Photo story: discovery of the Yangshao Culture

Children practice painting on the pottery at the national archaeological site park of Yangshao Village in Mianchi County, central China's Henan Province, Oct. 17, 2021. In 1921, the first excavation on the Yangshao Village site, which is in Mianchi County, Henan Province, marked the birth of Chinese archaeology. The name of China's first-known archaeological culture, the Yangshao Culture, was also derived from the site. In 1951 and 1980, China launched the second and third excavation of the ruins. Originating around the middle reaches of the Yellow River, the Yangshao Culture is considered an important stream of Chinese civilization, and is widely known for its advanced pottery-making technology. The fourth archaeological excavation of the Yangshao Village site began on Aug. 22, 2020, and is still in progress. (Xinhua/Xu Yanan)