Familiarity with unearthed materials has become the norm among scholars of early China across the world. The field has come to re‐examine narratives of early Chinese history in a more nuanced way, moving beyond questions of “doubting” or “verifying antiquity” to detail how the situation on the ground in early China related to its representation in traditional historical constructs. The fruits of this process are undeniable. Confronting entrenched historical narratives through archaeology, however, has widespread methodological and epistemological implications. Unquestioned, traditional narratives can distract scholars from the motivations of ancient actors; moreover, they can limit the broad humanistic value of early China scholarship and its reception outside the field. Unchecked, however, the incautious deconstruction of such narratives can cast pointless doubt on well-founded networks of knowledge. Further, deploying unearthed material in historiography brings the narratological habits of history into contact with the customs of field archaeology, raising both practical problems of data management and theoretical issues about the production of knowledge about the past.
News tags
As part of the Distinguished Virtual Seminar Series in Archaeological Science, the Cranfield Forensic Institute and Grenville Turner Studios will be hosting Professor Anke Hein (University of Oxford). Professor Hein will speak about her archaeological science research on Chinese ceramics:
Double-Wares in Neolithic Northwest China: Technological 'Abominations' or Artistic Masterpieces
The Münchner Zentrum für Antike Welten (MZAW) invites applications for a Visiting Professorship in Cultural History of the Ancient World for either one or two years, starting on October 1, 2022.
The University of Kansas (KU) Center for East Asian Studies and Kress Foundation Department of Art History will be hosting a symposium "Visual & Material Culture of the Silk Road" from September 11-12, 2020 via zoom. The symposium will feature a diverse lineup of speakers from KU and other institutions [Registration information below].
Liangzhu Culture Management Committee and Shanghai Jiaotong University are currently working on a digital project for the archaeological ruins of Liangzhu city in China, which was inscribed on WHL last year. In order to create user-friendly digital platforms, we’re looking for non-Chinese culture lovers who have been to or are currently residing in mainland China to attend paid interviews. If you're interested in participating, please find more info on the flyer here.
Haimenkou was an important location, with trade and cultural links connecting parts of modern Southeast Asia and northwestern China in ancient times. This book is based on an analysis of the faunal assemblage recovered from the Haimenkou site during the 2008 field season in Yunnan Province, China. It investigates the human-animal relationships at Haimenkou through a time span running from the late Neolithic Period to the middle Bronze Age (ca. 5000-2400 BP).
Haimenkou was an important location, with trade and cultural links connecting parts of modern Southeast Asia and northwestern China in ancient times. This book is based on an analysis of the faunal assemblage recovered from the Haimenkou site during the 2008 field season in Yunnan Province, China. It investigates the human-animal relationships at Haimenkou through a time span running from the late Neolithic Period to the middle Bronze Age (ca. 5000-2400 BP).
The Archaeological Centre at the University of Toronto will be hosting a talk titled "In a Nutshell: Examining the Oversimplification of Jomon Period Ground Stone through Starch Grain Analysis in Southern Hokkaido Japan" by Dr Emma Yasui via Zoom on Friday, November 5, 2021, at 3:00 PM EST. Those interested in attending can register via the following link: Meeting Registration - Zoom
The Stanford Archaeology Center will be hosting a webinar, "Memories of the Archaeological Experience" by Jada Ko on Wednesday, May 11, 2022, at 12:00 PM PST. For more information and to register for the event, please see: https://archaeology.stanford.edu/events/memories-archaeological-experie…;
The Council on Southeast Asian Studies at Yale University will be hosting a webinar "The Introduction of Theravada Buddhism to Angkor, Cambodia (C. 13th-16th Centuries) - Mapping and Interpreting Religious Change through the Archaeological Record" by Andrew Harris, Research Associate at the University of Toronto's Archaeology Centre on October 13, 2021 12:00 Noon EST.
Register via the following link: https://yale.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJMqc-6vqjorEtcaRh_xO8WoLfkOA8DDA…