800,000-Year-Old Stoneware Unearthed In South China

Peoples Daily ^ | 9-13-2002

[blam]

Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, September 13, 2002

800,000-year-old Stoneware Unearthed in South China

Chinese archaeologists have unearthed a site inhabited by ancient people in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, south China, containing more than 1,000 stone tools dating back about 800,000 years.

Chinese archaeologists have unearthed a site inhabited by ancient people in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, south China, containing more than 1,000 stone tools dating back about 800,000 years.

The relics include chipped stone tools such as pickaxes, axes with thin blades and chopping tools, and quartz fragments that had been used in making the stoneware. They were found on a hill near Baidu Village of Tiandong County in the Baise Prefecture. The archaeologists said this was the first time such artifacts had been found in the stratum at Baise.

Xie Guangmao, an expert on Baise Paleolithic cultures and director of the research institute of the Guangxi Cultural Heritage Working Team, said these stone tools were buried underground and featured the same characteristics of other stoneware excavated in Baise Basin in the past, in terms of processing technique, size, type and formation.

It can be concluded that ancient people lived in the area about800,000 years ago, Xie said.

The pickaxes were chipped on both sides and made into determinate sizes.

"This shows that there was no intellectual difference between the ancients of Asia, Africa and Europe in the early stage of the Paleolithic Age," said Xie.

During the past 29 years, archaeologists have discovered more than 70 Paleolithic Age sites in Baise Basin, 90 km long by 15 km wide. More than 8,000 pieces of stoneware unearthed from the basin are now exhibited in the Guangxi Museum.

[soozla]

HEY...........I thought I had the world's oldest stoneware...form the '70's......from my wedding....HHMMMMMMMM

[soozla]

HEY...........I thought I had the world's oldest stoneware...from the '70's......from my wedding....HHMMMMMMMM

[Paul Atreides]

I knew Mick and Keith were old, but not THAT old!

[firebrand]

It takes intellect to make a stone ax?

[PoorMuttly]

Well...does that mean I get it back ?

[aruanan]

800,000-Year-Old Stoneware Unearthed In South China

Stone tools are not the same thing as stoneware. Do you think the writer had any idea of the difference?

[aruanan]

Ah yes, the interesting logo the Stones ripped off from Larry Norman.

[firebrand]

There are many human qualities besides intellect. There are not just great apes and intellectuals.

[soozla]

So, I DO have the world's oldest stoneware..?

[blam]

"Stone tools are not the same thing as stoneware. Do you think the writer had any idea of the difference?"

Probably screwed up in translation.

[evolved_rage]

Do the great apes make tools such as that?

Maybe, but check out the crows.

[CobaltBlue]

Stone tools are not the same thing as stoneware. Do you think the writer had any idea of the difference?

Maybe in his or her own language, or maybe not.

At any rate, I agree with you. 800K year old stone tools are fascinating but not unique. 800K year old stoneware would force us to revise all known history.

[Lokibob]

Isn't this going to destroy the whole human evolution time table.

I thought humans dated back 20,000 years or so. Not hundreds of thousands of years. I could be wrong.

[Thinkin' Gal]

[Cruising Speed]

800,000 year old stoneware? Yea, got my attention, too. I had visions of some nice 'blue & white' plates; perhaps with dancing mammoths on them.

[Lord_Baltar]

My wife laughed at this one.

She said check and see if there is still food on it. If there is, the wife died first...

[blam]

"800K year old stoneware would force us to revise all known history."

Java Man 700,000 years old.