The Cultural Value of Lizhuang Site
Archaeologists believe that Longshan culture at Lizhuang site in Zhecheng county is probably related to Yangshao cultural site in Mazhuang, Yucheng county, which reflects that Longshan culture in eastern Henan may be a new clue with its own system. The excavation of Lizhuang site provides valuable information for exploring the seclusion life of pre-Shang civilization, studying the sequence of Neolithic culture development in eastern Henan, and understanding the details of human farming production, daily life, housing construction, ritual behavior, textile and pottery making technology in eastern Henan during Longshan culture period, which has important academic value in cultural archaeology.
Zhang Guangzhi, a famous American Chinese scholar and tenured professor at Harvard University, was overjoyed at the "unexpected importance" of Lizhuang Site. There is a "Nine Cattle Sacrifice Pit" in which nine oxen and a deer head are buried, which makes the Longshan culture of Shantaimiao closely related to the civilization of Yin and Shang dynasties.
From this, Mr. Zhang Guangzhi concluded that a branch of Longshan culture is parallel to the development of Longshan culture in other places to Yueshi culture. A special late Longshan or Yueshi culture excavated in the eastern part of Henan Province, represented by Shantaimiao, is the predecessor of Yin-Shang civilization.
Protection and development have a long way to go
Since June 2, 2006, it has been officially approved by the State Council as the sixth batch of key cultural relics protection units in China. This is the only state-level cultural relics protection unit in Zhecheng County that has won the "National Seal" so far, which indicates that Zhecheng County's ancient and long-standing historical civilization has been recognized by the state.
The entire Lizhuang site covers an area of 2 1.800 square meters. At present, two rows of eight temples have been spontaneously built by local people on the remaining mounds. The temple is dedicated to Buddha, ancestor, Guanyin Bodhisattva, Jade Emperor and other Buddhist gods, and the incense is endless every day. At first, two archaeological excavations in the north and south were backfilled by villagers, which turned into fertile farmland and Yang Shulin. In 2004, the local village committee and the county cultural relics department jointly set up the Lizhuang site protection group, appointed villager Li Shaoping as the amateur cultural relics administrator of Lizhuang site, erected the "provincial key cultural relics stone carving protection monument", and redefined the protection scope and the control zone of private house construction.
Talking about the future protection, development and planning of Lizhuang site, the director of the county cultural bureau is full of hopes and longings. He told reporters that the Lizhuang site is the cultural benchmark of Zhecheng County, the cultural symbol of Zhecheng County, and the "golden signboard" and "tourist signboard" that Zhecheng County can hear and stand. Therefore, based on the principle of protecting the original appearance of the site, they plan to build a comprehensive tourist attraction with the important content of showing the life and sacrifice system during the Longshan cultural period, and build a "Shantai Temple Ruins Park" that imitates Longshan cultural buildings, displays Longshan cultural relics and reproduces the historical features during the Longshan cultural period for tourists to visit.