Early evidence of irrigation technology in the North China Plain: Geoarchaeological investigations at the Anshang Site, Neihuang County, Henan Province, China

Abstract

The development of irrigation is a politically important technology that enabled agricultural societies to intensify agricultural production. In the North China Plain, the historical record suggests a long tradition of irrigation, but archaeologists have found scant evidence of these technologies outside of urban areas. In 2012, 2015, and 2016, our excavations at the Anshang site, Neihuang County, Henan Province, China, revealed several archaeological features that we interpret as evidence of Late Shang dynasty (ca. 1200–1046 B.C.) canal construction in a nonurban context. By using a range of geological methods, including particle size, loss on ignition, magnetic susceptibility, and micromorphology, we suggest that these ancient canals and the subsequent construction phases found at Anshang not only influenced the development of local geomorphic conditions, but also were part of early dynastic attempts to restructure the natural landscape to facilitate agricultural productivity. These irrigation canals found at Anshang may be representative of broader trends of human‐environmental interactions in the North China Plain.

The collapse of the North Song dynasty and the AD 1048–1128 Yellow River floods: Geoarchaeological evidence from northern Henan Province, China

“…The lithostratigraphy of Yellow River flood events is well documented in both the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River watershed (Huang et al, 2010, 2011; Kidder et al, 2012b; Shi et al, 2010; Storozum et al, 2017a). The stratigraphy at the nearby sites of Anshang and Sanyangzhuang in Neihuang County reveal a similar process of Yellow River flooding that help place the findings at DZLC, XDC, and DGXC into a sedimentary context.…”

“…For these reasons, future work at archaeological sites in Henan and Hebei Provinces should incorporate more geomorphologists into their excavations to answer crucial questions regarding the past fluvial dynamics of the Yellow River, especially because many archaeological sites across Henan and Hebei Provinces likely contain a record of ancient Yellow River flood events. Archaeological surveys have already demonstrated that catastrophic Yellow River floods have buried large portions of Henan and Hebei Provinces (Jing et al, 1995(Jing et al, , 1997Kidder et al, 2012b;Storozum et al, 2017a). In eastern Henan Province, archaeologists found evidence of a buried city that likely dates to the Zhou dynasty (Jing et al, 1997).…”

“…Starting in 2011, our team of archaeologists, historians, and geographers from Washington University in St Louis and the Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology investigated Neihuang County to better understand the intertwined nature of the archaeological record and the sediments of the Yellow River (Kidder et al, 2012b; Kidder and Liu, 2014; Kidder and Zhuang, 2015; Storozum et al, 2017a). Located to the north of Kaifeng, Neihuang County is situated in the center of the ‘nodal avulsion zone’ of the Yellow River (Slingerland and Smith, 2004).…”

Cereals, soils and iron at Sanyangzhuang: Western Han agricultural production in the Central Plains

“…Subsequent research suggests that these canals were initially built as early as 1100 BC (Storozum et al . 2018b), and were still in use during the Western Han Dynasty; they may even relate to Sanyangzhuang itself, as one of the canals extends southwards in the direction of the village. This type of large-scale irrigation canal system is not described in the historical literature, yet our archaeological research suggests that irrigation systems may actually have been widespread during the Western Han Dynasty.…”

“…These samples also exhibit an increase in microporosity and dusty clay coatings (Figure 6c & f). In addition to these micromorphological features, an element analysis of bulk samples from Sanyangzhuang profiles reveals elevated levels of phosphorus (P) in the Western Han sediment (Storozum et al 2018a). Both micromorphological and geochemical analyses, therefore, demonstrate that people applied fertilisers to the fields around Sanyangzhuang during the Western Han Dynasty.…”