Chinese archeologists found traces of human activities dating back to over one million years ago at the Longgang Temple Ruins in Hanzhong city, China's Northwestern Shaanxi province. This is important evidence proving that Hanjiang River Valley is one of the birthplaces of Chinese ancient civilization.

Archaeologists clear a tomb at the excavation site of the Neolithic site at the ruins of the Longgang Temple paleoanthropological site in Hanzhong city of Shaanxi province. [Photo/Xinhua]

Since 2013, the archeological expedition has been founded by the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of China Academy of Sciences as well as Shaanxi Archaeological Institute. A large amount of historical relics have been found in succession from the Paleolithic Age to the Shang and Zhou Dynasties (11th century BC-256 BC). More than 30,000 stone tools belonging to the Paleolithic Age were some of the most important finds.

In addition, archeologists also excavated a relic of the Neolithic Age, with an area of about 150,000 square meters, one of the few ruins which have remains dating back to the Paleolithic age in China.

According to Ma Mingzhi, associate researcher in Shaanxi Archaeological Institute, the Longgang Temple Ruins were discovered in the 1980s. However, they only found 430 tombs of the Neolithic Age at that time.

"This time, we found historical relics of the Paleolithic Age under the relics of the Neolithic Age. The deepest section is more than 10 meters under earth. Such burial- coexistence phenomena are very rare in the country. It is a precious sample to do further research on the culture of upper reaches in Hanjiang River Valley," he said.

Longgang Temple paleoanthropological site, which is located on the southern bank of the Hanjian River in Lianshan Township of Nanzheng County, about 3.5 kilometers away from Hanzhong City in Shaanxi Province, includes pottery workshops, living areas and burial areas.

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