First Chinese murals might date back more than 4,000 years

A group of recently-discovered murals hinted that the basic production process and rendering techniques used to make Chinese murals might be more than 4,000 years old.

Mural unearthed at the Shimao ruins 
[Credit: China Daily]

Since 2011, continuous excavations by Chinese archaeologists have found some 200 pieces of colorful murals in the Shimao Ruins, the largest completed urban construction in China dating from the late Neolithic (4,600 - 4,000 years ago) age in Shenmu county, Shaanxi province.

The Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology recently issued a report on the discovery, saying that following lab experiments and analysis, the basic production process and rendering techniques used on the murals in Shimao Ruin were similar to those used to make frescoes dating from the Han Dynasty (202 BC – 220 AD) and later dynasties. This indicates that the process and techniques were in use more than 4,000 years ago.

Archaeologists found traces of pigment layers on a mural that indicates brush-like tools were used to make the mural, even though the brush is considered to have been invented by Meng Tian, a general in the Qin Dynasty (221 – 207 BC).

The Shimao ruins in Shaanxi Province [Credit: Shaanxi Provincial 
Archaeological Research Institute]

"The history of using the brush by Chinese people will be rewritten if the tool used to make the mural is confirmed to be a brush," experts said.

The experts also noted that the types of pigments used for the murals were made of glauconite, which was found in the sea, but the Shimao Ruin is located on the Loess Plateau far from the sea.

"The source of the pigment is also a concerned matter for further research," experts said.

According to the historical record, Chinese murals were used to decorate housesfrom early on and used for tombs as early as the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046 – 771 BC). The murals were found mainly in North China, which indicates that the region was the birthplace of the Chinese mural, experts said.

Source: China Daily [August 19, 2015]

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Earliest use of coal fuel found at ancient site in NW China

Humans were burning coal as fuel more than 3,500 years ago, according to a remarkable new discovery in China.

The excavation site of Jiren Taigoukou ruins 
[Credit: Euro Pics(CEN)]

Archaeologists have unearthed evidence of coal being burned on an ancient site in the Xinjiang region, northwest China, dating back to the Bronze Age.

The new findings mean that humans were using coal about 500 years earlier than previously thought, reported the People's Daily Online.

An archaeologist shows samples of coal excavated from 
Jiren Taigoukou ruins [Credit: Euro Pics(CEN)]

Previously, the earliest recorded use of coal was at the Fushan mine, northeast China, in about 1,000 BC, where the fuel was used to smelt copper.

Researchers from the Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology found traces of burnt coal at the ancient settlement in Ili Valley.

Archaeologists of Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology find coal-use 
traces at the excavation site [Credit: Euro Pics(CEN)]

Pits discovered at the Jiren Taigoukou Ruins Site indicate the coal may have been used to sustain fires in the village.

Archaeologists also found copper tools on the excavation site that may have been forged using the fuel.

Ceramic vase excavated from Jiren Taigoukou ruins 
[Credit: Euro Pics(CEN)]

Coal is abundant in the north and north west regions of the country, where woody vegetation is scarce compared to the south.

This may be why people in these areas would have used coal earlier than in other parts of the country, rather than just burning wood.

Copper blade excavated from Jiren Taigoukou ruins 
[Credit: Euro Pics(CEN)]

Experts believe that people in northern and western China were the first in the world to use coal regularly as an energy source.

But the commercial use of coal only became widespread during the Song Dynasty in the 11th century AD, when it replaced charcoal in the production of iron.

An archaeologist of Xinjiang Institute of Archaeology shows copper residue
 excavated from Jiren Taigoukou ruins [Credit: Euro Pics(CEN)]

In Europe, the Romans are believed to have used coal in Britain between 100 and 200 AD.

However, it was only until the 18th century that coal was used extensively in Britain as an energy source.

Author: Emily Chan | Source: Daily Mail Online [August 18, 2015]

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Chengjiang biota: Bringing fossils into focus

Researchers from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich have used computed microtomography (micro-CT) to identify to the species level an exceptionally wellpreserved fossil arthropod from the famous Chengjiang Lagerstatte in China.

The figure above shows a light micrograph of the fossil, while the microtomographic 
image below reveals fine details of structures hitherto concealed
 within the slab [Credit: LMU]

Modern imaging methods make it possible to perform detailed, non-invasive studies on the internal structures of irreplaceable fossil specimens. Researchers led by Dr. Yu Liu of LMU's Department of Biology II now demonstrate the power of this approach by using computed microtomography (micro-CT) to investigate a specimen recovered from the famous fossil beds of Chengjiang in southwestern China. The results of the study, which appear in the online Open Access journal Scientific Reports, demonstrate the ability of micro-CT to reveal anatomical details preserved inside fossil slabs.

The fossil Lagerstatte Chengjiang in China is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which harbors a rich fossil assemblage dating from 520 million years ago. The rocks preserved here are among the oldest that document the so-called Cambrian explosion -- the relatively abrupt appearance of a highly diverse, species-rich multicellular fauna in the fossil record. And many of the specimens discovered in these beds are extremely well preserved. In particular, their soft parts have left clear impressions in the sediments that accumulated here.

Imprints of organisms with mineralized skeletons often extend for several millimeters below the surface of the slabs of sediment in which they are embedded. In order to study their structure, such specimens must first be removed from the surrounding rock matrix. "Because this inevitably involves the destruction of at least some of their fine structure, most of the published work on Chengjiang's fossils is based on careful examination of surface structures with the help of optical and fluorescence microscopy," as Yu Liu explains.

The LMU team now reports the first in-depth microtomographic study of a three-dimensionally preserved fossil from Chengjiang. The term micro-CT refers to a method in which multiple X-radiographs of a specimen are taken from different angles, and then assembled with the help of mathematical procedures to yield a three-dimensional model of the original. It is now a well-established analytical tool in palaeontology, but has not yet been widely applied to fossils from Chengjiang.

Yu Liu's study uncovers internal structures in a specimen recovered from the site, which allow the fossil to be identified as Xandarella spectaculum, a rare species of arthropod that shows similarities to the iconic (but now extinct) trilobites, and is known only from Chengjiang. The three-dimensional reconstruction reveals informative details of the fossil's morphology, which had hitherto remained hidden in the rock matrix. On the basis of the new results, Yu Liu confidently asserts that "microtomography is a powerful technique for the analysis of the three-dimensionally preserved specimens recovered at Chengjiang."

Source: Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet Muenchen [August 18, 2015]

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New Neolithic finds at China's Majiayao dig site

Archaeologists carrying out a large excavation project in Gansu province, at the Majiayao dig site, this August have discovered many pottery shards and stone implements which, they say, represent life in Neolithic communities along the upper reaches of the Yellow River during the Majiayao culture period (3,300-2,000 BC).

Archaeologist Zhang Xiaoru at the Majiayao site
[Credit: Xinhua/Chenbin]

The excavation is under the guidance of the Institute of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Archaeology department, and the province's Archaeology Institute.

Neolithic artefacts found at the Majiayao site 
[Credit: Xinhua/Chenbin]

Majiayao culture came into being in the Late Neolithic period over 5,000 years ago and the site was first discovered by the Swedish archaeologist Johan Gunnar Andersson, in the 1920s, in the village of Majiayao. The State Council designated the area a key national relics protection unit, in 1988.

Source: People's Daily Online [August 14, 2015]

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Chinese cave 'graffiti' tells a 500-year story of climate change and impact on society

An international team of researchers, including scientists from the University of Cambridge, has discovered unique 'graffiti' on the walls of a cave in central China, which describes the effects drought had on the local population over the past 500 years.

An inscription from 1891 found in Dayu Cave. It reads: On May 24th, 17th year 
of the Emperor Guangxu period (June 30th, 1891 CE), Qing Dynasty, the local mayor, 
Huaizong Zhu led more than 200 people into the cave to get water. A fortuneteller
 named Zhenrong Ran prayed for rain during a ceremony [Credit: L. Tan]

The information contained in the inscriptions, combined with detailed chemical analysis of stalagmites in the cave, together paint an intriguing picture of how societies are affected by droughts over time: the first time that it has been possible to conduct an in situ comparison of historical and geological records from the same cave. The results, published in the journal Scientific Reports, also point to potentially greatly reduced rainfall in the region in the near future, underlying the importance of implementing strategies to deal with a world where droughts are more common.

The inscriptions were found on the walls of Dayu Cave in the Qinling Mountains of central China, and describe the impacts of seven drought events between 1520 and 1920. The climate in the area around the cave is dominated by the summer monsoon, in which about 70% of the year's rain falls during a few months, so when the monsoon is late or early, too short or too long, it has a major impact on the region's ecosystem.

"In addition to the obvious impact of droughts, they have also been linked to the downfall of cultures -- when people don't have enough water, hardship is inevitable and conflict arises," said Dr Sebastian Breitenbach of Cambridge's Department of Earth Sciences, one of the paper's co-authors. "In the past decade, records found in caves and lakes have shown a possible link between climate change and the demise of several Chinese dynasties during the last 1800 years, such as the Tang, Yuan and Ming Dynasties."

According to the inscriptions in Dayu Cave, residents would come to the cave both to get water and to pray for rain in times of drought. An inscription from 1891 reads, "On May 24th, 17th year of the Emperor Guangxu period, Qing Dynasty, the local mayor, Huaizong Zhu led more than 200 people into the cave to get water. A fortune-teller named Zhenrong Ran prayed for rain during the ceremony."

Another inscription from 1528 reads, "Drought occurred in the 7th year of the Emperor Jiajing period, Ming Dynasty. Gui Jiang and Sishan Jiang came to Da'an town to acknowledge the Dragon Lake inside in Dayu Cave."

While the inscriptions are business-like in tone, the droughts of the 1890s led to severe starvation and triggered local social instability, which eventually resulted in a fierce conflict between government and civilians in 1900. The drought in 1528 also led to widespread starvation, and there were even reports of cannibalism.

"There are examples of things like human remains, tools and pottery being found in caves, but it's exceptional to find something like these dated inscriptions," said Dr Liangcheng Tan of the Institute of Earth Environment at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Xi'an, and the paper's lead author. "Combined with the evidence found in the physical formations in the cave, the inscriptions were a crucial way for us to confirm the link between climate and the geochemical record in the cave, and the effect that drought has on a landscape."

The researchers removed sections of cave formations, or speleothems, and analysed the stable isotopes and trace elements contained within. They found that concentrations of certain elements were strongly correlated to periods of drought, which could then be verified by cross-referencing the chemical profile of the cave with the writing on the walls.

When cut open, speleothems such as stalagmites frequently reveal a series of layers that record their annual growth, just like tree rings. Using mass spectrometry, the researchers analysed and dated the ratios of the stable isotopes of oxygen, carbon, as well as concentrations of uranium and other elements. Changes in climate, moisture levels and surrounding vegetation all affect these elements, since the water seeping into the cave is related to the water on the surface. The researchers found that higher oxygen and carbon isotope ratios, in particular, corresponded with lower rainfall levels, and vice versa.

The researchers then used their results to construct a model of future precipitation in the region, starting in 1982. Their model correlated with a drought that occurred in the 1990s and suggests another drought in the late 2030s. The observed droughts also correspond with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle. Due to the likelihood that climate change caused by humans will make ENSO events more severe, the region may be in for more serious droughts in the future.

"Since the Qinling Mountains are the main recharge area of two larger water transfer projects, and the habitat for many endangered species, including the iconic giant panda, it is imperative to explore how the region can adapt to declining rain levels or drought," said Breitenbach. "Things in the world are different from when these cave inscriptions are written, but we're still vulnerable to these events -- especially in the developing world."

Source: University of Cambridge [August 14, 2015]

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