Zhoukoudian: the Dawn of Early Man

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Discovered in the early 2oth century, the Zhoukoudian site near Beijing provided an extremely rich fund of fossilized materials of early hominids. These were found in conjunction with extensive botanical fossils. From intensive study of these materials, we have gained an understanding of mankind’s early period, and we are able in a sense to listen to the distant echoing voices of our forebears. The site is one of the most outstanding among a number of sites relating to ancient hominids in China, others including the Yuanmou Man site in Yunnan and the Lantian Man site in Shaanxi. The discoveries at Zhoukoudian helped in providing humanity with a much clearer understanding of man’s development. Most early hominid sites in the world are located in remote and wild mountainous areas. Zhoukoudian is near an international capital, the city of Beijing. It provides a rare opportunity to those friends who come from all over the world to understand the culture of ancient man, and at the same time to begin to understand the long course of China’s civilization.

The “Peking Man Site,”as it is called, is located fifty kilometers to the southwest of the city of Beijing, in the Long-gu or”Dragon-Bone”Mountains of the Fangshan District. In the early twentieth century, foreign scholars who were doing research in China began to take an interest in the areas where local farmers gathered “dragon bones”which they used as a kind of medicinal cure. The Austrian paleontologist O. Zdansky and the Canadian surgeon, Davidson Black, as well as others, believed that these”dragon bones”might be the fossilized remains of some rare ancient plant. Excavations were carried out at Zhoukoudian, under the supervision of foreign scholars and Chinese botanists and geologists such as Weng Wenhao and Yang Zhongjian. Fossilized teeth that appeared similar to those of early hominids were unearthed.

In 1929, as a result of painstaking effort, the young paleontologist Pei Wenzhong excavated a nearly complete cranium and lower jaw and skeleton,a discovery that amazed the whole world. Scholars called the remains”Peking Man,”and went on to discover stone artifacts, bone artifacts and evidence of the use of fire, proving that hominids were active in what is now the Beijing region five hundred thousand years ago. In 1930, scholars excavated further fossilized remains of early hominids from around 200,000 years ago. Found at the upper part of Dragonbone Mountain, these were given the name”Mountain-top Cave Man.”

Several archeologists who contributed greatly to the discovery of the Peking Ape-man were buried at Longgu Mountain. They are Yang Zhongjian, Pei Wenzhong, Jia Lanpo, etc.

In 1935, within the space of one month a worker named Jia Lanpo, untutored in archaeology at the time, further discovered three craniums of Peking Man, thereby makinga tremendous contribution to research. In 19 37, as the Japanese were mobilizing a comprehen-sive invasion of China as prelude to war, three men who had been guarding Zhoukoudian were killed by Japanese soldiers. At the same time the supremely valuable first skull of Peking Man went missing. Later, remains of a hominid intermediate between “Peking Man”and”Mountain-top Cave Man”were discovered at Zhoukoudian, indicating the continuing presence and development of Peking Man at the site. These discoveries and this research cemented the unique position of the site in global paleo-archaeological studies. Six early hominid cranium fossils were eventually excavated at Zhoukoudian, plus twelve fragments of skulls, fifteen lower jawbones,157 pieces of teeth, and fragments of skeletons belonging to more than forty persons, both female and male, old and young. In addition, some 100,000 stone-tool artifacts were excavated, and a hearth where fire was used and stones and bones had been charred. The average cranial capacity of Peking Man was 1,088 millilitres(that of modern man is 1,400 millilitres). It is estimated that Peking Man stood 156 centimeters high on average(male) and 150 cm(female). Peking Man belonged to the stone age, and the primary methods of working stone tools were chipping, flaking, and very occasionally drilling. To this date, Peking Man isthe earliest hominid discovered to have used fire; he also hunted large animals. The life expectancy of Peking Man was relatively short-it is estimated that 68.2% of individuals died before the age of 14, and less than 4.5% of individuals lived to be over 50.

A museum was erected at the Zhoukoudian Peking Man site in 19 5 3, to exhibit culturalartifacts from the excavations in the area. The museum covered 4,000 square meters, and also extended protection to an area of two square kilometers. The exhibition at that time was basically devoted to four main areas: Peking Ape-Man, Peking Ape-man’s living environment, Locations at the Excavation site, and From Ape to Man. The items exhibited in the displays were not originals; they were all reproductions made to a high degree of similarity so that they seemed authentic. The fossilized remains of animals and the hearth were authentic.

The skul fossilof the peking Man, exhibited at the Zhoukoudian site Museum from september 21,2003; The piece of skull is a frontal bone, discovered in May 1966.

In December 1987, UNESCO listed Zhoukoudian as a World Heritage Site.