Liangzhu culture
The Liangzhu Culture entered its prime about 4000–5000 years ago, but suddenly disappeared from the Taihu Lake area about 4200 years ago when it reached the peak. Almost no traces of the culture were found from the following years in this area. Recent research has shown that rising waters interrupted the development of human settlements several times in this area. This led researchers to conclude the demise of the Liangzhu culture was brought about by extreme environmental changes such as floods, as the cultural layers are usually interrupted by muddy or marshy and sandy–gravelly layers with buried paleo trees.