Daxinzhuang

Daxinzhuang

大辛庄
Location within Shandong
Location	Daxinzhuang, Licheng, Jinan, Shandong, China
Coordinates	36°42′40.5″N 117°6′23.4″E / 36.711250°N 117.106500°E / 36.711250; 117.106500
Type	Settlement
History
Founded	c. 1300 BCE
Abandoned	c. 1100 BCE
Periods	Yueshi Erligang Late Shang
Site notes
Discovered	1935
Excavation dates	1935, 1955, 1984, 2002

Daxinzhuang is a Chinese archaeological site located near Daxinzhuang village in Licheng, Jinan, Shandong. Although early occupation in the vicinity has been dated to the Neolithic Longshan (c. 3000 – c. 1900 BCE) and Yueshi culture (c. 1900 – c. 1500 BCE), the site became an urban center during the late Erligang (early 13th century BCE), corresponding to a period of political and military expansion from the heartland of Henan into Shandong. Daxinzhuang became the type site of the Daxinzhuang type, a material culture type shared by other settlements along the Ji River.

It continued to grow during the Anyang period, and became one of the largest Shang settlements outside of the Central Plains. Strategically located along major transportation routes between Henan and Shandong, Daxinzhuang was likely a trade hub for marine goods collected at Bohai Bay, such as pearls, shells, and salt, alongside other resources such as metal and grain. Pottery recovered from the site shows significant influence from the native Yueshi culture, but was gradually assimilated by the beginning of the Anyang period. Also found at the site were a number of oracle bones, including inscribed examples showing a regional variety of the oracle bone script, the earliest known form of Chinese characters.

The settlement was rediscovered in 1933 by Cheeloo University professor Fredrick S. Drake during surveys along the adjacent Qingdao–Jinan railway, and subject to four research reports over the following decade. Shandong University conducted various surveys and test excavations from the 1950s to 1980s. A 1955 test excavation discovered the first Erligang artifacts discovered in Shandong. Larger excavations were conducted in 1984, alongside a regional survey beginning in 2002, which noted later Zhou and Han occupation of the area.