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Archaeologists inChinahave discovered the cadaver of a walled Bronze Age metropolis that once contain a palace , moat , cemeteries , sacrificial pits , pottery shop and a bronze - casting foundry .
The ancient urban center , make love as Yaoheyuan , was situated in the foothill of the Liupan Mountains in northwesterly China . It was once a political and cultural powerhouse that was prominent during the Western Zhou Period , a historical time in Chinese history that stretch from 1045 B.C. to 771 B.C. during the Zhou dynasty , agree to a written report write Aug. 3 in the journalAntiquity .
One of the six sacrificial horse pits unearthed at Yaoheyuan in northwestern China.
Although there are other Bronze Age sites dotting this part of the country , archaeologists consider Yaoheyuan the probable regional hub at this time free-base on the breadth and diverseness of social system unearthed during excavations .
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Human and animate being sacrifices were common praxis at Yaoheyuan , evidenced by the abundance of tomb hold the remains of disarticulated human bones , horses , oxen , goats , sheep , poulet , dog-iron and rabbits buried alongside humans . research worker see six sacrificial pits hold cavalry stacked in layers , with some of the skeletal system broken into segment , indicating that the animate being were likely dismembered before being thrown in . All assure , archaeologist found the skeletal frame of 120 horses , including several foals .
An inscribed oracle bone containing ideograms similar to Chinese characters.
" The sacrificial burial and consumption of horses point not only to the wealthiness and position of the Yaoheyuan polity but also the availability of horses in this part , " the authors wrote in the study . " Horses were one of the most important resourcefulness in northwest China during the Western Zhou period . "
archeologist also discovered the first known bronze - casting website of the Western Zhou period , replete with sludge storage tank , or leftover heaps of a remains mixture once used to make molds , kiln and edifice foundations .
In addition , researchers unearthed a variety of artifact spread out throughout the situation , admit ceramic mold , jade and stone objects , lacquerware , celadon ( unripe - sugarcoat ) vessels and bone etch with more than 150 unlike ideograph , or a symbol representing a word , that are similar to Taiwanese characters .
An amazonite object found in one of the burials.
Excavations straightaway outside the walled city revealed the remains of home , ash pits , storage pits , kiln and roads , while inside the metropolis walls researchers discovered an intricate web of epithelial duct and channels crisscross the community of interests .
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Up until now , few studies have focused on the Western Zhou and this region in particular , and further enquiry is necessary to best understand Yaoheyuan ’s place during this time period and its kinship with other part of China , the authors noted .
" These unparalleled see allow for significant new grounds with which to try out the political and cultural landscape painting of northwestward China and , more broadly speaking , to reassess the relationships between centers and peripheries during the Chinese late Bronze Age , " the authors wrote .
