ARCHAEOLOGIA JAPONICA

China
KIKUCHI Hiroki1
In the main article, ﬁscal 2014 study trends of Chinese archaeology were introduced
mainly from academic societies and symposiums, study reports on joint research andtheses, as well as movements of Japanese scholars and related exhibitions.
On the Paleolithic, an overview was given on recent study trends and research resultsof the Lower and Middle Paleolithic in China, as they are important in order to consider
Japanese Paleolithic culture. Also, lineages of denticulate tools mainly from northern
China were discussed. As for the Neolithic, there were studies on pottery dynamics fromthe upper and middle Yellow River, and a study on stone tool functions by veriﬁcationof experimental archaeology. Other than theses, progress was seen on the study oftransitions in time and local characteristics based on compilation of animal-shaped
artifacts excavated from the lower Yellow River region, and study on the meaning ofﬁgures inscribed on jade objects around the Yangtze River Basin.
On the Yin and Zhou dynasties, studies to understand social structures and historicalmovements from bronze objects were popular, and are developing theories on multiple
uses of inscriptions, icons, and inscribed artifacts in addition to typological study. Also,
there were ambitious works to draw new historical pictures based on on-site animalarchaeology, isotope chemistry and ﬂuorescent X-ray analysis.
For the Qin and Han dynasties, central focuses were stone reliefs and mirrors,
integral study of inscriptions and documents. Natural scientiﬁc analysis is becoming
more prominent, as opposed to studies in the past that only emphasized design and iconanalysis.
For Wei, Jin, and the Southern and Northern dynasties, new historical pictures arebeing drawn with documentary records, not only on archaeological data such as tiles andterracotta ﬁgurines but also the transition of tomb systems including mausoleums, fromthe period when many dynasties were defending their authority from the confusion at
the end of Later Han to uniﬁcation by the Sui dynasty. Overviewing the Sui and Tangdynasties, signiﬁcant progress was seen on veriﬁcation of Buddhist statues and paintings
at Buddhist sites such as Longmeng and Dunhuang, and systematic study on the1 c/oInstitute for Research in Humanities, Kyoto University, Yoshidahonmachi, Sakyo-Ward, Kyoto
606–8501, Japan(judidashu@gmail.com)
JAPANESE JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY 4 (2016): 108–109© Japanese Archaeological Association108

TRENDS IN ARCHAEOLOGY●●●● TitleIN●●●●
FOREIGN COUNTRIES

chronology of celadon manufactured at government kilns and lineages of manufacturing
techniques. Other than the above mentioned, there was a study that tried to grasp thetransition of imperial tombs or cities with its historical background, and a study thatoverviewed formation processes of “Chinese civilization” that played a central role in theEast Asian world, by organizing archaeological results beginning from the Neolithic.
On the trends of academic societies and symposia, there were many positive
presentations of research results conducted in China mainly by young scholars,suggesting collaborative research is more active than in the past. This is also apparent
from reports of Grant-in-Aid for Scientiﬁc Research. On excavation research andreports, there was publication of joint research results including world heritage sites, andexcavation reports that were conducted during the war. Also many exhibitions related toChinese archaeology were held in various places in Japan.
This ﬁscal year saw many research results related to the historical period after the Handynasty, handing quite an extensive area. It reﬂects the background that joint researchwith China is ever more active, and studied periods and regions are quite varied. Taking
a look at research contents, interdisciplinary joint research that crosses archaeology andnatural science is deepening further, and development in the future is awaited. On theother hand, development of interdisciplinary research between art and science is quiteremarkable in Chinese archaeology, and it already has surpassed Japanese archaeology
in some ﬁelds. As foreign researchers, we are standing at a crossroad to reconsider once
more, how to handle continental China data in the future, naturally drawing a historic
picture on the East Asian viewpoint but also with new research visions.

© Japanese Archaeological Association109