Asian archaeology最新文献

{"title":"The digital matrix of memory: Theoretical, practical, and critical perspectives on the digital transformation of China’s cultural heritage","authors":"Xiaofang Gao,&nbsp;Zhuoyue Zhang","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00120-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00120-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper aims to conduct a systematic examination of the ongoing digital transformation within China’s cultural heritage sector. Going beyond an instrumentalist perspective that regards digitization merely as a technological upgrade, this study posits that it constitutes a profound epistemological and ontological shift. The core of this transformation lies in its reconfiguration of the carriers, social frameworks, and modes of transmission of cultural memory. This paper first constructs a multi-dimensional theoretical framework. It integrates the theories of “collective memory” by Maurice Halbwachs, “lieux de mémoire” by Pierre Nora, and “cultural memory” by Aleida Assmann. Concurrently, it introduces Walter Benjamin’s concept of “aura,” Jean Baudrillard’s “hyperreality,” and Bruno Latour’s “Actor-Network Theory” and dissects the complex transformation process, which happened when cultural heritage changes from physical entities into digital mnemonic forms. Second, it delves into the application of digital technologies in China’s current practice of cultural heritage. These practices include heritage information capture as “source documentation” (exemplified by architectural surveying and archaeological excavation), the archiving of cultural assets as “digital memory palaces” (using the cases of Dunhuang and the Palace Museum), and the production of “prosthetic memory” for public dissemination. Finally, the paper will give adequate attention to intrinsic tensions that exist between “memory” and “authenticity” during digitization, data hegemony and interpretation gaps of data, ethical dilemmas arising from technological empowerment, and challenges to the subjectivity of heritage experts. The study concludes that the future development of China’s cultural heritage must not only embrace technological empowerment but also actively establish a self-aware and reflective framework for “critical digital heritage studies.” This endeavor is crucial to ensure that technology serving historical understanding while also fostering a memory culture that is more diversified, transparent, and humanistic culture of memory.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"251 - 259"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958102","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A field work report on archaeological investigation of Longjing Taiyang site in Jilin Province","authors":"Yicheng Zhao,&nbsp;Chenggan Lu","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00116-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00116-z","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>In 2021, the Jilin Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology conducted an archaeological investigation on <i>Taiyang</i>(太阳) Ancient City and its surrounding areas due to a national highway reconstruction project that crosses the west side of the site. This investigation has clarified the shape and layout of <i>Taiyang</i> Ancient City, revealing various relics in proximity to the city site, including everyday pottery, eave-ends tiles (瓦当), cylindrical tiles (筒瓦), pan tiles(板瓦), valley tiles (当沟), ridge-capping tiles(垒脊瓦), blue-gray bricks, stone artifacts, among others. Additionally, a group of tombs from the <i>Bohai</i> (渤海) era was discovered in <i>Yingzigou</i>(营子沟) valley located southwest of the city site. Notably, two small stone pillars standing in front of the Tomb M1 represent a first discovery for Jilin Province.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"241 - 250"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958019","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Establishment and application of the lithic technology strategy selection model for Late Paleolithic","authors":"Meng Li,&nbsp;Qi Fang,&nbsp;Binfu Zhao","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00117-y","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00117-y","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Analyzing lithic technology constitutes a central focus in Paleolithic archaeological research. The concept of the <i>chaîne opératoire</i> provides a comprehensive theoretical framework that guides diverse approaches to technological analysis. Building upon this concept, this study proposes the Lithic Technology Strategy Selection Model (LTSSM) for the Late Paleolithic period. The LTSSM aims to elucidate the representations and motivations underlying lithic technological behaviors by revealing their internal logic. It offers a theoretical basis for dynamically analyzing technological processes, deconstructing production sequences, and exploring cognitive dimensions of tool-making. The model is applicable not only to microlithic technologies but can also be extended to blade and Levallois technologies. By transcending the constraints of static typological analysis, the LTSSM integrates cognition and behavior, thereby uncovering the underlying logic of human technological choices. This framework provides a novel paradigm for investigating social organization and behavioral patterns, and for deepening our understanding of the principles governing technological and cultural evolution.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"233 - 239"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-12-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958009","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Jade pendant set wearing in China’s Zhou and Han dynasties: concepts, practices, and sensorial experiences","authors":"Pan Pan","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00115-0","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00115-0","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study examines the transformation of jade pendant sets during China’s Zhou and Han dynasties (1046 BCE-220 CE), focusing on the evolution of their structural design, wearing practices, reflective socio-cultural concepts, and their role in shaping collective sensorial experiences. Jade pendant sets were structurally characterized by multiple jade <i>huang</i> connected with abundant jade stone tubes and beads in the Western Zhou period, embodying ritual, moral, and hierarchical significance. From the Eastern Zhou period, a trend of structural simplification emerged, retaining only core jade pendants while eliminating superfluous elements. During the Qin-Han period, they evolved along two trajectories: one that maintained Zhou-style ritualistic symbolism and the other that incorporated Han-style practical functionality, reflecting broader cultural and conceptual shifts in the Zhou-Han era. Across these transformations, jade pendant sets demonstrate how material culture mediated sensory experience, shaped embodied discipline, and articulated evolving forms of social identity, functioning not merely as markers of status but as dynamic instruments of cultural change.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"221 - 231"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-11-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145957952","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Tooth ablation between the early Jōmon and middle Yayoi. Common practice, overestimated phenomenon, symbol of a cultural change?","authors":"Claudio Pelloli","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00114-1","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00114-1","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Tooth ablation, i.e. the removal of perfectly and healthy teeth, is considered a typical, autochthonous aspect of Jōmon period. For a long time, archaeologists focused their researches on teeth extraction, looking for a reason why someone should have removed healthy teeth. Social, food or gender motivations were proposed, and someone proposed the binomial: different types of tooth ablation-different human groups (however this last theory has been disapproved). In particular, archaeologists believe this custom was widespread and became a common practice between the Late and Final Jōmon. In this paper, the author raises two main issues: was tooth ablation during the Jōmon period truly widespread in the Japanese archipelago? Or did the ablation cases increase significantly later, after the beginning of the Yayoi period in Kyūshū? Secondly, was tooth ablation practice widespread due to “internal factors” or is it the “fossil guide” to prove the presence of newcomers from current China teritories, the only ones who could have introduced also the wet rice in the Japanese archipelago.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"197 - 220"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-11-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958020","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Inscribed ear-cup unearthed from Barrow №1 of Duurlig Nars, Mongolia","authors":"Ikue Otani,&nbsp;Fumio Okada,&nbsp;Geregdorj Eregzen","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00110-5","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00110-5","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper reports the discovery of a lacquered ear-cup with a Chinese inscription, unearthed from Barrow №1 in Duurlig Nars, Mongolia. Duurlig Nars is an elite kurgan complex in northeastern Mongolia. The cup is broken, but twenty characters remain on the fragments. The middle part of the inscription has been lost, but it could be discerned that the cup was made in the central factory for the emperor’s use. This cup is the tenth piece of lacquerware bearing a Chinese inscription that, has been unearthed at Xiongnu archaeological sites. In addition to reading the inscription, we made a slide from a lacquer flake; and observed the cup’s lacquering technique. It is impossible to determine where the lacquering of the slide corresponds of the cup, but there are three layers: an undercoating, a black lacquer, and an uncolored lacquer. This observation is important for understanding ancient East Asian lacquering techniques.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"139 - 147"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s41826-025-00110-5.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958017","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Conservation and restoration of the painted wooden horse unearthed from the tomb of Murong Zhi: a multidisciplinary approach","authors":"Lei Zhong,&nbsp;Xue Wang,&nbsp;Juan Li,&nbsp;Kezhu Du,&nbsp;Wenting Gu,&nbsp;Yanfei Wei","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00112-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00112-3","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper takes the painted red horse unearthed from the tomb of Murong Zhi in Tianzhu, Wuwei, Gansu Province, as the research object, and analyzes the painted pigments of the horse by using X-ray diffraction analysis technology. The results of the physical phase show that: the red pigment is Fe₃O₄, the color of gold is gold (Au), and the white ash layer is silicon dioxide and calcite; the observation and analysis of cellular tissue slices shows that the material used for the production of the horse’s carcass is <i>Pinaceae</i> larch red cedar (<i>Larix spp</i>.).; production process: horse head, neck, torso, limbs, tail were produced separately then combined by glue(the composition of the glue has not been successfully determined due to the age of the material); painting process: white ash layer, pigment layer, and finally affixed with gold. After the restoration, the wooden horse’s quiet demeanor, the horse’s head slightly up, the whole body was relaxed state, four feet standing, robust, full abdomen, and proportionality is uniform. In order to reduce human factors and other interference conditions, the color parameters of the painted wooden horse were analyzed by spectrophotometric colorimeter, and then according to the ratio of pigment color matching experiments, the optimal restoration materials and ratios were selected to repair the painted layer of the painted wooden horse, so that the damaged painted wooden horse was protected and the restoration achieved good results.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"163 - 174"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958010","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Zuun Baruun Kherem, a medieval Eurasian center in Eastern Mongolia","authors":"Joshua Wright,&nbsp;Lance Pursey,&nbsp;Sarah Pleuger-Dreibrodt,&nbsp;Anna Misterkiewicz,&nbsp;Batdalai Byambatsuren,&nbsp;Emilie Jean Green","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00113-2","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00113-2","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Mongolia contains many urban sites of the medieval Kitan-Liao period (10th-12th centuries CE). The paired site of Zuun Baruun Kherem (ZBK) is a well-preserved example. The ZBK project aimed to examine the form and chronology of construction, the empty areas contained within many walled enclosures of this period, and the administrative use of these centers on the imperial frontier. Fieldwork was carried out primarily using hand augers to systematically examine subsurface deposits and a photogrammetric digital elevation model for detailed study of the surface topography. As well as ceramics, a surprising amount of datable bone and charcoal was recovered. Most remains focused on the densely inhabited Zuun Kherem. Baruun Kherem appears to be a mostly empty space with a few large elite structures inside. The enclosures were in use between the early 10th century and the early 12th century CE. Extensive midden deposits in Zuun Kherem illustrate urban animal penning as well as a distinctive set of ceramic vessels. Inhabitation of Baruun Kherem appears to be more akin to mobile habitation of non-urban settings.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"175 - 196"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-10-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s41826-025-00113-2.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958016","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Animal resources consumption patterns among agricultural communities during the Western Zhou period: evidence from the Hengshui Cemetery","authors":"Lin Ban,&nbsp;Xiaohong Lv,&nbsp;Yaoting Xie,&nbsp;Wuyu Zhou,&nbsp;Chunxue Wang","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00111-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00111-4","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study examines meat resource utilization among agricultural communities during the Western Zhou period (1046–771 BCE), focusing on animal remains excavated from the Hengshui Cemetery in the region of the state of Peng. Through zooarchaeological analysis, we identify the primary species used for dietary and ritual purposes, revealing the strategic role of animal husbandry in supporting the subsistence and ceremonial needs of Zhou society. Pigs and sheep, predominantly raised by the elite, were the primary sources of sacrificial offerings, highlighting the symbolic and nutritional significance of these animals. Our findings suggest that organized livestock management ensured a steady supply of young animals for consumption and ritual, which reinforced social status within the Peng community. In contrast, limited animal resources in commoner graves indicate socioeconomic disparities, with lower classes likely supplementing their diets through hunting and fishing. By exploring these burial contexts, this study provides insights into the intersection of animal resource distribution, agricultural practices, and social hierarchy, emphasizing the role of meat resources in Zhou social organization and cultural expression.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 2","pages":"149 - 162"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-07-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145958018","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Loose change? Evaluating the roles of Chinese coins in the Angkorian Khmer Empire","authors":"Mitch Hendrickson,&nbsp;Sébastien Clouet,&nbsp;Ellen Hsieh,&nbsp;Christian Fischer,&nbsp;Kaseka Phon,&nbsp;Dominique Soutif,&nbsp;Quan Hua,&nbsp;Julia Estève,&nbsp;Cristina Castillo Cobo","doi":"10.1007/s41826-025-00108-z","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s41826-025-00108-z","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Interactions with China and India played an important part in the development of the Angkorian Khmer Empire. Recent discovery of several Chinese coins at the regional centre of Preah Khan of Kompong Svay provides an opportunity to see how these objects were used in Angkor’s moneyless economy. The broader distribution and function of Chinese coins in Southeast Asia is evaluated before examining why so few examples have been discovered in Cambodia. It is argued that coins served a plurality of functions ranging from deposit, cash, ingot, cure, and curio in the Angkorian world.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":93733,"journal":{"name":"Asian archaeology","volume":"9 1","pages":"121 - 136"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2025-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s41826-025-00108-z.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145167646","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}