Stick to the Field Archaeology and Excavate the Cultural Memory -- The Story of the Chongqing Women's Archaeological Team
2023-03-08
In the wake of insects, Yanni and her team finally waited for a heavy rain on the edge of Wujiang River in Wulong District, Chongqing. The torrential rain made the soil soft and made Yanni feel happy. "The drought since last summer made the soil at the exploration site hard and difficult to excavate. With this rain, the later work will be much easier." Yanni is the leader of the female archaeology team of the Chongqing Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology. She has been engaged in field archaeology for more than 10 years, and has become her daily companion with loess and pottery chips. For a long time, because of the particularity of field work, archaeologists are mostly male. In recent years, more and more female archaeologists have interpreted women's power with love and perseverance. This women's archaeological team was established in 2012. Over the past 10 years, it has organized more than 10 field work of cultural relics investigation and exploration projects. They can be seen in the cultural relics investigation and exploration project of Shuanghekou Reservoir in Wanzhou and the scientific and technological archaeological work of the site of Hechuan Fishing City. In May 2022, at the stage excavation site of Xiaotianxi Tombs in Fuling, Chongqing, the reporter met Yanni and her team members for the first time. The archeologists squatted in an ash pit in the scorching sun, and their skin was tanned with wheat color after long-term field work. Yanni told the reporter: "From the cultural relics unearthed in the ash pit, it is speculated that there may be a settlement of early Ba people's production and life around the excavation area during the Shang and Zhou Dynasties." "Archaeology is not a romantic thing. Most of the time, it is boring and rigorous. All speculation requires us to constantly search for evidence and discover people's stories behind the objects." Yanni said that the process is exciting, which is the charm of archaeology. Archaeology is not all an exciting "discovery" trip. In an office, the reporter saw Zhu Xuelian, a 46-year-old female archaeologist, sitting beside the computer, delineating a pottery with complex patterns. With the smooth and smooth lines slowly open, the cultural relics that have been sleeping for thousands of years can have a portrait. Zhu Xuelian told reporters that they are a multi-sectoral archaeological team, covering professional and technical talents in fields such as field excavation, scientific and technological archaeology, utensil restoration, and drawing. "Archaeological mapping is an important link in the collation of archaeological data, and it requires patience to do this work." Zhu Xuelian sat in front of the computer for a day. "Excavation is the most fundamental part of archaeological work, and subsequent research work such as restoration, mapping and card printing will be carried out to release the research results to the public," said Zhu Xuelian. In one archaeological excavation after another, the team members eat and live together, learn from each other, and constantly improve their business. At present, the nine members of the women's archaeological team have grown into leaders in their respective fields. Ma Xiaojiao, who joined in 2011, and Li Feng, who joined in 2014, respectively engaged in plant archaeology and animal archaeology, filling the gap of researchers in relevant fields of the Institute. "Our nine team members can now lead the investigation and excavation independently, and some of them also take their apprentices." Yanni said, "three young girls have joined us
Edit:qihang Responsible editor:xinglan
Source:XinhuaNet
Special statement: if the pictures and texts reproduced or quoted on this site infringe your legitimate rights and interests, please contact this site, and this site will correct and delete them in time. For copyright issues and website cooperation, please contact through outlook new era email:lwxsd@liaowanghn.com