide flake samples with obtuse flake angle at Taosi ...............................................................97 Table 6.3 Comparison between two flaking techniques in experiment ...........................................................................98 Table 6.4 Details of hammer stones used in experiment ...............................................................................................99 Table 6.5 Grinding details in the experiment ...............................................................................................................100 Table 6.6 Production process of some stone tools in the experimental research ..........................................................104 Table 6.7 Numbers of ground and polished stone tools at Taosi ..................................................................................106 Table 7.1 Time consumed for flaking in the experiment ................................................................................................110 Table 7.2 Time taken to make blanks in experiment .......................................................................................................112 Table 7.3 Raw materials of stone tools discovered from the sites dating to the Taosi Culture .....................................117 Table 7.4 Sizes of the house discovered previously at Taosi .......................................................................................123 Table 8.1 Variations of spear-shaped blanks at Mt. Dagudui .......................................................................................129 Table 8.2 Variations of stone tools at the Jiahu site ......................................................................................................130 Table 8.3 The number of stone tools discovered at Taosi .............................................................................................135 Table 8.4 Estimation land and grain needed for sustaining the population at Taosi ...............................................138

vi

Abstract This work is an attempt to investigate the contribution of economic activity to Chinese early urbanization, through a case study of the lithic production at the Neolithic Taosi site in Shanxi, China (c. 2500-1900BCE). The analysis is based on information collected from fieldwork carried out at Taosi and from my experiment replicating stone tool manufacure. The lithic production which took place at Taosi shows several characteristics. Firstly, raw materials were procured in the proximity of the site, and access to the quarry for obtaining the principal raw material (metamorphic sandstone) is likely to have been controlled by the Taosi elite. Secondly, selection of raw materials was related to the mechanical properties of the lithics and to the morphologies and functions of the finished products. Thirdly, the lithic manufacturing techniques were simple and the production process was simplified. Fourthly, the production capacity at Taosi may have been very high and finished products may have been exported to other areas in the Linfen Basin. Fifthly, lithic production increased through time while the spatial distribution of productive locations remained dispersed at the site. Sixthly, the lithic production at Taosi was possibly part-time, household-based and independently organised, although workshop organisation and fulltime production may also have been present, and the elite may have been involved in lithic production to some extent. Stone products may have been exchanged for food, to support the large population, including specialist stone workers at Taosi. Lithic production played an important role in the urbanization at Taosi, which developed into the primary political, economic and ceremonial centre in the Linfen Basin. Due to its central position in the region, a high level of social complexity, and its spatial layout with a rammed-earth enclosure, Taosi represents a milestone in the process of early urbanism in ancient China.

vii

Acknowledgements This book is a revision of my PhD dissertation which I finished at La Trobe University in Melbourne in 2011. I have put it into publication under the encouragement of my teachers, colleagues and friends. Without their support, I could not have completed this book. I sincerely thank my supervisors, Li Liu, David Frankel and Richard Cosgrove, who assisted me when I was at La Trobe University in Melbourne studying for my PhD degree. Li Liu was my principal supervisor before she moved to the USA in September 2010. Under her encouragement and guidance, I increased my knowledge of western archaeological theories and methods and was able to incorporate this into my PhD study. In addition, discussions between us enlightened my understanding of other archaeological issues and Li provided much assistance with my English writing skills and daily life, as one friend to another. I am also very appreciative of David Frankel who became my principal supervisor following Li's departure. During this period of less than four months, David corrected my English and provided me with valuable feedback and useful comments for all my chapters. His marvellous work improved my dissertation greatly and I appreciate his suggestions for setting out my thesis layout in the Adobe Indesign computer program. I also give my thanks to Richard Cosgrove, my co-supervisor, who provided assistance with my technological analysis and specific software applications. I appreciate the support provided by the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Science and the Shanxi Institute of Archaeology, includingNu He, Xingcan Chen, Wei Gao and the members of Shanxi Archaeological Team, CASS. Without their support, I could not have completed the background research required for my field work study. Particularly without the encouragement from Xingcan Chen, I could not have published this book. Support from staff and locals including Jianzhong Song, Xinmin Xue, Xiaoyi Wang and Jinming Shi from the Shanxi Institute of Archaeology and this ensured the successful completion of my fieldwork. I would like to thank Zhenni Wang and Jun Liao, who were undergraduate students in the Archaeology Department of Shanxi University. They helped me to a great extend in carrying out my fieldwork at Taosi, in the analysis of the lithic artefacts and in my replication experiments. Also I would like to thank Zhenhua Gao, who helped with the surface survey at Taosi and with the collection of GPS data. I would like to thank the Australian Government and La Trobe University for the Endeavour International Postgraduate Research Scholarship and the La Trobe Research Scholarship respectively. Without this financial support, I would not have been able to live and study in Australia to complete my PhD. I also would like to give my thanks to Glenn Summerhayes, Xiangming Dai and Zhouyong Sun. Their advice made the disscussions in this book more meticulous. In addition, I would like to thank Ming Wei, Sheahan Bestel, Michael Lever, Jacqui Tumney, Bernice Ngo, Duncan Jones and David Thomas. Their instructions for computer knowledge, communications and friendly corrections of my written work helped me improve my computer skills and English applications during the time I spent at La Trobe. As well, I would like to thank those scholars who are very generous to let me use the illustrations I used in this book but modified from their book or articles. They are Li Liu, Jianmin Li, Zhisheng An, Tracy Li, Tianlin Gao and Elsevier Ltd. I also would like to thank my family for their support including my Mum and my sisters. Without their kind concerns, I could not have persisted in completing this study. Also I wholeheartedly thank the staff of BAR for all they have done for this publication. Finally, I would like to dedicate this dissertation to all the people who care for me and love me.

viii

Chapter 1 Background and Research Questions important site mainly on the basis of ancient records (e.g. Gao et al. 1985; Li 1985). At the same time some scholars outside China also put forward views from the perspective of social evolution according to western archaeological theories (e.g. Liu 1996). Other scholars have also focused on issues related to economic activities, such as craft production (e.g. Gao 1986; 1998; Yan 2005) and agriculture (e.g. Gao 1993; Zhao & He 2007). However, Taosi society is still poorly understood and many questions remain to be answered, such as its craft specialisation and resource exchange between Taosi and other sites. The solutions to these questions will not only help to learn more about Taosi, but also to obtain insights into the development of early social complexity and urbanisation in China.

For many years Chinese archaeologists have concentrated on the Erlitou Period (1900-1500BCE) and the Shang (1600-1046BCE) when considering the origins and development of early Chinese civilisation. More recently scholars worldwide have become increasingly dissatisfied with this focus. While these two periods show some essential elements of civilisation, such as writing, developed bronze metallurgy, palaces and temples, science and the calendar, and class differentiation (Chang 1976:34), researchers have begun to look for earlier developments in the period before the two dynasties – the Longshan Period (c. 2800-2000BCE). Various indicators of civilisation – or at least evidence of complex social organisation and social stratification – appeared in this period, including jade valuables, elaborate pottery and grand ceremonial buildings. The development of rammed-earth enclosures surrounding settlements in particular is seen as significant as it is regarded as one of the typical characteristics of an ancient city in China (Boyd 1962; Chang 1976).

In this chapter, I will describe some background details about the Taosi site and the Taosi Culture, and review previous studies. I will then outline the main arguments on early Chinese urbanisation, and discuss current research on lithic production in Neolithic China.

The Taosi site, dating to the late Longshan Period, has attracted archaeologists’ attention since it was found more than four decades ago because of the discovery of many elaborate artefacts. Following the discovery of the rammed-earth enclosures and a rammed-earth construction which functioned as an astronomic observatory (Shanxi Archaeological Team et al. 2005a; 2005b; 2007), even more close attention has been paid to Taosi. He (2004b; 2009a) suggested that Taosi was the earliest city in China based on the nine criteria he proposed, including the presence of a palace, royal cemetery, craft district, and the layout of the settlement. However, the key criteria for identifying a ‘city’ lie in the broader political, economic and ceremonial roles which a particular place played in a region and the associated level of social complexity, as will be discussed in the next chapter. In this book, the role of Taosi in the Linfen Basin during the late Longshan Period will be examined and discussed, with emphasis placed on the economic role as exemplified by lithic production and the implications of this for the development of early urbanism in China.

1.1. The Taosi site and the Taosi Culture The Taosi site is located near Taosi village in the Linfen Basin of southern Shanxi province, North China (Fig. 1.1). The Fen River, which is the second big tributary of the Yellow River, flows through to the west. The Taiyue Mountains are situated to the east, the Lüliang to the west and the Ermei to the south. Many gullies, the result of flood waters in rainy season, cut across the site and have destroyed much of the area of the archaeological site. The two larger gullies at the site are Nangou, south of Taosi village, and Zhaowanggou, south of Nangou. The Taosi site was found during archaeological surveys in 1959-1964 and was resurveyed in 1973 by Chinese archaeologists (Shanxi Archaeological Team 1989), who intended to search for remains of the Xia dynasty, the first dynasty in China as recorded in ancient texts. The initial excavation at the site was carried out in 1978-1980 (Shanxi Archaeological Team & Linfen Cultural Bureau 1980; 1983), followed by several more excavation seasons in 1983-1984, 1999-2000 and 2002-2003 (Shanxi Archaeological Team et al. 2003; 2004; 2005; Shanxi

Chinese archaeologists first reconstructed the chronology of Taosi and began to develop interpretations on this

1

Lithic production and early urbanism in China

Figure 1.1 Location of Taosi in the Linfen Basin (adapted from Liu 2004: fig.6.11)

Archaeological Team & Linfen Cultural Bureau 1986).

1.4). The site is about 15 hectares in area, and consists of large numbers of lithic objects on the surface of the southern slope. These lithic objects are largely covered by thin loess and grasses, but sometimes exposed in the gullies as a result of soil erosion.

Another important site for this study is the Mount Dagudui site, which lies 7.4 km south of Taosi (Fig. 1.2) and is a quarry dating to the Taosi Culture. The western and northern slopes of the Dagudui Mountain are covered with thick loess deposits and some rocks, while its southern slope, where the Mount Dagudui archaeological site is located (Fig. 1.3), is covered with more rocks, including outcrops of metamorphic sandstone and andalusite hornfels (Fig.

The Mount Dagudui site was discovered during the excavation of the Palaeolithic Dingcun site in 1984, and was excavated twice in 1988 and 1989 by the Shanxi Institute of Archaeology (Tao 1991; Wang et al. 1987). A permanent

Figure 1.2 Location of Mount Dagudui

2

Chapter 1 Backgrund and research questions

Figure 1.3 Location of the excavation squares at Mount Dagudui

Figure 1.4 Outcrops of metamorphic sandstone and andalusite hornfels

Figure 1.5 Distribution of the excavation squares at Mt. Dagudui

3

Lithic production and early urbanism in China

survey point was set up at the top of the mountain, which was divided into four districts. A temporary survey point, 71 m from the permanent point, was set up in District III, where two seasons of excavation were carried out (Fig. 1.5). The total excavation area is 275 m2, consisting of eleven squares.

A large number of artefacts and features have been unearthed in the past thirty years, including pottery, polychrome pottery, stone tools, jades, wooden artefacts, bronze fragments, cemeteries with different-sized tombs and different grave goods, rammed-earth enclosures and rammed-earth construction foundations. These remains can be divided into three phases, Early, Middle and Late, based on changes in pottery typology (Gao et al. 1984). In the Early Phase, the pottery assemblage included fuzao 釜 灶 kitchen range pots, ding 鼎 tripods, jia 斝 tripods, guan 罐 pots, bianhu 扁壶 flat kettles, gang 缸 urns, and pen 盆 basins. In the Middle Phase, the number of fuzao, gang and ding decreased, while li 鬲 tripods appeared for the first time. In the Late phase, fuzao and gang disappeared, and li became popular (Fig. 1.6).

The deposit at Mount Dagudui is very thick, ranging from approximately 2m to 6.6m in depth. However, the site can be divided into three general strata across the whole excavation area under the grassed surface based on the excavated artefacts (Table 1.1), although two to eight strata are visible in individual squares excavated. Discoveries at Taosi

Table 1.1 Relations between strata in individual squares General stratum

Strata included in individual squares

1

T0949①②, T0950①②, T1049①②, T1050①②③④, T1149①②, T1150①②③, T0955①②③④, T0956①②③

2

T0750⑤, T0949③, T0950③, T1049③④⑤, T1149③, T1050④⑤

3

T1149⑤⑥, T1150⑤⑥⑦⑧

( Note: the lithics in T0750 was found only from Stratum ⑤ and nothing was found from T0850. )

Figure 1.6 The pottery assemblages in different phases of the Taosi Culture (adapted from Gao et al. 1984: fig. 1)

4

Chapter 1 Backgrund and research questions Besides these ceramic items which can be used for periodisation, many other archaeological remains were also discovered at Taosi. In the Early phase, a rammedearth enclosure covering 56 hectares was discovered, and many elaborate goods were unearthed, such as polychrome pottery, chime stones, large-sized kitchen knives, jades, lacquer artefacts, and alligator drums. At the same time, a cemetery with different-sized tombs and different numbers of grave goods was revealed. While a small number of the tombs were found with elaborate goods, most tombs had few or no grave goods (Shanxi Archaeological Team & Linfen Cultural Bureau 1983) (Fig. 1.7).

rammed-earth palatial foundations and a rammed-earth terrace, which may have functioned as an astronomical observatory (Liu 2009; Shanxi Archaeological Team et al. 2007; 2008; Wu et al. 2008). Moreover, more jades as prestige goods were discovered in the tombs dating to this phase (Shanxi Archaeological Team et al. 2003). This was different to the Early Phase during which polychrome pottery, large-sized stone artefacts, lacquer objects and alligator drums were mostly used as prestige goods. In addition, a fragment of an arsenical bronze artefact was unearthed near the foundations of palaces (Shanxi Archaeolgical Team et al. 2008) (Fig. 1.8).

In the Middle Phase, a larger rammed-earth enclosure covering 280 hectares (Shanxi Archaeological Team et al. 2005) was revealed. Inside the enclosure were large

In the Late Phase, several major changes took place at Taosi. The rammed-earth enclosures of the Early and Middle phases were destroyed (Shanxi Archaeological

Polychrome pottery with dragon motif

Polychrome pottery

Large-sized tomb with hundreds of grave goods

Alligator drum

Figure 1.7 Examples of Early Taosi remains (adapted from Shanxi Archaeological Team, Institute of Archaeology, CASS & Shanxi Province Linfen Cultural Bureau 1983 plate)

5

Lithic production and early urbanism in China

Jade huang

Jade cong

Jade animal face

Remains of palace

Remains of astronomical observatory

Figure 1.8 Examples of Middle Taosi remains (adapted from Shanxi Archaeological team, Institute of Archaeology, CASS, Shanxi Institete of Archaeology & Shanxi Province Linfen Cultural Bureau 2003 plate)

6

Chapter 1 Backgrund and research questions

Figure 1.9 The writing on a pottery bianhu flat kettle at Taosi (from Li 2001: fig.1)

The chronology and periodisation of the Taosi Culture were the major research concerns when the Taosi Culture was first found. A relative chronology was developed where the Early Taosi Phase was placed not earlier than the Late Yangshao Culture in Shanxi, and the Late Phase was seen as contemporary with the Sanliqiao variant of the Henan Longshan Culture (Table 1.2) (Shanxi Archaeological Team & Linfen Cultural Bureau 1980). More detailed chronology and periodisation were later established according to the remains discovered at Taosi.

Team et al. 2005). Palaces were also destroyed and the palatial area became a craft-production location (Gao 2007). Many large tombs built in the Middle Phase were also destroyed and looted (Shanxi Archaeological Team et al. 2003). However, a copper bell was unearthed from a small tomb dating to this phase (Shanxi Archaeological Team & Linfen Cultural Bureau 1984) and writing was found on a pottery bianhu (Fig. 1.9) (Li, J. 2001). These important discoveries show that Taosi had developed into a highly sophisticated society and played a significant role in the emergence of social complexity in Neolithic China. Thus, Taosi has been one of the main focuses in the study of the origins of Chinese civilisation ever since it was discovered.

Periodisation The Taosi Culture was initially divided into two phases, Early and Late, according to the characteristics of pottery and different pottery assemblages changed through time. However, the excavators suggested that the Late Phase did not directly succeed the Early Phase and that there seemed to have been a time gap between them.

The Taosi Culture The Taosi Culture refers to the material assemblages, which are similar to those found at Taosi and are also more broadly distributed in the surrounding region. Our understanding of the characteristics of this culture has gradually developed over the past thirty years. The Taosi Culture was initially called the Taosi variant (leixing 类 型) of the Longshan Culture based on the typical pottery assemblage which shared some similarities with the Longshan Culture (Shanxi Archaeological Team & Linfen Cultural Bureau 1980). Later, when the term “ Longshan Culture” was changed to “Longshan Period” (Yan 1981), Zhang, D. H. (1989) proposed to name the Taosi variant as the Taosi Culture based on its distinctive characteristics of pottery and other material remains. Since then, the term Taosi Culture, has gradually been accepted by scholars.

Excavators later purposed that the Taosi Culture could be divided into three phases, Early, Middle and Late (Gao et al. 1984), and this periodisation was made based on characteristics of features, tools, weapons and pottery, as noted above (Fig. 1.6). They suggested that these three phases formed a continuous cultural development without any breaks between them. This periodisation has been supported by more recent archaeological discoveries which confirmed the existence of the Middle Phase (Shanxi Archaeological Team et al. 2003; 2004; 2005; 2007; 2008; Shanxi Archaeological Team & Linfen Cultural Bureau 1986; 2003).This three-phase periodisation has generally been accepted by scholars.

7

Lithic production and early urbanism in China Table 1.2 Chronological sequence of the archaeological cultures mentioned in this thesis Time (BCE)

Shanxi Linfen Baisn

Shanxi Yuncheng Basin

Henan

Shandong

Dongxiafeng

Erlitou

Yueshi

Late Longshan

1500 Dachai 2000

Late Taosi

Sanliqiao

Middle Taosi

Late MidaogouII

Late Longshan

Early Taosi

Middle Miaodigou II

Middle Longshan

Middle Longshan 2500

Early Longshan Miaodigou II

Early Miaodigou II

Early Longshan

3000 3500

Late Dawenkou Late Yangshao

Late Yangshao

Late Yangshao

Middle Dawenkou

Chronology

Origin

There were two opinions regarding the absolute chronology of the Taosi Culture. One was proposed in 1984, suggesting that the Taosi Culture dated to 2500-1900 BCE, based on the characteristics of the pottery, stratigraphy and 14 radiocarbon dates (Gao, T. et al 1984; Gao, W. et al. 1983); each phase lasted about 200 years (Gao, T. & D. Zhang et al. 1984; Gao, W. & D. Zhang et al. 1985). This chronology has been used in the recent decades. On the other hand, He (2004a) argued for a shorter duration, with Taosi dated to a period of 2300-1900BCE based on the radiocarbon dates and the comparative study of ceramic typology between Taosi and other sites. He suggested a different temporal framework for the three-phase divisions: Early Phase (2300-2100BCE), Middle Phase (2100-2000BCE), and Late Phase (2000-1900BCE). These two opinions have their own reasons to support themselves, and it is difficult to judge which one is more reasonable because both of them used typology and the same radiocarbon dates to create absolute chronology. In this book, for convenience of use, I have adapted the first dates put forward by Gao et al.(1984) using the period of 2500-1900BCE as the absolute chronology of the Taosi Culture, because most studies of Taosi have used this chronology. This makes it easier to cite and compare with published materials if the period 2500-1900BCE is taken as the absolute chronology of Taosi.

Many different opinions have been proposed regarding the origins of the Taosi Culture. It is commonly accepted that the Early Phase of the Taosi Culture developed directly from the Miaodigou II Culture based on the characteristics of its pottery (Gao, T. et al 1984; Gao, W. et al. 1983; Xu 1982). However, during the 1980s and 1990s, the Early Phase of Taosi was wrongly regarded as belonging to the Miaodigou II Culture, due to their similarities in ceramics (Bu 1990; Luo & Tian 1991). At the same time, some scholars proposed that the late Yangshao Culture of southern Shanxi may have been affected by the Dawenkou Culture in Shandong and developed into the Taosi Culture (Tian et al. 1992). But this opinion was contested by He (2004a), because there were not many elements of the Dawenkou Culture observable in the Taosi pottery assemblage. Gao (1992) also put forward the idea that the Early Taosi was not the same as/part of the Miaodigou II Culture as it shows some unique characteristics while sharing some similarities, and that the three Taosi phases were successive stages of the same culture. This last view has gradually been accepted. The current understanding is that, the Taosi Culture developed from the Miaodigou II Culture, but is not part of it and its three phases were successive stages in a continuous cultural development (He 2004a).

8

Chapter 1 Backgrund and research questions the Yao or Shun ethnic group which existed in the same location and intermediately prior to the Xia Dynasty according to the Shiji. They argued that the remains of the Xia had been found at the Erlitou site in Henan province and the location of Taosi matched the historical records of the Yao people. Yao and Shun are believed to have been the rulers of two ethnic groups in Chinese prehistory recorded in ancient texts such as the Meng Zi (1), and the time period of Yao and Shun is considered as an important pre-dynastic era for the transformation to a dynastic state society in China. The first dynastic state society, the Xia, is believed to have been established after the Yao-Shun period based on some ancient texts, such as the Shiji. This opinion has gradually been accepted by more and more scholars in China (He 2004a).

Distribution Current archaeological evidence indicates that the Taosi Culture is mainly distributed throughout the Yicheng, Quwo and Xiangfen counties in the Linfen Basin (Shanxi Archaeological Team & Linfen Cultural Bureau 1980), with sites mostly situated along the Hui River and Fu River (Institution of Archaeology 1989) (Fig. 1.1). The number of sites in the Basin increased from 47 in the Early Phase to 56 in the Late Phase (Shanxi Archaeological Team 1989). Taosi itself was the largest site in the region during the Early and Middle phases, but the Fangcheng site (300 ha) emerged as the largest settlement during the Late Taosi (Shanxi Archaeolgical Team 1988). The relationship between Taosi and Fangcheng is an issue of ongoing investigations (see below).

It is understandable that Chinese archaeologists have tended to link archaeological site with historical records because the emergence of Chinese archaeology was related to the efforts to confirm Chinese historical records in the 1920s. However, these records on Yao, Shun and Xia, were written by ancient historians who in fact lived over 1,000 years later than the events supposedly involving those peoples. Consequently, the credibility of these accounts is questionable because these records probably reflect some legendary stories in the oral tradition, which were passed down from generation to generation. Moreover, a major problem with the current trend in Chinese archaeology, which tries to link archaeological sites with legendary dynasties or capitals, is to create a framework based on textual records for the interpretation of archaeological data, which is likely to be unreliable. Hence, this approach does not help us to understand the social formation in ancient times.

1.2 Current studies on the Taosi Culture Many scholars have contributed to the understanding of the Taosi Culture from various perspectives, emphasising its significant role in the development of social complexity in Early China. Ethnic identity and the nature of the Taosi society The ethnic and historical identity of the Taosi Culture was one of a number of research foci after its chronology and periodisation had been established. Discussions have concentrated on the relationship between Taosi and the Xia Dynasty, the first dynasty in Chinese historical records. It is not surprising that many archaeologists have been involved in this long-standing debate because the original purpose of excavating Taosi was to find the remains of the Xia Dynasty.

In contrast, other scholars have tried to explore the nature of Taosi using Western anthropological methods. Liu (1996; 2004: 170-176) put forward the idea that the Taosi society was a complex chiefdom, according to the rank-size and site-hierarchy settlement analyses combined with the site function and environmental conditions. She concluded that there were three levels of settlement ranks in the Linfen Basin during the Taosi Culture, and that Taosi was one of the examples of a complex chiefdom. At the same time, Gao (2007) stated that Taosi may have been an early state based on the analysis of the number and the distribution

Some scholars (e.g. Gao et al. 1985; Zhang, D. G. 1989) believed that Taosi reflected the activities of the Xia people because the time, location of the site and the level of social development seem to match the situation of the Xiaxu (ruins of the Xia) recorded in the Shiji 史记 (Records of the Grand History of China), which was written by Sima Qian 司马迁 (?145-?86BCE) in the West Han Dynasty (202BCE–8CE). It was mentioned in the Shiji • Zheng Shijia 史记 • 郑世家 that “Great Xia was situated between the Fen River and the Hui River”, and this is the location where Taosi was found.

1 Meng Zi is a collection of saying of Meng Ke (Mencius) and conversations that he had with the leaders of Eastern Zhou states, his other contemporaries and his disciples. Meng Ke lived in the warring and States Period (476-221BCE) and received instruction from a follower of Zi Si, a grandson of Confucius (Lau 1993).

On the other hand, other researchers (e.g. Li 1985; Xu & An 1991) believed that Taosi represented the activities of

9

Lithic production and early urbanism in China

of settlements dating to the Taosi Culture in the region. For example, social stratification was very obvious in the Taosi society, as the cemetery with different-sized tombs at Taosi showed. Also an early form of kingship may have appeared because a king who had the military, theocratic and clan powers, might have been present, as showed by the grave goods; and a ritual system may have been formed, evidenced by the prestige grave goods possibly used as ritual objects. In my opinion, Taosi has developed into a complex society, at least as complex as Hawaii, which was regarded as a complex chiefdom by Johnson and Earle (2000: 2) in terms of subsistence intensification, political integration and social stratification, but as an archaic state by Kirch (2000: 290) due to the emergence of a kingship structure. However, Taosi was not as complex as the Erlitou Culture in China and the Inca Empire in South America because the influential area of the Taosi Culture limited at a regional level and did not spread beyond the Linfen Basin (discussions in chapter 8).

In summary, the studies mentioned above and the discoveries at Taosi show that Taosi must have played an important role in the process of the development of social complexity and the formation of early dynasties in China. Settlement studies Archaeologists have shifted their attention to settlement studies in relation to the emergence of Chinese Civilisation, since rammed-earth walls and remains of large-scale building structures were found at the site. Excavators have focused on reconstruction of the layout of Taosi settlement, and achieved a preliminary understanding recently (He 2004b; 2009a) (Fig. 1.10). In the Early Taosi, there was a rammed-earth enclosure covering 56 ha of the site. The palace district was located in the middle and southern parts of the enclosure, whereas the cemetery was in the southeast outside the enclosure.

Figure 1.10 Locations of the discoveries at Taosi (adapted from Shanxi Archaeological working team et al. 2005: fig.1 & Liu 2004: fig. 4.19)

10

Chapter 1 Backgrund and research questions

Social economic studies

The layout changed greatly during the Middle Phase. A large rammed-earth enclosure was built, covering an area of 280 ha which is five times greater than the previous one, making Taosi one of the largest walled sites in prehistoric China (He & Yan, 2002). The palace district remained in the same place as in the Early Phase. The southwest corner in the Middle Phase enclosure, 1300 meters southwest of the palace district, appeared to have been a craft workshop district because a large number of lithic artefacts were discovered there (He 2004b). Moreover, in the southern part of the site a small rammed-earth enclosure was built. Inside this enclosure, a large-scale terrace interpreted as an astronomical observatory, and a cemetery with tombs containing elaborate jades were discovered. In addition, the areas where the Danangou-Nangou and ZhaowanggouZhonglianggou gullies, currently cut across the enclosure, may have been roads during the time of the Taosi Culture according to geological analysis and the discovery of road soil nearby. He concluded that the layout of the Taosi site exhibited the characteristics of an ancient early city (He 2004b; He 2009a). It does indeed seem that the layout of the Taosi site indeed shows the characteristics of an early city, however the evidence for a designated craft district which He identifies is equivocal as lithic flakes and blanks were scattered throughout in the west and south parts of the larger enclosure (more details in chapter 7).

Currently, the socio-economic system of Taosi is the focus of study. A small number of publications have discussed craft production in the Taosi Culture, including characteristics and functions of jades (Gao 1998; 2001), technology of pottery manufacture (Li 1996), technology of lacquer making (Gao 1986), function of tiles (He 2006), and lithic production (Yan 2005). Li (1996) studied the technology of pottery production based on experimental analysis. He concluded that the pottery at Taosi was mainly made by hand with a highly developed mouldmaking technology and a less developed wheel-thrown technology. He (2006) analysed the function of tiles according to their archaeological context and proposed that these tiles may have come from the roofs of palaces. This has significant implications for the origin of roof tiles in China, which was previously thought to have begun in a much later period during the Western Zhou dynasty (1046-771BCE). After analysing lithic artefacts from ash trench HG8, dating to the Late Taosi phase, Yan (2005) argued that lithic production was specialised and the stage of making blanks may have been separate from the stage of making finished tools at the site. Agriculture is another important research aspect of the Taosi site. Based on the discovery of many agricultural tools, wells, and craft products at Taosi, Gao (1993) proposed that the agriculture there had reached a high level and could supply enough food to support specialist craftsmen. Zhao and He (2007) have analysed plant remains uncovered by flotation, and pointed out that Taosi people’s diet included foxtail millet (Setaria italica), broomcorn millet (Panicum miliaceum), rice (Oryza sativa) and possible barley (Hordeum vulgare).

Researchers have also studied Taosi from a regional perspective. It is generally accepted that Taosi was the largest and the central settlement during the Early and Middle phases in the Linfen Basin (Gao 2007; He 2004a; He 2004b; Liu 1996; Wang 1997). Many significant discoveries at the site, including rammed-earthed walls, palatial foundations, and remains of astronomical observatory, have strengthened this view. However, there are different opinions regarding the political position of Taosi in the region during the Late Taosi phase. He (2004a) and Gao (2007) proposed that Fangcheng may have become the central settlement in the Linfen Basin, since the palaces and walls at Taosi were destroyed in its Late Phase, at the same time that the Fangcheng site (covering an area of 300 ha) emerged. In contrast, Liu (2004: 170-176) suggested that Taosi and Fangcheng were two central settlements coexisting in the region during the Late Taosi because Taosi still covered a large area, at least as large as Fangcheng, although Taosi had already collapsed at that time. It is impossible to judge which opinion is closer to the history because they are based on current inadequate information about Taosi and hoped that future excavations and site surveys will resolve this question.

These above-mentioned studies have contributed to our understanding of the social, political and economic aspects of the Taosi society. However, the craft production is still poorly understood. In particular, how craft production was organised and how the production organisation changed over time are unknown. Craft production was an important sector in an ancient society and it had a close relationship with sociopolitical development. This book intends to address these issues. Writing The inscriptions found on potsherds at Taosi have attracted much attention from scholars (Fig. 1.9). Li, J. (2001)

11

Lithic production and early urbanism in China

argued that these inscriptions were related to Yu 禹, who is believed to have been the first king of the Xia Dynasty as recorded in ancient texts. Feng (2002) agreed with Li that the inscriptions were of the early Xia Dynasty, and further proposed that the Taosi inscriptions are similar to the oracle-bone inscriptions in the late Shang, suggesting that both belonged to the same writing tradition and that the Taosi writing system was handed down through the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties. Luo (2001) and He (2003) further argued that the Taosi inscriptions were possibly used to record the achievements of Yao, who lived during the legendary era before Yu, referred to as the period of Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, according to historical records.

Tong (1978) is the first archaeologist who systematically studied the technology of the ground stone tools during the Neolithic Period in China. After analysing the characteristics of stone tools in different regions based on their morphologies, Tong (1978; 1982; 1989a; 1989b; 1989c; 1989d; 1998) pointed out that there were different regional lithic production systems, and the number of ground stone tools increased rapidly after the Yangshao Culture. He proposed several common techniques used in tool production and analysed them in detail, including selection of raw materials, selection of the shape of the block, truncating, flaking, pecking, grinding, perforating, and polishing. Recently archaeologists have increasingly begun to employ experimental research and use-wear analysis in order to study ground stone technology. Lu (1994) carried out experimental studies on the exploration of lithic raw materials at the Xiqiaoshan site in Nanhai, Guangdong province, during the Yangshao and the Longshan periods. She concluded that the two main raw materials used at Xiqiaoshan were flint and felstone, which are available near the site. She suggested that lithic products in the delta of the Zhu River in Neolithic Period may have been mainly made at Xiqiaoshan. Moreover, based on her experimental research she rejected the possibility that the “fire burning and water cooling” techniques were used for quarrying felstone, instead suggested that this raw material was explored by directly striking weathered outcrops. Feng (1996) further indicated that the felstone pebbles may have been collected for making tools as well.

These studies were carried out not only by using Chinese traditional archaeological methods, but also utilizing some western anthropological and scientific methods, such as settlement pattern analysis and flotation. These show the process by which scholars have gradually developed an understanding of and contributed to the knowledge about the Taosi Culture. Currently, with more and more scientific methods such as petrological analysis and starch analysis having been introduced into archaeology, Chinese archaeologists have started to realize that more information on Taosi society may be obtained with the application of new methods and theories. In this book, some new techniques and methods related to lithic analysis, such as petrology and replica experimental research, are used to study stone tool production and political economy in the Taosi society. 1.3 Current studies on stone tools in Neolithic China

Owen (2006) carried out experimental research and usewear analysis to investigate the function of spades at Huizui in Henan during the Erlitou Period. He concluded that spades may have been used for multiple purposes. Moreover, lithic production was a time-consuming process, thus stone tools may have been not only used as production implements, but also have had important symbolic or social implications.

Ground stone tools were one of the most important production or extractive implements in Neolithic society. The study of Chinese ground stone tools begun in the end of the 19th century, when many ground stone tools such as axes and chisels, were collected by western explorers including E. H. Giglioli and J. G. Anderson. Substantial research emerged after the establishment of the P. R. China in 1949, although most research was limited to the analysis of tool typologies in different regions and tool functions based on morphological studies (Zhang 2007). In recent years, there have been some new developments in this field, as archaeologists have begun to ask new research questions and employ new methods in their research. They have not only attempted to understand tool function and the manufacturing process, but also explored the relationships between stone tool production and social organisation.

Similarly, Xie (2005) employed use-wear analysis to study the functions of stone axes and knives from the Erlitou site. She suggested that these stone tools could have been used for many purposes. Grinding and polishing could have occurred during the process of use, and not only during manufacture. Additionally, Cunnar (2007) conducted experimental research and use-wear analysis to study the technology

12

Chapter 1 Backgrund and research questions of utilitarian stone-tool production at the Liangchengzhen site in Shandong province. He argued that the work flow of the lithic production at Liangchengzhen was flaking → pecking → grinding → polishing, and that polishing was the only technique which needed complex skills.

of Rizhao in southeastern Shandong and suggested that lithic production was interrelated with the environment and settlement patterns. Generally speaking, in her study raw materials used for the stone tools were procured in the proximity of the site. Non-local but pervasive raw material may have been used as a possible economic link between Liangchengzhen and several settlements near the closest sources of this material. In contrast, local materials of high quality implied the involvement of elite activity in controlling and organisating these resources. Moreover, spades and knives, functioning as agricultural tools, were in a majority among the stone tools at the site, as suggested that all the settlements with such tools focused on agriculture, although they were situated in areas with different physical features and rainfall levels.

Another new method applied recently in the study of stone tools in China is petrological analysis. Zhuang (2008) used thin-section analysis to identify the raw materials used for the stone tools production in the Xuejiagang Culture (c. 4000-3000 BCE), which is mostly distributed in the middle reaches of the Yangzi River, in order to understand stone-tool exchange. She suggested the raw materials used for the stone tools were mainly obtained in the proximity of the area where stone-tool production took place in the Xuejiagang Culture, and thus there is great variation of raw materials revealed in different sites. She also believed that some of these stone tools were exported to the lower reaches of the Yangzi River.

Undoubtedly, all the research cited above has benefited the study of lithic tools and provided numerous good examples of how to utilize lithic data to understand ancient societies. However, little attention has been paid to stone tools from the Taosi site, and an analysis of this would help us to better understand this important Neolithic site. A large amount of debitage, flakes, blanks, performs and stone tools have been discovered at Taosi, providing a great opportunity to learn more about the lithic production and associated social complexity there. Through the analysis of these lithic artefacts and the study of their excavated context, we can gain insights into stone tool production and its contribution to the economy and social development at Taosi.

Scholars have continuously been interested in technology of lithic production, and extended their focus to the relationship between lithic production and social organisation. Ford (2001; 2007), for example, studied the stone tool production and distribution systems in the Yiluo region of Henan, during the Erlitou period, using information from the Yiluo River Project. She noted that the Huizui site was a centre for stone spade production, and these spades were not only used on site, but were also exported to other sites, including the state capital Erlitou. Meanwhile, Liu and Chen (2006; Liu et al. 2007) have further outlined the number of spade production centres in the eastern part of the Yiluo region increasing from one in the Longshan period to four in the Erlitou period when social organisation changed from a complex chiefdom to a state level organisation in the region.

1.4 Current studies on Early Chinese urbanism The development of urbanism in ancient China is not a new topic for archaeologists, and the characteristics and origins of the Early Chinese city have been a focus of study worldwide in the past forty years (e.g. Chang 1985; Dong 1995; Falkenhausen 2009; Xu 2000).

Sun (2007) systematically studied remains from locations which manufactured stone jue earrings at Zhouyuan, Shaanxi, during the Shang and Western Zhou dynasties, and discussed the organisation of jue craft production. Based on his experimental research, he concluded that there were four stages in jue production: preparation, performing, perforation, sawing and refining. He also suggested that the jue manufacture was organised as workshop based production, and that craftsmen were full-time and attached specialists.

Concerning the origins of the early Chinese city, opinions among scholars are divided. Some archaeologists proposed that the earliest city in ancient China was not formed until the Warring States Period (403-221BCE) because markets appeared at this time and the layout within the walled settlement also stabilised during this period (e.g. Dong 1995; Falkenhausen 2009). However, others scholars regarded the walled sites dating to the early Shang Dynasty (1600-1300BCE), such as Zhengzhou and Yanshi in Henan and Panlongcheng in Hubei, as the earliest cities in China (e.g. Chang 1985; Wheatley 1971; Xu 2000). This is because they considered Chinese ancient

Bennett (2002) investigated the activities of lithic production during the Longshan Period in the Liangchengzhen region

13

Lithic production and early urbanism in China

However, the economy, as an important sector of a society, should not be neglected, although few have discussed the early Chinese cities from an economical perspective. In this book, the economic role of Taosi will be discussed.

cities as the means for establishing political power. And the above mentioned walled sites were established for the purpose of controlling various resources, such as copper and salt, in order to strengthen the rulers’ political power. Similarly, Liu and Chen (2001) proposed that Erlitou in Yanshi, Henan, may have been the first city in ancient China based on its political function, and not only because it played an important role in political domain, but also in the economy of a large region. State-monopolized craft production occurred at Erlitou and various resources from different areas were transported into the capital, showing the differences between Erlitou and other contemporary settlements.

1.5 Main research issues addressed in this study In this book, the structure of lithic production and craft specialisation is used to discuss the economic role of Taosi. This contributes toward long-standing debates on the origins of Chinese civilisation. As one of the important features of civilisation (Bairoch 1988: 1-70), urbanism has become a research focus for scholars, although there are differing definitions of a city (see chapter 2). While political and ceremonial functions have often been emphasised (e.g. Chang 1985; Wheatley 1971), economic activities are also regarded as an important function of a city. However, the main question is whether the economy was as important as politics and ceremonies in the roles played by early Chinese cities.

At the same time, a large number of walled sites dating to the Longshan Period have been discovered. It is commonly accepted that these walled settlements were the predecessors of the later cities, and the Longshan Period was the initial stage of urbanism in ancient China (e.g. Falkenhausen 2009; Xu 2000). However, few proposed that these were the earliest cities in ancient China, apart from He (2004b; 2009a), who thought Taosi may have been an incipient form of the Chinese ancient city, as mentioned above. Moreover, Shao (2000) put forward the idea that the walled sites in the Longshan Period were the political and military centre of their own regions. She also suggested that, due to the construction of largescale rammed-earth foundations, possibly functioning as palaces or temples, the Mojiaoshan site of the Liangzhu Culture (c. 3300-2200BCE) in Zhejiang province, may have been a “terrace city”, where slopes of elevated terraces were steepened and on top of low surrounding walls. Additionally, Qian (1998) suggested that the walled site in Xishan near Zhengzhou, dating to the late Yangshao Period (c. 3500-3000BCE), may have been the earliest city in China.

In addition, walled sites dating to the Longshan Period have attracted more and more attention from scholars who are searching for the origins of early Chinese cities, as more and more walled settlements have been discovered. Thus the Taosi site, one of the largest walled sites in the Longshan Period, has understandably become the centre of attention. Although it has been regarded as the political and economic center in the Linfen Basin (Liu 2004: 102), its political and economic roles need to be further investigated, particularly the economic aspects. In general, craft production occurs in all human societies, so it is possible to investigate and compare it in different social and economic forms, such as chiefdoms and states. Moreover, societies/communities/social groups are rarely completely self-sufficient, that is, few can make everything they need by themselves, including food, tools and clothes, meaning that communities may produce one or more items and then exchange with others communities to obtain what they need. Through these activities, different economic and political relationships are intertwined. Craft production and specialisation, particularly attached specialisation, have long been considered to be closely related to social evolution since Childe proposed the importance of the role of craft specialisation in the development of social complexity (Childe 1950; 1951). However, this view has been criticised by some scholars according to different archaeological research in different regions of the world (e.g. Stein 1996; Underhill 1996). For example, Stein (1996) thought Childe overemphasised the control of

The above opinions are mostly based on the physical form of Chinese cities, which are mainly characterised by being rectangular or square in overall plan, with surrounding walls and a functional layout. However, some of the above suggestions are based on the function of early cities (e.g. Chang 1985; Liu & Chen 2001). Trigger (2003) also proposed that the functions of a settlement and its roles in a certain region should be the most important criterion to identify a city and this opinion has been widely accepted. Some scholars have studied characteristics of several large dynastic settlements and concluded that an early city functioned as a political or ceremonial centre in China (Chang 1985; Wheatley 1971).

14

Chapter 1 Backgrund and research questions elites over early craft specialisation because there was no evidence for attached craft specialisation in the initial development of social complexity in the Ubaid period chiefdoms (c. 5500-3900BCE). Similarly, Underhill (1996: 9) proposed that changes in the organisation of labour may have taken place suddenly after state formation, rather than taken place gradually as states developed in the Shandong Longshan period (c. 2600-1900BCE) in China. In spite of this, Childe’s view is still considered a reasonable hypothesis for the examination of economic organisation and political economy in ancient complex societies (Costin 2001: 273).

2) the sources of raw materials of the Taosi stone tools; 3) the organizations of lithic production at Taosi; 4) the exchange of stone tools produced at Taosi in the Linfen Basin; 5) the specialisation of lithic production at Taosi and its contribution to the Taosi’s economic and social development. 6) the political, economic and ceremonial roles of Taosi in the Linfen Basin and the role of Taosi in the urbanisation in early China.

As regards Taosi, publications are limited to brief descriptions of craft artefacts, and we still know little about the organisation of production and political economy of this society. Thus, more research on the economic activities at Taosi needs to be carried out. Investigating the craft production at Taosi could not only help to understand the economic activities, but also provide insights into its sociopolitical development.

Few previous studies on Taosi have been concerned with the relationship between craft specialization and the development of a complex society. Thus, based on the answers to the above questions, I will discuss the contributions of the lithic production to social development at Taosi. In addition, urbanism is another research focus in this book, and I will discuss the settlement layout of Taosi, the nature of Taosi society, and the roles that Taosi played in the Linfen Basin, from the perspective of urbanisation.

Stone tools were the major production implements in the Taosi Culture. The discovery of a large number of lithic artefacts at Taosi and a quarry at Mt. Dagudui made it possible to examine the economic activities at Taosi by investigating stone-tool production in the area. Approximately 2,000 lithic flakes, blanks, cores, hammer stones and preforms were excavated at the Taosi site over the past thirty years. These appear to have been the debris from the manufacture of stone tools unearthed at Taosi, including chisels, knives, spades, and adzes (Shanxi Archaeological Team et al. 2005). This existence of a large quantity of lithic debris indicates that Taosi was a stonetool production centre. In addition, thousands of flakes, blanks, cores, hammer stones and performs were found at the quarry at Mt. Dagudui, which is 7.4 km south of Taosi (Tao 1991; Wang et al. 1987). The quarry is considered to have been closely associated with Taosi (Tao 1991; Yan 2005). People from Taosi may have procured the lithic raw materials and conducted the primary manufacture there, giving rise to questions regarding which production activities occurred at Taosi and which tool production activities occurred at the quarry.

To address the above mentioned issues, the remaining chapters in this book are organised according to the following structure. Chapter 2 discusses the theories and methods related to the research topics of this book. Chapter 3 introduces the lithic materials previously discovered at the Taosi site and Mt. Dagudui, and the difference between materials from the two sites. Chapter 4 describes process and achievement of the fieldwork undertaken at Taosi in 2008 with a focus on the lithic materials unearthed. Chapter 5 outlines my experimental study of replicating stone tool manufacture in order to understand the technology of the lithic production at Taosi. This experiment forms the basis for my understanding of the techniques and workflow of stone-tool manufacture at Taosi. Chapter 6 focuses on the strategy used for the selection of the raw materials and the technology of lithic production at Taosi. Chapter 7 discusses the production capacity, exchange and organisation of the lithic production at Taosi. Chapter 8 summarises the characteristics of the lithic production at Taosi, and further discusses the contributions of lithic production to the development of Taosi society and the roles Taosi played in the Linfen Basin from economic, political and ceremonial perspectives. In the final chapter, I will also discuss the nature of Taosi society and the layout of Taosi within the enclosure dating to the Middle Taosi in order

Therefore, in this study my aims are to determine: 1) the techniques and manufacturing sequence of lithic production and the types of activities used in lithic production at Taosi;

15

Lithic production and early urbanism in China to understand the relationship between Taosi and early Chinese urbanisation. It is hoped that this study will make an important contribution towards a greater understanding of the Taosi society and provide more insights for future study about early Chinese urbanisation. Since Gordon Childe (1950) addressed the “urban revolution”, studies of cities have been given more attention from different aspects by archaeologists all over

16

Chapter 2 Theories and methods the world. The concept of a city has been discussed in terms of its definition, origin, function and its relationship to developments in social complexity (e.g. Chang 1985; Childe 1950; Cowgill 2004; Hansen 2009; Smith 2003; Trigger 2003; Wheatley 2008). Of the many aspects, site functions, including political, econmic and ideological functions, have been considered most important in defining what a city is. And the economic function played by a city in a certain region has been regarded equally as important as its political and ideological functions (Hansen 2009; Trigger 1972; 2003).

development and social complexity (Costin 2001). This book will investigate the technology and the organisation of lithic production at Taosi. In this chapter, I first outline the various definitions of a city and the characteristics of ancient Chinese cities; and then discuss major theories on the roles of craft production in a city, and explain the methods used for identifying organisation of production in archaeological contexts. Finally, I present the methods applied and define the main terms used in this book.

The study of urbanisation in China is important in the study of urbanisation cross-culturally. Compared with other regions in the world, the early cities in China had their own distinct characteristics. Generally their economic function has not been considered as important as their political and ideological functions (Chang 1976; 1985; Wheatley 1971). However, it is impossible for a society to make progress without an economic support. Thus, the question is, what role did the economy play in the process of urbanisation in China, especially in the initial stage? Was it not as important as its political and ideological function?

Definition of a city

2.1 City and urbanisation

What is a city? Scholars have defined it in various ways. Sociologists have emphasised the population of a city. Wirth (1938:8) defined a city as a “relatively large, dense, and permanent settlement of socially heterogeneous individuals.” Others have argued that the total number of people involved was not the crucial issue and considered that the population density was more helpful in interpreting the concept of a city. For examples, Burgess (1926: 118) defined cities as communities of non-food-producers with a minimum of 5,000 people or a population density of at least 386 people per square kilometre. Kostof (1991:37) defined cities as “places where a certain energized crowding of people takes place,” and proposed that settlement density should be emphasised rather than absolute size of a population or absolute numbers of people, claiming that “the vast majority of towns in the pre-industrial world were small: a population of 2,000 or less was not uncommon, and one of 10,000 would be noteworthy.”

In this book, these questions will be addressed by studying the archaeological remains from the Taosi site, which is one of the most important sites for the research on the origin of Chinese civilisation and urbanisation. Because craft production has been considered as an appropriate basis for discussing social and political economies and the level of social complexity, since Childe developed the concept (Arnold 1996; Stein 1996), this book will discuss the role of the economy in early Chinese urbanisation by studying the craft production, particularly lithic production at Taosi. Craft production is a system including the procurement of raw materials, and the production, distribution and consumption of the manufactured goods. The scale of craft production can be assessed by considering specialisation, which can be reflected in many aspects, such as techniques, organisation of production, identities of artisans and the use and distribution of the goods, etc (Patterson 2005). Moreover, technology, organisation of production and distribution are often used to investigate the political economy of a society because they can connect economic

Therefore, population or population density is one criterion for defining a city, although not sufficient on its own. Moreover, it is not easy to estimate the population of preindustrial cities which do not retain written records. In contrast to sociologists, archaeologists have moved away from the definitions based strictly on the criterion of absolute population size or density and paid more attention to the aspects that are related to archaeological remains. Various series of criteria have been used by archaeologists to define a city.

17

Lithic production and early urbanism in China civilizations lived, along with most people who did not produce food. They were the main locations of highlevel political and administrative activities, specialized craft production, marketing, long-distance trade, higher education, artistic and cultural achievements, conspicuous display, court life, and religious rituals. With rare exceptions, important temples, palaces, and public buildings were located in urban centres. While these centres usually depended on food produced in the surrounding countryside, they contained all the institutions and produced everything that made the lives of the upper classes distinctive and worthwhile.”

Childe (1950) proposed ten criteria to explain urban civilisation including 1) the size and density of the population; 2) full-time specialisation and advanced division of labour; 3) payment of taxes to a deity or king; 4) monumental public buildings; 5) those people who do not produce their own food and are supported by the king; 6) systems of recording and practicing science; 7) writing; 8) sophisticated art styles; 9) long-distance trade; and 10) state organisation. In terms of modern day research, these ten criteria are still seem to be fairly comprehensive and cover many of the major aspects of urbanity proposed by others researchers. For example, Hansen (2009: 74) suggested a city should be defined based on three aspects: trade; division of labour and craft specialization; and the size and density of the population in the settlement (all of these criteria were addressed by Childe). He (2009a) recently proposed nine criteria for defining a city including: the regulated form of city walls; an ancestral temple zone; a royal cemetery; a sacrifice zone; an elite-run craft district; a large-sized store zone monopolised by elites; regulated road and gate networks; a philosophy of a city layout; and various urban activities. However, these suggested criteria were mostly based on the Taosi and Erlitou sites, so have not been tested in a broader region. Smith (2003) suggested that most cities were the results of configurations which formed due to different groups of people concentrating in different areas of the one place. Consequently, urban layout was considered a crucial element of a city, although it is difficult for archaeologists to obtain sufficient information about the complete layout of a city because they are usually never able to excavate entire cities.

Another scholar, Cowgill (2004: 526-527), asserted that a city was: “a permanent settlement within the larger territory occupied by a significant number of residents whose activities, roles, practices, experiences, identities and attitudes differ significantly from those of members of the society who identify most closely with ‘rural’ lands outside such settlements. All settlements have catchment areas, but only cities have hinterlands.” Some scholars, who studied cities based on their functions, found that the natures of ancient cities varied considerably. For example, in speaking of ancient Greek and Roman cities, Owens (1991: 3) pointed out that “Within the Graeco-Roman world the city fulfilled various functions, and these functions affected its physical and architectural development…The political, economic, social and religious functions of the city are reflected in its public buildings and their location within the urban environment.” In contrast, in speaking of the typical ancient Chinese city, Tuan (1968: 185) emphasised its symbolic and religious roles:

However, the criteria proposed by Childe and others are polythetic, for example, the use of a writing system was not essential as writing is not found in all early cities (Hansen 2009: 68). Uruk in Mesopotamia was a city hundreds of years before cuneiform script emerged in c. 3200BCE. Similarly, cities were present in the Inca civilisation but script was not. Apart from a simple trait-list for defining a city, an alternative approach is to consider the broader structure of society, especially the function of a city and its relationship to associated settlements or rural areas.

“The regular motions of the stars were to be translated architecturally and ritually to space and time on earth. The walled city oriented to the cardinal directions, the positioning of the twelve city gates, the location of the royal compound and the alignment of the principal axial street were given a geometric pattern that reflected the order to be found in heaven. The key concept was built on the related notions of rectilinearity, order, and rectitude. This key concept acquired architectural and social forms that were then imposed on earth, for the earth itself lacked paradigms of perfect order.”

Trigger (1972; 2003: 120) considered the specialised functions of a city in relation to a broader hinterland as the key defining features of an urban centre. He believed:

Similarly, Wheatley (1971) has also noted that an ancient Chinese city can be viewed as a microcosm based on its

“cities were places where the upper classes of early 18

Chapter 2 Theories and methods City and state

layout. He proposed that the ancient Chinese cities were the cosmo-magical symbol of the universe and were planned according to four cardinal directions, in order to establish an ontological link between the realm of the sacred (universe) and the realm of the profane (real world). However, this characteristic was suggested based on the study of the Chinese traditional cities, such as Chang’an, the capital city of the Tang Dynasty (618-907CE) and the records in Zhouli Kaogongji 周礼۰考工记(2), and it was formed in the development of Chinese ancient cities. Therefore, it may not have been apparent in those cities in the earliest stage of Chinese urbanisation.

“State” is generally mentioned when the origins of city are discussed. Childe (1950) proposed that urban evolution happened only in those societies that were organised as states. Likewise, Fox (1977:24) also asserted that “cities are found only in societies that are organized as states”. Similarly, Bairoch (1988:1-70) suggested that urban centres were features of all early civilisations, in which the largest entities were the capitals of city-states, each with at least a few thousand inhabitants (Trigger 2003:120-141). In addition, based on the survey of cities in Egypt, South America, and Teotihuacan, Yoffee (2005: 59) also proposed that “in every region of the world where the first states appeared, cities were the collecting basins in which longterm trends toward social differentiation and stratification crystallized”, and cities and the early competition among cities were also important in the earliest states with the exception of Egypt. Consequently, a city has been regarded as an indispensable element, by which a society as a state may be identified.

Due to the different characteristics of different cities in various part of the world, Trigger (2003) categorized cities into two types: those in city-states and those in territorial states. He suggested that the cities in city-states had a high population density with a high proportion of farmers, a surrounding walled enclosure and a public market. In contrast, territorial states generally have multiple capitals, secondary centres and dispersed settlement. The cities in territorial states generally had a low population density with a high proportion of administrators and craft specialists. Whether or not his summary adequately covered all types of ancient cities is debatable, however he was still one of the first to point out the difference between various cities and to link natures of cities with types of states, rather than simply regarding a city as a symbol of state.

“City” and “state” reflect different aspects of a society. A city is the concrete symbol of a complex society and is viewed in contrast to a village. It may also be the centre of settlement in which the elite lives and from which the ruling class operates governance (Trigger 2003: 121). In contrast, a state is a type of political organisation, which is characterised by social stratification and centralised and specialised administration (Service 1975).

Although functions of ancient cities varied considerably, they can be summarised as playing three major roles: political (administrative), economic (mercantile) and religious, in comparison with largely agricultural and relatively undifferentiated hinterlands. These three roles have been discussed by many researchers in the studies of early cities in Mesopotamia, Egypt, India, China and Mesoamerica. Comparatively speaking, in spite of different regions worldwide laying special emphasis on different functions of a city in their earlier stage of urbanisation, a city probably still played an important role in all the three aspects in their own region. In this book, I will investigate these three roles in the Taosi society, with particular attention placed on the economic aspect.

The trend of social development could also be called urbanisation (Yoffee 2005: 59), although some archaeologists believe that the existence of a city does not imply the full range of features normally associated with the state, which often includes settlement hierarchy (Renfrew 2009). In my view, the emergence of a city means that the differences exist between urban and rural areas. A city is a manifestation in contrast to a village and it is governed by an elite through a series of administrative means (Trigger 2003:121). On the other hand, the emergence of an administrative authority is the symbol to distinguish a city from a pre-urban community settlement centre. The practices of the administrative authority, such as organising labours to construct palaces, city walls and other buildings, caused the institutionalization of power, which is one of the characteristics of a state (Service 1975: 15). In brief, the formation of a “city”, which is an important symbol of early civilisation (Bairoch 1988;

2 Zhouli, 周礼, rites of Zhou, is a book which recorded an elaborately layout and detailed description of what purports to be the governmental and administrative structure and organisation of the royal Zhou. Kaogongji, 考工记, is one of its chapters. It recorded the earliest technology, management and thoughts about craft construction and production in China. It was written in the Warring and State period (475221 BCE).

19

Lithic production and early urbanism in China Trigger 2003), is a part of the developmental process of the formation of a state.

Wheatley (2008) pointed out that the Chinese cities during Shang and Zhou dynasties were ceremonial centres as cosmo-magical symbols. The layout of the cities and the palaces was arranged based on four cardinal directions with the orientation and axis symbolising the ruler’s power and status.

Characteristics and the origins of ancient Chinese cities The Chinese word cheng 城, which occurred on bronze inscriptions in the West Zhou Dynasty (1046-771 BCE), originally meant “city wall” and was later extended to mean “city”, according to Shuowenjiezi 说文解字 (an ancient dictionary compiled by Xu Shen during 100-121CE). This is possibly because most of the cities in ancient China were surrounded by walls (Boyd 1962; Chang 1976:61-71; Xu 2000). In addition, cheng and guo 郭 were generally used together in ancient inscriptions, meaning inner city and outer city respectively in ancient China; however, when cheng was used alone, its meaning covered cheng and guo. In modern Chinese, the meaning of guo as pertaining to “city” has diminished and cities are now not surrounded by walls any more. In fact, Chengshi 城市 in modern Chinese is generally used to express the concept of city in English. The meaning of cheng here is the same as that discussed above and shi here means market. In fact, a market, named shi 市 as a product of economic development, occurred within a cheng in the Warring States period (475-221BCE) (Qiu 1980; Song 1990). Although it is not clear when cheng and shi in Chinese started to be combined to represent “city” in English, it is apparent that the economic function of a city is emphasised in this formulation.

Chang (1976) summarised seven characteristics of Chinese cities during the Shang and Zhou suggesting that cities: 1) were generally located on level plains near waterways and hills; 2) were walled; 3) were constructed in walls built with a common hangtu 夯土 stamped-earth technique; 4) were rectangular or square in overall plan; 5) were oriented in four cardinal directions orientation; 6) had political and ceremonial structures; 7) and had specialised quarters in a functional layout (palaces, temples, workshops, stores, domiciles, and farming hamlets). Chang (1976: 69) also pointed out that “a city in ancient China was the administrative, ceremonial, and defensive locus of the politically prominent lineages and their wealth; it was not just a settlement whose inhabitants engaged in commercial transactions and subsistence enterprises of various kinds among themselves.” In addition to these summaries of the characteristics of ancient Chinese cities, some scholars have attempted to analyse the characteristics of the origins and development of these early Chinese cities. Dong (1995), for example, divided the historical development of pre-Qin Chinese cities into three stages: 1) the period of castles (chengbao) from the beginnings in the Miaodigou Culture phase to the end of the Longshan (c.4000-2000BCE); 2) the period of capital settlements (duyi) from the Xia to the Western Zhou period (c. 2070-771 BCE); and 3) the period of cities (chengshi) in the Spring and Autumn and the Warring States periods of the Eastern Zhou (770-221BCE). Dong interpreted the walled settlements in different stages as having different functions. The castles in Stage 1 mainly functioned as a military defense. The capital settlements of Stage 2 were the political centres and many large-scale palace constructions were found in settlements during this period. By Stage 3, the market had become an important part of the layout of the settlement and the commercial function of a city was emphasised. The city, as a centre of politics, culture and commerce, had now been formed.

Another Chinese word yi 邑 was used to mean “city” or “capital city” in ancient China. Its emergence was earlier than cheng. The Chinese word yi was first seen in the oracle texts of the late Shang period (1250-1046 BCE) and continued in the same form throughout the Zhou Dynasty (1045-771 BCE) (Chang 1976: 61-71). Yi not only was considered as a centre of a region, a civilised area, different from farming fields, hunting and grazing grounds, and forests, which surrounded yi, but also was associated with hierarchy and state. The capital city of the late Shang Dynasty at Anyang, Henan, for example, was referred to as Da Yi Shang, which means Great Settlement of the Shang Dynasty. This described the relations between the city (Anyang) and the state (Shang Dynasty), and the higher rank of Anyang, as the core area of the Shang, compared with its surroundings. In contrast with other cities in the world, early Chinese cities showed some special characteristics. Boyd (1962:49) proposed four features of an ancient Chinese city and its individual structures from 1500 BCE to 1911CE: 1) walled enclosure; 2) axiality; 3) north-south orientation; and 4) the courtyard.

Similarly, another scholar Xu (2000), summarised urbanisation as passing through three stages: 1) the initial period, from the late Yangshao Period to the Longshan Period (c. 3500-2000BCE); 2) a formative period, during

20

Chapter 2 Theories and methods the Xia, Shang and Zhou period (c. 2070-771BCE); 3) and a transformational period, around the Eastern Zhou dynasty (770-221BCE). Xu suggested that the city did not developed from a primary nucleated settlement before Xia, but was formed during the Xia times, Shang and Western Zhou period. He also suggested that the layout of the ancient city before this time was not regular and that the cheng and guo system of Chinese ancient cities had not yet developed; important roles of cities before Xia times, related to their political and military functions. Xu also suggested that during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, commercial activities became prominent, while political and military functions still remained as the most important functions of a city.

believed that a household level of production (independent specialisation) rather than individual workshop industry or attached specialisation was the major type of organisation in pottery manufacturing in Longshan aged Shandong, although prestige vessels probably were made under a system of small-scale attached specialisation. Summary As has been seen, “it is notoriously difficult to define a cross-culturally applicable ‘city’” (Childe 1950:3). However, it is reasonable to define a city as not only a place where a large number or a high density of people live, but also a symbol of a state-level society. The criteria I will use for determining a city in ancient China are as follows: 1) a city is an urban area different from rural areas; 2) there is evidence of a social hierarchy; and 3) there is evidence of a state-level complex social organisation. The differences between urban and rural areas are the fundamental criteria for identifying a city because “city” and “village” are essentially relative concepts and interdependent to each other. The differences between urban and rural areas are reflected in political, economic and ceremonial aspects, and a city is generally the political, economic and ceremonial centre in the region. However, the following question arises: how can we distinguish a city from a primary nuclear settlement which was also a regional centre in preurban times? To answer this question, the social context, including the social hierarchy and complexity of social organisation must be considered. A city was the place where the elite lived and governed the commoners through a number of administrative institutions, and this is regarded as indicative of the emergence of a state-level society.

More recently, Falkenhausen (2009) agreed with Xu’s three stages of urbanisation in ancient China: the incipient, formative and advanced. However, Falkenhausen defines a city as a commercial centre and unlike Xu, he argues that a full-fledged city was not formed in ancient China until the Eastern Zhou period. In summary, it is generally considered that the early cities in ancient China were formed during the Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties, and they are regarded as centres of political and ceremonial activities rather than commerce. Walled settlements dating to the Longshan Period probably also played an important role in the process of early Chinese urbanisation. Some characteristics of ancient Chinese cities can be found in these Neolithic walled settlements, such as a square- or rectangular-shaped overall plan and construction of a hangtu rammed-earth enclosure. However, was the economic function of the early city in ancient China really as weak as is suggested? In recent years, some archaeologists (e.g. Liu 2004: 105, 199; 2006) have investigated early cities from the point of view of their economic function. Liu proposed that Erlitou was the earliest city in China and was the production centre of a number of specialist crafts, including bronze working, pottery manufacture and bone working. She also discussed the importance of the economic functions of some Longshan walled sites, such as Wangchenggang and Liangchengzhen. Somilarly, Underhill (2002: 249) explained how specialisation of pottery production changed in relation to the development of social complexity in Shandong province, and inferred that there was no significant change in the organisation of pottery production until states were well established, based on Costin’s (1991) mode on production organisation. She

Concerning the archaeological evidences, we would expect certain features and artefacts to be found in a city in ancient China. These include large-scale public buildings, such as ceremonial buildings (palaces or temples) and elaborate artefacts (bronze and jade). In addition to the presence or absence of these material remains, another approach to the study of ancient cityies and its surrounding regions is to investigate the economy, such as craft production in an urban settlement. 2.2 Craft production The mode of craft production is one of the most important criteria for assessing the structure of societies. It has often been argued that the development of more specialised craft production was closely associated with early urbanisation

21

Lithic production and early urbanism in China (e.g. Childe 1950; Jones 1987; Morrison 1995; Roebuck 1972). That is, the degree and level of the development of craft production, which is generally evident in craft specialisation, indicate the degree of social complexity.

impact of the Inca conquest on local populations in terms of local and state control of resources. In this book, I will also analyse the characteristics of the raw materials used in lithic production at Taosi to understand the distribution of its lithic artefacts.

Craft production as a system, has been divided into six components by Costin (2001: 45-51) based on people, objects, and processes that form part of the system. These include artisans, means of production, organisation and social relationships of production, objects, relationships of distribution, and consumers. The organisation and social relationship of production is the most important of these six components because it is associated closely with all the other components in the production system and because it reflects the diversity of the complicated or simple production relationships between people who are involved in production (Brumfiel & Earle 1987). For example, the different patterns of the means of production and the relationships of distribution indicate different models of production organisation. Some archaeologists (e.g. Anthony 1996; Arnold & Santley 1993) have suggested that a lack of technical complexity is evidence for small-scale and part-time production, and that the pattern of elite consumption and distribution is generally an indicator of attached specialisation. In addition, the means of production, the organisation of production and the relationships of distribution are all the indicators of economic development. Accordingly, in this book I will analyse the lithic production at Taosi focusing on the aspects of the means and the organisation of production to demonstrate the economic development at this settlement.

The study of technology has been a major focus in the discussions of craft production and is helpful to understand the process of production. It involves not only the reconstruction of manufacturing techniques, but also the role and meaning of technology in society, the relationship between technological strategies and socioeconomic organisation and the social/political implications of differences in technology (Costin 2001). Although questions have been raised about the link between technological complexity and organisational complexity, technology has been viewed as a way to test the organisation of production (e.g. Childe 1951; Peregrine 1991; Santley & Kneebone 1993). Generally, complex technology, such as metallurgy and wheel-made pottery, is associated with specialised, full-time production (Childe 1951), while simple technology, such as production of utilitarian artefacts, is considered to be associated with small-scale, part-time production (Arnold & Santley 1993). However, the simple and complex technology can both be associated with the specialised full-time production and small-scale, part-time production, and the technological complexity depends on many factors including attributes of raw materials, functions of the products, and so on, because the same technology may have had a different significance in a different social context. Technology, production organisation and social context are interrelated and anyone of them may change with the change of these others interrelated elements. In terms of technology and production organisation, their significance to society is more important than the level of complexity itself.

Means of production Means of production include the method of resource procurement and the technology of craft, in this case, stone tool production. Analyses of resource procurement mainly concern with the mode of access to resources. Torrence (1984), for instance, analysed the obsidian quarry at Melos in terms of technologies for extraction and production; she found no evidence indicating that the access to obsidian outcrops was restricted or controlled in any way, and concluded that the resource procurement at the quarries was not highly specialised.

Technology also varies depending on certain factors including the economy, and and local traditions and cultures, so resulting differences in technology may be used to identify work groups or even individual craft workers (Costin 2001). Moreover, technological differences can be further used to distinguish imports from those made locally. A large amount of data is needed to reconstruct ancient technologies, but very few such studies have been done in Chinese archaeology.

Characteristics of lithic raw materials have been used to reconstruct the patterns of resource exploitation and the political economy (e.g. Costin 2001; Earle & Ericson 1977). Costin (1998), for example, investigated the variability in raw materials used in craft production to demonstrate the

Organisation of production There are two aspects of the organisation of production: the spatial organisation of production and the social

22

Chapter 2 Theories and methods organisation of production, that is, the locations of production activities in geographic space and the locations of production personnel in social space respectively (Costin 2001:293). The spatial organisation of production can be analysed through the discovery of the production loci which can be identified through the recovery of permanent facilities (unmovable features), tools and other material residues of production. However, production locations must be distinguished from dumps, where raw materials were extracted, or wastes deposited. Permanent features, such as kilns, can supply reliable indications of production loci. Manufacturing tools and debris can also imply the location of the working place, although they are not necessarily found at the location of the working place because the debris can be removed and the manufacturing tools may be carried to living places of the craftsmen or workers. However, it is still useful to analyse the assemblage structure of crafted artefacts, including the artefact morphology and size. For example, Pop and Pollock (1993) distinguished where raw materials were extracted from where finished goods were made by analysing the assemblage of the lithic artefacts at the places in Uruk. On the other hand, the types of waste produced during the artefacts production process can be used to study the methods of manufacture, stages of production and infer some socio-political context. Moholy-Nagy (1997), for example, argued that a mixture of production debris with household trash indicated parttime production. These methods have proved useful to identify the lithic production location, the function of the workplace and to analyse the production context for the study of lithic production in this book.

production become diversified in different production systems which in turn are affected by the social, political, economic and environmental factors. Types of organisation of production Many different typologies of production have been proposed based on different criteria (e.g. Earle 1981; Peacock 1982; Van der Leeuw 1977). Costin (1991) synthesised these into an eight-part typology for the organisation of production within four general parameters: context, concentration, scale and intensity. These are: 1. Context of production—independent or attached specialisation; 2. Relative regional concentration—dispersed or nucleated specialisation; 3. Scale of production—small, kin-based household or workshop specialisation; 4. Intensity of production—part-time or full-time specialisation. The context of production refers to the affiliation of the specialists and the socio-political component of the demand for the products (Costin 1991). In this scheme “attached production” is that sponsored and administrated by elite or governmental institutions and goods are produced according to the “command” of the sponsors. In contrast, “independent production” operates upon consumer demand. Earle (1981) considered that attached specialists produce different goods from independent specialists. In general, they tend to produce prestige goods which have importance in showing the wealth, power or status of the consumers, such as luxury and wealth items or weaponry. In contrast, independent specialists may produce subsistence goods or wealth items (Brumfiel & Earle 1987). However, it is inevitable to have some exceptions that attach production may have involved in utilitarian wares as a revenue-generating activity for elite, and independent production may also have involved high-labour luxury items in societies where there are no sumptuary restrictions.

The social organisation of production essentially refers to the relationship between the people who are involved in the production. The forms of the social organisation of production depend on the social, political and economic factors (D’Altroy & Earle 1985), and even the environments (Arnold 1975) in which the production occurs. Consequently, these can reflect some aspects of the local political and economic systems, and are at the same time constrained by these systems. Initial production of raw materials is one stage of the whole production system, which includes the procurement of raw material, production of lithics, and the interwoven issues of the distribution and consumption of the artefacts. For example, the forms of distribution identify the way in which producers procure raw materials and transfer final lithic products to the consumers (Costin 1991). Consequently, different production systems cause different forms of production organisation, that is, the forms of the organisation of

Concentration of craft production focuses on the spatial organisation of production which refers to the distribution of specialists across the landscape (Costin 1991). At one extreme is dispersed household specialisation which is

23

Lithic production and early urbanism in China Environment plays an important role in chosing the location where production occurs (Arnold 1975). The cost of the product, to some extent, is subject to the distances between the production location and the raw material sources, and also between the production location and the consumers. The cost of productions near the raw material sources and the consumers is definitely lower than in locations further away from raw materials and consumers. In addition, weight and bulk of raw materials also contribute to the transportation costs. Consequently, people generally locate a production worksite as close as possible to where convenient transportation is available.

evenly distributed among the population in a region. The other extreme is centralised specialisation such as a large workshop which is concentrated in certain places for ease of craft production. Size and principles of labour recruitment are regarded as the two main components when assessing the scale of craft production (Costin 1991). At one extreme are small, individual or family-based household specialisation. The other extreme is large, wage-labour forces or skill-based workshop specialisation. Generally speaking, the scale of production increases along with social development.

As discussed above, technology, as a social context, has long been viewed as being related to the organisation of production (Childe 1950; 1951). The degree of technological complexity is usually regarded as symbolic of the degree of organisational complexity, although this is problematic because technological complexity is a relative concept (Costin 2001). Franklin (1992: 17-35) classified technology into two categories: holistic (workrelated) and prescriptive (control-related). Holistic technologies are normally associated with the notion of craft. In this technology, craftsmen’s hands and minds make situational decisions as the work proceeds. So the craftsman totally controls the process. In contrast, the process in prescriptive technology has been prescribed with sufficient precision to make each step fit into both the preceding and the following steps. Thus, a workforce in this process becomes the executor rather than the decision-maker. Therefore, the manager, who not only has to have knowledge about the production, but also about the organisation of the workforce, plays an important role in this technology. Consequently, the technological complexity should be considered from the number of manufacturing steps and amount of managerial knowledge involved in the production. More production steps usually not only reflect more technological knowledge, but also more managerial knowledge. Hence, a study on technology complexity is very useful to determine the organisational complexity of production, although scholars generally neglect the managerial knowledge factor because the knowledge needed by the production is difficult to measure in archaeology.

Intensity refers to the amount of time producers spend on their craft (Costin 1991). Generally, full-time specialisation can increase efficiency of productin but at the same time increasing the risk to the subsistence supply for independent specialists. As a result, independent specialists have a greater tendency to be part-time artisans than attached specialists because independent specialists have more unstable food supplies (Brumfiel 1987). In fact, these are idealised modes of production and it is generally impossible to identify a production organisation in this clear way based on archaeological materials. For example, there is currently not a reliable way to distinguish kin-based organisation from wage-labour forces. Also it is difficult to identify full-time or part-time production based on material culture remains from the archaeological record. In addition, various factors affecting production intertwine with each other, making it difficult to match a certain production organisation with the types mentioned above. The types above are some extreme examples and they cannot be simply matched with a particular prehistoric society except for attached specialisation, which is regarded as related to social inequality (Costin 1991). In spite of these problems, Costin’s model is still helpful in setting out terms and parameters useful in a discussion of production organisations. In this book, I will rely heavily on her model to discuss the organisation of lithic production at Taosi. Factors affecting the types of organisation of production As discussed above, craft production is embedded in political, social and/or economic systems and constrained by the natural environment. So, it is unavoidable that the organisation of craft production is subjected to factors including the environment, technology (social factor), the activities of the ruler (political factors), and efficiency (an economic factor).

In some cases, the activities of the rulers or the elite are connected with the organisation of production. The elite controls some parts of production and distribution of some prestige items which can help them to create and maintain the status, power and wealth (Brumfiel & Earle

24

Chapter 2 Theories and methods 1987; Earle 1981). As a result, the specialists attach themselves to the elite and produce the objects which the elite demand. In prehistoric society, the elite seldom intervened in subsistence production, although in at least one case in Mesopotamia, rulers controlled the subsistence production and distribution (Galvin 1987). In general, the management of craft production and distribution was a part of ruling strategies.

exchange, the market, and obligatory transfers (e.g., tax and tribute). Renfrew (1972: 465-471; 1975: 46-51) predicted four modes of exchange which are possible to recover archaeologically: down-the-line; directional trade or central place redistribution; free-lance trade and prestige-chain exchange. Different scholars have outlined different modes of distribution, attempting to find particular social and economic ties between producer and consumer and the organisation of production behind each mode. For example, definitions of independent production imply voluntary transfer, whereas attached production often implicitly entails obligatory or coerced transfer from artisan to sponsor (Brumfiel & Earle 1987; Costin 2004). Although these implications could not always be applied, they serve as a starting point from which we may investigate the social and economic ties by analysing the distribution and movement of goods.

Increase in efficiency promotes change in the organisation of production. Competition between specialists which can occur mainly among full-time independent specialists is one of the main dynamics noted by Costin (2001) for an increase in efficiency. The full-time specialists increase the efficiency of production and decrease the cost of the products for survival in competition through technological innovations and elaborate labour division. Production is generally closely related to consumer demands and higher efficiency is reflected by the increase in demand. A great demand results in large-scale craft production. In general, there is higher efficiency in a workshop than in household specialisation and in full-time than in part-time specialisation (Costin 2001).

Craft specialisation Specialisation of craft production is a measure of the development degree of craft production. It is a relative concept, distinguished from the non-specialised production—the generalised or domestic mode of production, which means production happens in domestic groups for their livelihood (Sahlins 1972: 41-100).

The factors above are always intertwined and act together with the organisation of production. A given pattern of the organisation of production must be the result of several elements, although it generally transforms mainly due to alterations or changes in the operational chain of the entire production process.

Scholars have defined specialisation from different perspectives. Costin (2001: 275) summarised them into four aspects:

Distribution Distribution is one of the integral parts of craft production system. It entails the means by which goods are transferred from producers to consumers. Moreover, distribution is a critical link in social economy because production does not become social until goods move from the producer to the consumer (Costin 2001: 305). Distribution also stimulates the development of craft production because specialists can get the goods that they need but do not produce themselves through exchange. Long-distance trade was regarded by Childe (1950) as one of the important characteristics of social complexity and urbanisation.

1) specialisation is a suprahousehold phenomenon;

There are various modes of distribution. Polanyi (1957) summarized them into reciprocity, redistribution, and market exchange. Goody (1982) defined five key types of transfers: allocation within the production unit (household), gifts (voluntary, no return), reciprocal

These premises share a common idea, which is “the conception that production is variable across time, space, and/or personnel, and that the ‘specialist’ produces more of some good or service than she or he [personally] uses” (Costin 2001:276). The emergence of specialisation

2) the specialist is “freed” in part from “other” subsistence pursuits; 3) the specialist does not produce all the other goods/ services she or he needs; and 4) the specialist is materially compensated for goods or services he or she provides and uses that compensation to participate in some form of “exchange” to procure all other desired goods and services.

25

Lithic production and early urbanism in China represents a situation where craft production has developed to a high level.

However, all these criteria are relative rather than absolute. They vary according to the different social, economic and political conditions. Therefore, the degree of specialisation is a relative term and can only be determined when comparing two or more analytical units, such as when comparing different sites, regions, phases or types.

Craft specialisation can be indicated by each section of the craft production system, including techniques, organisation of production, identities of artisans, and the use and distribution of the finished products (Patterson 2005).

Specialisation and complex societies Specialisation may be measured in various degrees (Costin 1991: 5). Arnold (1984: 38) classified specialisation into incipient level and “institutional” or “guild” level specialisation in terms of its stability. He argued that incipient specialisation was more variable in contrast to “institutional” or “guild” specialisation, and generally existed in tribal societies because it must operate without a stabilising central power or a hereditary social structure. He also suggested that this type of specialisation developed in those tribal societies, which eventually evolved into chiefdoms. In contrast, “institutional” or “guild” specialisation was relatively common in chiefdom or state level societies, where various individuals of appropriate skill or hereditary line were brought along to fill specialist slots as positions were vacated.

Specialisation is believed to be closely connected with the development of social complexity (e.g. Brumfiel & Earle 1987b; Childe 1950; Flannery 1972a). At the same time, the relationship between these two variables is crucial in the study of the craft production system. Did specialisation stimulate social complexity or did political complexity cause the emergence of craft specialisation? It might be a “chicken-and-egg” dilemma because opinions on this issue vary considerably. On the one hand, some scholars believe that social complexity originated through economic growth and specialisation (e.g. Jacobs 1984; Patterson 2005; Renfrew 1972; 1975), although such cases were relatively few (Brumfiel & Earle 1987: 1); On the other hand, other scholars proposed that specialisation was the consequence rather than the cause of social complexity (e.g. D’Altroy & Earle 1985; Roux & Matarasso 1999; Underhill 1996; 2002). It is possible that specialisation and social complexity may have been a coextensive process. Specialisation stimulated the social complexity and social complexity motivated craft specialisation at the same time (e.g. Earle 1977; Rathje 1971; Service 1975). Brumfiel and Earle (1987) divided the relationships between specialisation and social complexity into three models: the commercial development model, the adaptationist model, and the political model.

Costin (1991) suggested a relatively objective criteria for specialisation, including standardisation, efficiency, skill and regional variations. Standardisation refers to a relative degree of homogeneity of materials, technical or morphological attributes of an artefact or the process of achieving that relative homogeneity (Costin 1991; 2001; Rice 1987; 1991). It was also regarded as an integral part of specialisation because individual variability in the assemblage should be less in a specialised system with fewer producers. Generally, for utilitarian artefacts, the higher the degree of specialisation, the more standardised the product.

1) Commercial development model: Efficiency is a relative measure of the time, energy, and/ or raw materials expended in production per unit of output. A high degree of specialisation normally has a high efficiency of production. Skill refers to the skill level of the producers. The more skilful the producers are, the fewer errors are made in production. Therefore, the standardisation and efficiency tends to be higher where production is more specialised. Regional variation is to use a variety of techniques to segregate the products of different production groups. Relatively fewer production groups during a given period with fewer regional variants indicate a higher degree of specialisation, while more production groups correspondingly represent a lower degree of specialisation.

In this model, the increases in specialisation and exchange are viewed as an integral part of the spontaneous process of economic growth and all the activities of production and exchange are regarded as an autonomous process dictated by economic efficiency and the pursuit of individual advantage. The main characteristics of this model are elaborate division of labour, regional exchange and economy free of political administration (Brumfiel & Earle 1987: 1). Therefore, local rulers do not play an important role in the economic activities and an independent production is considered as the mode of specialisation in the commercial development model (Costin 2001: 308). However, this model overemphasised the function of the economy.

26

Chapter 2 Theories and methods There is no doubt that specialisation and exchange affect politics and society but they are affected by politics and other social factors at the same time. Thus it is not certain that specialisation and exchange cause social complexity. Brumfiel and Earle (1987: 1) suggested that commercial development may often stimulate social complexity, but they suggest that on the fringes of commercial systems this complexity may be reduced as a result of commerical development. Moreover, in some societies sustained commercial development required land and labour to be treated as commodities; but this may not have occurred until an extended period of political centralisation and inequality (Polanyi 1944: 56-76; Sahlins 1972: 92-93; Wheatley 1971: 281-289). Hence it is impossible to discuss economic activities without referring to any influence from political and other social conditions.

of local production and exchange at the time of state emergence on the Susiana Plain in Southwest Iran (Wright & Johnson 1975).

2) Adaptationist model:

3) Political model:

In this model, political elites are assumed to intervene in the economy and specialisation is seen as a ruling strategy used by elites to increase production in order to increase their power. Generally, the economic activities in this model can be shown as redistribution, market exchange, centralised management of production and long-distance trade (Brumfiel 1987: 2), as outlined below.

In this model, local rulers, who are regarded as having an important role in organising specialisation and exchange, are also the primary beneficiaries. Political elites consciously and strategically employ specialisation and exchange to create and maintain social inequality, and strengthen political coalitions and alliances. Mobilisation, which transfers goods from producers to political elites, is seen as the heart of political development. It is reflected in local production and exchange, such as the exchange of foreign commerce, certain food crops, tools or weaponry, wealth and prestige goods. By controlling the exchange of these items, on the one hand, rulers are enabled to create new institutions of political control; on the other hand, rulers become patrons of certain craft specialties and sponsors of long-distance trade (Brumfiel & Earle 1987: 3). In doing so, local rulers strengthen their power and realize their rule. However, some studies showed that there was no corresponding increase in interregional exchange accompanying the increased social complexity (e.g. Rice 1987; Wright 1972a). Political factors therefore are not necessarily the causes of the development of specialisation.

Long-distance trade, administered by political elites for acquiring exotic goods to enhance their status, also enhanced the security of local populations (Flannery 1968). The exchange of exotic items between elites could have created reciprocal obligations between groups so that a more secure population would be willing to share with a less fortunate partner in times of stress. However, all these economic activities need a powerful and centralised leadership. Therefore, this led to the elaboration of political approaches to specialisation, exchange and complexity.

Redistributive exchange and specialisation confers substantial benefits in regions of high resource diversity because they would enhance productivity, diversify subsistence, and provide insurance against food failures in one sector or another. These benefits might be used to sponsor production and to improve the management of specialisation and exchange, although current proponents of redistributive model emphasise redistribution as a means of managing resource perturbation (e.g. Earle 1977; Muller 1987). Market exchange is considered as an exchange of products via public market, where governments maintained peace and mediated the diverse interests of various kinds of specialists. One example of market exchange was the intensified regional exchange in the valley of Mexico during its unification under the Aztec state (Brumfiel 1980).

Although these models may provide some explanations for the relations between specialisation and complex societies, it is not possible for them to cover the great variations of craft production in all societies.

Centralised management of production is believed to be helpful for a complex local economy, particularly for the alternative uses of labour and land, by centralised decision making. It has been seen as a factor in the reorganisation

Summary Craft production is a complicated system and the previous

27

Lithic production and early urbanism in China studies on the subject have covered many aspects. Among them, the means of production, organisation of production and distribution are the three main focuses. These three aspects constrain and interact with each other, and their development degree may be indicated by craft specialisation through an investigation of the standardisation, efficiency, skill and regional variation of the products. Craft specialisation is also believed to be closely related to the development of social complexity, a topic which is essential in the current study.

and different reduction stages because certain types of waste are related to certain methods of manufacture and reduction stages of tool production. For instance, largesized flakes usually accompany an early reduction stages in one reduction process. Ratio data between production debris and consumed products, unfinished and finished products, unused and used goods, densities of production debris and some generally and uniformly used items, are all useful for us to distinguish the place of production from the craft consumption location (Costin 1991). In general, the ratio of debris to products is much higher at the production locale than at the consumption (or discard) location of finished artefacts.

2.3 Methods The identification of the physical place of production where manufacture took place is the first step in identifying craft production. Moreover, the context of the production place, including its relativity to raw material sources and to consumers, can provide important information about organisation of production and specialisation. Other data, such as standardisation, provide additional means to understand the degrees of specialisation.

The information from the production location not only helps to identify the production location, but also to distinguish the attached or independent specialisation, and household or workshop specialisation (Costin 1991). Social organization of production or production modes (e.g. household or workshop) is often related to the pattern of production waste (Santley & Kneebone 1993). For example, Charlton et al. (1991) identified a household-based prismatic blade workshop in the city-state of Otumba, Mexico, because the debitage was dumped with other household debris in a residential area. Generally, household production, such as production by a household for its own use (e.g. Arnold & Santley 1993), indicates small-scale production and waste disposal patterns with household trash. In contrast, the workshops of attached specialists are most often physically associated with elite domestic structures or government facilities or some uncommon artefacts, such as jade and polychrome pottery (Costin 1991). For example, Ames (1995) concluded that the craft workers in the Northwest Coast of America were high-ranking individuals, based on recovery of craft production tools in high-status sections of houses. Similarly, Moholy-Nagy (1997) considered that the presence of higher status items associated with the production debris indicated attached production in the Classic Period at Tikal, Guatemala.

Methods of identifying craft production in archaeological records There are generally two ways to identify the craft production: direct and indirect evidence (Costin 1991). In archaeological terms, direct evidence refers to the production location and debris. Indirect evidence refers to the information obtained through an analysis of finished objects, such as standardisation, efficiency, skill, and regional variation, which are regarded as the characteristics of specialisation and are used to describe the degree of specialisation. To locate places where production took place is the most straightforward method to identify the craft production. Archaeological remains of permanent facilities, manufacturing tools and debris are regarded as the main types of evidence for determine the location of craft activities (Costin 2001). Manufacturing tools (e.g., hammer stones, flakers and punches) and debris (e.g., blanks, cores, broken or misshapen rejects and other debitage) are more important than permanent facilities for the identification of production locations because the latter might not be required in non-industrial production. Studies on stone manufacture (e.g. Abadi-Reiss & Rosen 2008; Andrefsky 2005; Owen 2006) indicated that different quantities and categories of the lithic debitage at the production area could be used to identify different production activities

Household or workshop production can be determined based on the refuse type at the production location. However, these are idealised models and may not reflect the great variations in the archaeological record. There may have been many examples which do not fit into the models. For instance, the stone jue earring workshop studied by Sun (2007) contained pottery, animal bones, and human burials which are the kinds of remains also found in

28

Chapter 2 Theories and methods survey, coring, a surveyed investigation of gully cuts in the study region and test excavations.

residential areas. Research on Huizui stone tool production by Ford (2007) and Liu et al. (2007), suggested that a household-based, but community-oriented production was in operation, and the distribution sphere was far beyond a small domestic local area. These case studies do not fit the idealised models, however these models in question still provide a framework to analyse the organization of lithic production.

The Taosi site covers about 430 ha so a sampled survey was necessary, as a means of saving cost and time (Dancey 1981: 45-51). The survey was carried out within a rammedearth enclosure dated to the Middle Taosi Period, which was 280 ha in area. The gully cuts which go through the site were also investigated. A large number of lithic objects were collected in order to analyse the spatial distribution of the lithic production in these areas. Coring was conducted to see whether the subsurface material remains correlated with those on the ground surface. Test excavations were carried out in four locations where rich stone artefacts were present, in order to collect the information on the context of the stone tool manufacturing. Details of this will be discussed in chapter 4.

Standardisation or the low individual variability of products in a production unit, is considered a feature of specialisation because it reflects cost-cutting strategies (Costin 1991). Standardisation can be used to describe the size, morphology or technology of artefacts in a production group. Generally, it is expected that the standardisation of workshop work is higher than that of household work and independent specialists’ work is higher than attached specialists’. However, this is not always the case. Standardisation depends on the type of artefact, the technology, the function and the nature of demand. An example where Inca-style pottery, made by the attached specialists, has high degree of standardisation (Costin 1991: 36), contradicts these more simple assumptions. So individual factors must be taken into account when assessing levels of standardisation in an ancient society.

This field work helped to understand the spatial organisation of lithic production at Taosi by investigating the distribution of the locations where flakes or blanks were found. It was also expected that details of the production locations would be examined by test excavations as this helps to analyse and understand the social organisation of lithic production at Taosi. Fortunately, the relevant information was obtained from this field work and will be discussed in chapter 7.

Efficiency is a relative measure of time, energy and/or raw materials expended in production per unit of output and is also considered a key feature of specialised production (Costin 1991). Because efficiency is often regarded as an essential strategy for survival in economic competition, it is generally believed that independent production is more efficient than attached production because of the different influences of competition on them (Brumfiel & Earle 1987: 5). However, efficiency, measured by labour input, needs to use the information from ethnoarchaeology and replication studies on time and energy expenditure to be deeply understood (Costin 1991). Although efficiency is also measured by standardisation and technology, a necessary link between efficiency and standardisation and technology does not exist.

Petrographic analysis Petrographic analysis of some lithic objects was undertaken in order to determine the lithology of the stone objects at Taosi and possible sources of lithic raw materials. Some statistical analyses on the different raw materials were conducted to see whether there was a match between presumed or possible sources and stone tools. The petrographic identification was carried out by Ms Ruli Dong from Geology Science University of China. Petrographic analysis is one of the ways in identifying the raw materials of lithics. By comparing the raw materials of the lithics at Taosi with the lithic resources around Taosi, raw material procurement strategies may be investigated. Comparing the raw materials of the lithcs at different sites dating to the Taosi Culture and their lithic assemblage, is a useful method of understanding the circulation of stone tools amongst these related sites.

Methods employed in this study Fieldwork In order to identify the production location and understand the context of the lithic artefacts, I conducted an archaeological survey at Taosi. It included a combination of archaeological research methods including a surface

29

Lithic production and early urbanism in China Replication experiment

analysed in order to study the exchange of stone tools in the Linfen Basin. These studies are helpful in understanding lithic production at Taosi, including its role in the economy and in turn, the economic role in the social development of lithic production at Taosi.

Experimental archaeology, also called reconstruction archaeology, has been used for approximately 150 years (Coles 1979: 12), and has become an effective method to study the technique of production, especially stone tool production. In recent years some scholars have employed this method to study production of ground stone tools in China (e.g. Cunnar 2007; Sun 2007; Xie 2005). Similarly, replication experiment were used for the current research. I organised a replication experiment at Houma, where we stored the artefacts collected from fieldwork at Taosi. In the experiment, which lasted one month, the materials used to produce stone tools similar to those at Taosi or the Mount Dagudui quarry (see next chapter) were recreated. No modern equipment or technologies were used in the production of the replica stone tools similar to those discovered in archaeological contexts at Taosi because the experiment was designed to reflect the ancient situation as much as possible. Twenty tools were produced, including one knife, two axes, four adzes, three wedges, one chisel, six spear-shaped blanks and three ornaments (see chapter 5). The replication experiment not only provided useful information about the techniques of production, but also revealed information regarding the organisation of production. This was applied to analyse tool production techniques (see chapter 6) and lithic production capacity (see chapter 7) in this book.

Definition of some terms used in this book Stone tool production is a dynamic process which “acts upon the lithic artefact and the population of artefacts to create different shapes and sizes of individual specimens” (Andrefsky 2005:29). That is, lithic production dynamically causes the stone to change in shape and size, and lithic artefacts with various morphologies only represent a static point during this process. So the different types of lithic artefacts discovered at an archaeological site represent various static points in this continuum. Nevertheless their basic form provides valuable insights. Here four main basic forms are examined: flakes, blanks, preforms and tools. “Flake” refers to a lithic piece detached from an objective piece (core) by percussion or pressure flaking. Flakes generally have obvious characters, such as the platform, a percussion point, a bulb of percussion, a bulbar scar, ripple marks and fissures on ventral surface. Lithic production is a reduction process (Holdaway & Stern 2004: 2), so flakes are essentially by-products of tool or utensil production and become smaller and smaller in size during this process. In a single reduction process, large flakes are generally regarded as the representative of earlier reduction stages than those with a smaller size (Andrefsky 2005:96), although small flakes are sometimes also produced accompanied with the large flakes during the earlier reduction stages and a small quantity of large flakes are possibly detached during the later stages (Stahle & Dunn 1982). In this book, flakes have been classified into broad size-classes of