City ruins from China's first dynasty, the Xia Dynasty (2100 BC-1600 BC) have been discovered in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, said local sources on Thursday.

The city, about 3,400 to 4,000 years old, covers 12,000 square meters. Three quarters of the ruins have been unearthed. Experts have found the relics of 65 round residential houses, 49 cellars and 15 stone coffins. They also found some rock paintings with human-face patterns and pottery fragments with ancient characters.

"The find will advance knowledge of the history of ancient dynasties," said an archaeologist called Wei with the region's culture bureau. "A plan should be drafted as soon as possible to protect the site," he said.

(Xinhua News Agency October 20, 2006)