Siwa culture

Map of late neolithic China; Siwa culture is #4

Siwa culture (also 'Siba'; Chinese: 寺洼文化; pinyin: Sìwā wénhuà) was a Bronze Age culture in the Gansu province of China. It was first discovered at Mount Siwa (寺洼山) in Lintao County, hence its name.^[1] Siwa culture dating is approximately from 14th to 11th Century BC,^[2] it is tentatively attributed to the cultures of the Di (氐) and Qiang (羌) peoples.^[3]

Context

The neighbouring Xindian culture was roughly contemporary with the Siwa culture, and was influenced by it. Some scholars hold that Siwa culture descended from the Qijia culture.^[4]

Geography

Painted pottery jar in shape of human, Siba Culture (1500-1300 BC), Gansu. National Museum of China

The Siwa culture is located in the Hexi Corridor. It is divided into two types – Siwa and Anguo. The former is distributed along the Tao River (Taohe) and the latter along the Weihe river. Siwa-type is somewhat earlier than the Western Zhou dynasty, while the Anguo-type is more or less contemporaneous with it.^[5]

One of Siwa culture's main characteristics is pottery with saddle-shaped openings (马鞍口陶罐),^[6] It is also distinguished by its bronze objects.

Since 2006, the Siwa site (寺洼遗址) is on the list of the People's Republic of China's archeological monuments.

See also

• List of Neolithic cultures of China
• Qijia culture
• Longshan culture

Literature

Nicola Di Cosmo, The Northern Frontier in Pre-Imperial China//The Cambridge History of Ancient China: From the Origins of Civilization to 221 BC, Edited by M.Loewe and E.L.Shaughnessy. ISBN 0-521-47030-7

External links

• Late Neolithic Siwa Culture Amphora TN009
• A Study on Donghuishan Cemetery— Including a Discussion on the Siba Culture and its Position in Sino-Western Cultural Exchange (A Summary) Zhang Zhongpei

References

1. Diese Stätte wird auch Miaopingyagou yizhi 庙坪鸦沟遗址 genannt.
2. http://www.gscn.com.cn/Get/dingxi/101927379.htm
3. 甘肃日报 [Gānsù Rìbào, Gansu Daily]. 《走进临洮县寺洼文化遗址》 [Zǒujìn Líntáoxiàn Sìwā Wénhuà Yízhǐ; "Entering Lintao County's Siwa Ruins"]. 2007. Accessed 17 Dec 2013. (Chinese)
4. Anne P. Underhill, ed., A Companion to Chinese Archaeology. Wiley Blackwell Companions to Anthropology. John Wiley & Sons, 2013 ISBN 1118325788
5. An Zhimin, THE BRONZE AGE IN EASTERN PARTS OF CENTRAL ASIA. (PDF) Unesco.org
6. http://www.fareastasianart.com/stores/brianpage/items/517132/item517132fareastasianart.html