--- SEARCH ---
WEATHER
CHINA
INTERNATIONAL
BUSINESS
CULTURE
GOVERNMENT
SCI-TECH
ENVIRONMENT
SPORTS
LIFE
PEOPLE
TRAVEL
WEEKLY REVIEW
Chinese Women
Film in China
War on Poverty
Learning Chinese
Learn to Cook Chinese Dishes
Exchange Rates
Hotel Service
China Calendar


Hot Links
China Development Gateway
Chinese Embassies
China Knowledge

Ancient Hunters' Ceramic Balls Discovered

Four ceramic balls unearthed in northeast China are believed to be weapons of ancient hunters some 3,000 years ago.

 

Chinese archeologists discovered four such balls, 2-4 centimeters in diameter, in Guanghe County, Gansu Province, and before the finding people only knew of the ceramic balls from historical documents.

 

The balls are red, yellow and black. Some are solid with slick surfaces, some are hollow with fictile grains inside.

 

"These ceramic balls, in their shapes, sizes and weights, are very suitable for people to hurl by hand or with a rope," said Wang Donghai, deputy head of the provincial institute of colored pottery in Gansu.

 

"They must be efficient in hunting fast running animals," he said, adding that the hollow ceramic balls would make sounds during the movement.

 

The four balls provide evidence about the life of ancient people recorded in historical documents. They are of great value also for studies on ceramic culture, the history of human development and the history of Chinese civilization, said Wang.

 

Pottery in China has a history of more than 10,000 years, and pottery ware has been serving as human's daily necessity for thousands of years, he said.

 

(Xinhua News Agency September 11, 2004)

Cemetery Dig Yields Clues to Western Zhou
Blast Blower Some 2,500 Years Old Discovered in Xinjiang
Modern Technology Helps Survey Imperial Tomb
Ancient Rock Paintings Found Along River in SW China
Print This Page
|
Email This Page
About Us SiteMap Feedback
Copyright © China Internet Information Center. All Rights Reserved
E-mail: webmaster@china.org.cn Tel: 86-10-88828000