page_title: Prehistoric Hong Kong
section_title: Neolithic
hierarchical_section_title: Prehistoric Hong Kong / Stone Age / Neolithic
caption_attribution_description: English: The Stone Circle at Fan Lau is located in Lantau Island of Hong Kong 中文: 位於香港大嶼山分流半島的分流石圓環
context_page_description: Prehistoric Hong Kong is the period between the arrival of the first humans in Hong Kong and the start of recorded Chinese history first appeared during the Han dynasty. The history of the southern region is reckoned to have been first recorded in 214 BC with Qin Shi Huang conquering the Baiyue and creating the Jiaozhou province.
  The prehistorical period can be divided into Stone Age and Bronze Age. Archaeology evidence suggests the earliest human settlement was in the Wong Tei Tung area dating back to 38,000 BC.
context_section_description: The Neolithic Era began approximately 7,000 years ago in Hong Kong. Excavations of Tung Wan Tsai North (Ma Wan) and Sha Tau Kok reveal evidence of pottery during this time, but it does not reveal if there was pottery before this time due to the lack of absolute dates. The Neolithic period in this area was divided into four different phases. Phase one was when the Neolithic era began around 7000 years ago. The second phase was around 6500-6000 BP when white and painted chalkware were present along with ground adzes and axes along with flaked points. The third phase began around 6000-5000 BP, identified by white chalkware with incisions and shouldered stone implements. The final phase was around 5000-3500 BP with the presence of pottery with geometric patterns, stepped adze, shouldered adze and more ground stone implements. 
  Hong Kong is located on the coast of South China.  Unlike northern China, the settlers in this area were the Che people (Chinese: 輋族). Excavated Neolithic artefacts suggest a difference from northern Chinese Stone-Age cultures, including the Longshan.  Excavated sites in Hong Kong were largely located on the western shores of Hong Kong.  This location was most likely chosen to avoid strong winds from the southeast and to collect food from the nearby shores.  Settlement can be found in Cheung Chau, Lantau Island and Lamma Island.
  Evidences of using fire were found from Chung Hom Kok on the Hong Kong Island.  In late Neolithic, their settlement extends from shores to the hills nearby.
  Stone circles were found in Fan Lau and other areas in Hong Kong.  Its purpose is still unidentified but some suggests it is related to worship.
caption: Stone Circle in Fan Lau
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