Museum in Hangzhou spotlights agricultural civilization

The Gushan branch of the Zhejiang Provincial Museum, which is located at the foot of Gushan Mountain near West Lake in the provincial capital of Hangzhou, launched an exhibition for archaeological discoveries in relation to Shangshan culture that will run until March 14.

Dating back to around 11,000 years ago, Shangshan culture is the earliest Neolithic civilization ever discovered in Zhejiang. Its artifacts were initially excavated in Shangshan village in Huangzhai town, Pujiang county, in October 2000. Since then, 19 relic sites for Shangshan culture have been discovered, with most of them located in basins near the Qiantang River within the administrative region of Jinhua.

The phytolith remains of rice recovered from these sites have been recognized as the earliest example of rice planting. Therefore, Shangshan culture is held in high regard by archaeologists as a starting point for China's agricultural civilization.

On display at the exhibition are traces of rice crusts and leaves, as well as various kinds of prehistoric pottery found in the relic sites for Shangshan culture across Zhejiang province.