J Archaeol Res (2010) 18:203–239

DOI 10.1007/s10814-010-9037-7

Recent Developments in the Archaeology

of Southwestern China

Alice Yao

Published online: 5 February 2010

Ó Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2010

Abstract Archaeology of ancient China’s periphery has traditionally been examined

through the historiographic lens of Chinese textual sources. Social developments in
the periphery are often explained in relation to accounts of migration from ‘‘core’’
regions of China. Setting conventional paradigms and textual sources aside, this
article examines prehistoric developments in southwestern China in conjunction
with broader trends in Southeast Asia. This comparative approach reveals that the
development of bronze metallurgy in southwestern China parallels trends observed
among Neolithic communities in Southeast Asia. Using recent data and a reas-
sessment of radiocarbon dates for the Bronze Age, I propose that sociopolitical
complexity emerged in southwestern China as part of a multiregional phenomenon
that had its beginning with the formalization of trade networks during the Neolithic
period.

Keywords China
Neolithic
Bronze Age
Dian culture
Southeast Asia

Dong Son culture

Introduction

In the last 20 years, a wealth of archaeological discoveries and research in China has
demonstrated the relevance of Chinese materials to the comparative study of ancient
civilizations. Northern China, in particular the Central Plains, has played an
increasingly prominent role in this international forum due to its traditional con-
sideration as the heartland of Chinese civilization. Scholars in regions outside China’s
core also have tried to take advantage of this momentum, unfortunately often

A. Yao (&)
Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Mississauga, Room 212 North Building,
3359 Mississauga Road North, Mississauga, Ontario L5L 1C6, Canada
e-mail: [email protected]

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following a regionalist paradigm that prioritizes their own region’s contributions to

the grand narrative of Chinese ‘‘national culture’’ over research (Falkenhausen 1995,
p. 211).
For areas culturally and geographically far removed from central China, partic-
ipation in this national and global discourse is not tenable (Shelach 1999, p. 53).
Nowhere is this more apparent than along China’s periphery, especially in regions
occupied primarily by non-Han ethnic groups: Inner Mongolia, Xinjiang, Qinghai,
Ningxia, Tibet, Yunnan, Guizhou, and Guangxi. Though archaeological materials in
these regions have previously been used to buttress a rhetoric of multicultural unity
(Fiskesjö 2006; Leibold 2006), current work is gradually attempting more anthropo-
logically oriented programs focused on local trajectories.
In southwestern China, this transformative approach to archaeology is occurring
in a context of increasing political openness. Here I aim to integrate archaeological
research in the region from the 1960s to 2007 into a study of sociopolitical
formations that occur in ‘‘nonpristine’’ contexts and under the influence of expand-
ing states as well as competing neighbors. By examining how prehistoric
communities in southwestern China came to adopt bronze metallurgy and tech-
nology into the regional political economy, I address the economic and social
dynamics that led to the genesis of polit(ies) across the wider region. In so doing,
I initiate a general departure from the main narrative by proposing alternative
research agendas and orientations for border regions of China.

Geography

Southwestern China encompasses the present day provinces of Yunnan, Sichuan,

and Guizhou (Fig. 1). The region is a southward extension of the Tibetan Plateau,
on the border with Myanmar and Laos, that descends from over 5000 m above sea
level (asl) in the north to 100 m in the south. The great topographic relief of
southwestern China is aptly described by the name ‘‘Yunnan,’’ which translates as
‘‘south of the clouds.’’ Natural features demarcating this region include the Jinsha
River, the headwaters of the Yangzi River, which forms the northern extent, the Nu
River (upper Salween River), which forms the western extent, and karst formations,
which define the region’s eastern boundary. Nestled between mainland Southeast
Asia and the Chinese heartland, the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau has historically
provided an important communication node linking these two major cultural areas
(Yang 2005). Modern national boundaries dividing China, Tibet, and its Southeast
Asian neighbors obfuscate what was in actuality a coextensive cultural sphere
shared by many societies in antiquity.

Past orientations and new directions

As ‘‘interlocutor’’ between ancient China and Southeast Asia, southwestern China is

caught between paradoxical research agendas. The archaeology of the region is
moored to national history but also has charted a distinctive intellectual course.

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Fig. 1 Map of the study region showing the distribution of Neolithic and Bronze/Iron Age
archaeological sites mentioned in the text. (1) Baiyangcun, (2) Batatai, (3) Bendong, (4) Bijiadatian,
(5) Bijie, (6) Caiyuanzi, (7) Chuankouba, (8) Dabona, (9) Dadunzi, (10) Dahuashi, (11) Daxingzhen,
(12) Getengcun, (13) Haidong, (14) Haimenkou, (15) Hejiashan, (16) Jigongshan, (17) Lijiashan,
(18) Maguang, (19) Shifodong, (20) Wanjiaba, (21) Xiaohedong, (22) Xinguang, (23) Yangfutou,
(24) Yanjiaqin, (25) Yingpanshan, (26) Yinsuodao (Lake Erhai basin). Lake Dian and Fuxian basins are
outlined in white. Climate variations range from continental in zone 1, temperate in zone 2, temperate to
subtropical in zone 3, and tropical in zone 4

Although the primary objective of Chinese archaeology has been to document the
origins of Chinese civilization, prehistoric societies of southwestern China share
undeniable cultural linkages with their Southeast Asian counterparts. As such,
southwestern China’s unique geographic and cultural position has complicated its
historical role (in Chinese national history) and its relevance as intellectual object
(from minority history and ethnoarchaeology to Southeast Asian prehistory) (Sun
2006). In effect, the discord between historical (and national) relevancy and
research agendas has contributed to the absence of the kind of central focus seen in
other parts of China. Restrictions placed on the circulation of primary regional

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archaeology journals, Yunnan Wenwu and Guizhou Wenwu, contribute to a lack of

visibility on the international front.
Despite this lack of national and international presence, the prehistoric past of the
Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau has drawn considerable interest due to the spectacular
archaeological finds associated with the Bronze Age tradition commonly referred to
as the Dian culture or Dian kingdom (c. 500–109 BC). Excavations of major
cemetery sites around the Lake Dian Basin have yielded a wealth of bronze
materials that showcase an unprecedented scale of production and craftsmanship.
The most iconic of Dian bronze paraphernalia include large drums weighing
upwards of 70 kg and cowrie shell containers that depict detailed scenes of warfare,
communal feasts, agricultural production, and weaving. The discovery of a gold seal
bearing the Han inscription ‘‘King of Dian’’ in a tomb at Shizhaishan solidified the
existence of this prehistoric polity, which Han textual sources referred to as one of
the most powerful ‘‘barbarian’’ entities in the southwest (Fang 1987). Higham
(2004, p. 58) marveled that these finds illustrate ‘‘[a] luminous chiefdom, which on
its own accord stands out as one of the best documented from the prehistoric
world.’’ In the last 50 years, archaeological fieldwork has uncovered hundreds of
royal Dian tombs and the cemeteries of other presumed Bronze Age polities
documented in Han texts. While the splendor of the Dian discoveries has certainly
attracted wide interest, the emergence and expansion of Bronze Age societies in the
region remain poorly understood (Allard 1998).
Conventional archaeological research in southwestern China has aimed to
reconstruct the historical narrative of ethnic minority groups mentioned in the
ancient textual sources. These include the Dian, Laojin, Mimo, Yelang, and
Kunming peoples recounted in the Account of the Grand Historian (109–91 BC)
(Fang 1987). Interpretations of the meanings of these ‘‘peoples’’ in historical usage
are a challenging problem because the texts fail to distinguish between tribal and
ethnic, social and cultural, or political groups. The conventional approach holds that
the Dian, Laojin, and Mimo were likely part of the Hundred Yue, defined by
Brindley (2003, p. 11) as a composite and proliferation of non-Han peoples
extending from the southeast coast of China to Vietnam. This generic cultural
complex also is identified with rice agriculture, pile-dwelling architecture, and the
use of frog motifs (Zhang 2001, p. 16). A more recent assessment proposes that
these groups were a synthetic mixture of Pu and Di ethnic peoples, who were pushed
southward from their respective ‘‘homelands’’ by expanding Central Plains states in
the sixth to fourth century BC (Yang 2002, p. 93). Whether Yue or Pu/Di, traditional
archaeological research has sought to document the development of textually known
ethnic groups, relying on causes such as migration and diffusion from ‘‘core’’
regions to explain historical developments from the prehistoric to the Bronze Age in
the periphery.
There are both methodological and theoretical reasons for eschewing this
paradigm. First, the application of historically documented ethnic groups to the
archaeological record must contend with the historicity of texts. According to Fang
(1987, pp. 24–25) and Zhang (2001, p. 15), the ethonym ‘‘Pu’’ appeared only in
Shang to Western Zhou (1500–771 BC) sources and should not be confused with the
later ‘‘Pu’’ peoples referenced in the Huayang Guozhi (fourth century AD). Second,

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while migration may have occurred, the concept carries limited weight in explaining
social change. In logic, migration and diffusion describe historical events. In
application, migration and diffusion effect a tautological argument where the basis
of change is indistinguishable from the cause.
Moving away from this paradigm, new directions in research must address the
mechanisms underlying social developments in southwestern China while taking
into consideration the prehistory of neighboring areas. A comparison of southwest-
ern China with Bronze Age societies in the adjoining areas of Sichuan, Vietnam,
and Thailand reveals a time delay of nearly a millennium in the adoption of bronze
technology (Fig. 2). Thus the Sanxingdui culture in Sichuan province emerged
around the late second millennium BC, and the earliest bronze-producing societies
in Thailand and Vietnam date between c. 1800 and 1500 BC (Higham 2002,
pp. 118–163; White 1997). With one of the world’s richest sources for copper and
tin ore, the late emergence of bronze production in the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau is
particularly puzzling.
Even more important to the debate on Bronze Age societies are the social and
political dynamics associated with the emergence and development of bronze
metallurgy. The incorporation of bronze technology has been identified as a factor in
the expansion of prehistoric economies, leading to the emergence of social and
political hierarchy as leaders increasingly gained control over production of prestige

Fig. 2 Cross-regional comparison of chronological periods spanning the Neolithic to the Iron Age

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goods (Muhly 1988). Bronze production figures prominently in the explanations of

the Sanxingdui culture as considerable labor and resources were mobilized to cast
bronze ritual vessels that consolidated political legitimacy. In contrast, the adoption
of bronze metallurgy in Southeast Asia has been seen as an extension of existing
Neolithic activity patterns carried out at the community level (Muhly 1988).
Southwest China lies at the intersection of these two areas, and scholars have
suggested that the genesis of the Dian kingdom parallels processes of the Sanxingdui
polity more than a millennium earlier. However, this current understanding is being
challenged by discoveries of ‘‘chalcolithic’’ sites that resonate with the Southeast
Asian pattern (Jiang 2002; Lian 2008). Exploration of this intermediary region thus
provides an opportunity to expand current understandings of these contrastive
developmental trajectories.
In casting southwest China against a wider regional backdrop, I address
prehistoric sociopolitical transformations with broad implications for interconnected
cultures. First, developments in the Yunnan-Guizhou region are used to evaluate
competing hypotheses concerning the sources of bronze technological tradition
(China, Central Asia, or Southeast Asia) and the mechanisms responsible for
this transmission. Second, models for explaining the emergence of complexity
(i.e., migration and prestige goods control) in the first millennium BC are evaluated
against the current evidence to reveal the dynamics of peer-polity interaction across
the region.
To adequately address these issues necessitates an understanding of the prehistoric
communities of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau that predate the Bronze Age
florescence. Previous syntheses of these materials exist in the Chinese literature,
but they have not been updated since the 1980s and thus do not address recent
findings, in particular of sites spanning the critical Neolithic-Bronze Age transition.

Neolithic period

Neolithic southwestern China was characterized by different cultural groups that

occupied diverse ecosystems, from highland river valleys with continental climates
to lowland subtropical environments. The region’s latitudinal and elevational
variability accounts for marked differences in seasonality, rainfall, vegetation cover,
and availability of arable land (see ‘‘zones’’ in Fig. 1 and Table 1), which contribute
to the incredible diversity in ecological habitats with very different implications for
human adaptation. Unlike central China and Southeast Asia, southwestern China
lacks broad alluvial basins that both demarcate natural geographic regions and
provide favorable conditions for reliable agriculture. Only 4% of the landmass is
considered arable and is concentrated in elevated lacustrine basins. The major river
systems (Irrawaddy, Salween, Mekong, Yangzi, Pearl, and Red) radiating out of the
region are primarily not navigable in their upper reaches, further contributing to a
highly differentiated and circumscribed regional landscape.
Contrary to Rispoli’s (2007) characterization of a regionally ‘‘shared’’ Neolithic
tradition extending from southern China to Southeast Asia and southwestern China,
archaeological data from the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau do not show a continuous

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Table 1 Climatic zones of Yunnan province (Li and Walker 1986)

Climate Rainfall Annual mean Vegetation cover
(mm) temperature (°C)

Zone 1 Continental 600–800 5.2–12 Conifer, mixed deciduous,

and evergreen broadleaf forest
Zone 2 Temperate 900–1000 12–15 Subtropical conifer and evergreen
broadleaf forest
Zone 3 Temperate-subtropical 900–1100 14–19 Subtropical conifer and evergreen
broadleaf forest
Zone 4 Subtropical 1500–2000 18–21 Subtropical evergreen broadleaf
and tropical evergreen rainforest

distribution of rice agriculture, animal husbandry, pile dwellings, impressed pottery,

and polished stone tools, all hallmark features of the Neolithic cultural package.
Instead, the data reveal considerable interregional diversity, defined by a highland-
lowland dichotomy.
The Neolithic period is currently divided into early (3000–1800 BC) and late
(1800–1000 BC) phases. Based on reported radiocarbon dates (Fig. 3), sites
yielding early-phase dates are located primarily in Dali prefecture (upper reaches of
the Jinsha River and middle reaches of Lancang or Mekong River) and in the
lacustrine basin of Tonghai in south central Yunnan. The earliest dates from the Dali
area suggest initial occupation as early as the beginning of the third millennium BC
(Fig. 3). Most sites on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau date to the late Neolithic phase
(1800–1000 BC). These include cave and open-air occupation sites associated with
the Jinsha, Nanpan, and Nu River valleys.

Regional complexes

Multiple archaeological complexes have been broadly defined by distinctive

ceramic and lithic traditions, each distributed within geographically discrete areas
(N. Wang 1992; D. Wang 1998a). The distribution of these cultural complexes
follows a distinct latitudinal and elevational gradient, highlighting the highland
versus lowland contrast noted above. Each of the four complexes summarized in
Table 2 manifests a unified style in decoration and implement form across ceramic
and/or lithic assemblages.
The four ceramic complexes are defined by variations in vessel forms and wares
(Fig. 4): double-handle jar tradition (Wang 1998a, p. 56), incised/stamped ware
tradition (Higham 2002; Rispoli 2007; Sun 2006; Wang 2008), gray amphora
ware tradition (GPICRA et al. 2006a, b; YPMCRWT 1962), and cord-impressed ware
tradition (LPCMO 1992). Corded wares from shellmound sites in the Lake Jili basin
include a distinctive array of ‘‘zoomorphic’’ ceramic shapes, in particular the
prevalence of ‘‘bird effigy’’ pitchers (Fig. 4). The three lithic complexes are defined as
ground, pecked, or flaked (Chiou-Peng 1999; Wang 1998a, p. 53), with implement
forms identified as shouldered or asymmetrical (Wang 1998a, p. 47; YPMCRWT
1983). These lithic complexes also are represented by assemblage differences: flaked

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Fig. 3 Radiocarbon determinations for the Neolithic period showing one sigma range. Calibration based
on Reimer et al. (2004) data provided in Oxcal 3.10

lithic complexes consist primarily of axes, while ground lithic complexes are
represented by diverse array of tool types and sizes. The features of these complexes
are illustrated in Fig. 4, and their distributions are summarized in Table 2.
Importantly, the spatial distribution of material complexes is not necessarily
delineated by the river courses (Table 2 and Fig. 1). Rather, latitude and climate
zones are the primary factor in the differentiation of regional cultural groups,
drawing a highland/temperate versus lowland/subtropical division. The double-
handle jars are found only in the high valleys of zone 1. Impressed/incised ware and
ground lithics are distributed in the temperate river valleys of zones 2 and 3. With
the exception of the Lake Jili basin, corded ware and flaked or shouldered axes are

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 Table 2 Neolithic archaeological complexes and their distributions
Drainage system Associated sites House structure Site Ceramic Stone Cultigens
size (m2) assemblage assemblage

Upper Jinsha (zone 1) Getengcun Unknown Double-handle Ground

Daxingzhen
Middle Jinsha (zone 2) Baiyangcun (early) Post and wattle 3000–8000 Impressed/incised Ground Rice (unspecified)
Dadunzi (late) Rice (unspecified)
J Archaeol Res (2010) 18:203–239

Caiyuanzi (late) 2 ha Keng variety

Mopandi (late) Keng variety
Yinsuodao Shell mound 4000
Haimenkou (late) Wood pile 5 ha No report
Xinguang (early) Post and wattle Rice, millet, and wheat
Middle Lancang (zone 2) Shifodong Cave with structure Impressed/incised Ground
Lower Lancang (zone 3) Nanbiqiao (late) Cave 3000 Impressed/incised Ground Rice (unspecified)
Lower Jinsha (zone 2) Zhaxinchang Gray amphora No report
Maguang
Jigongshan (late) Cache and burial Sativa L.
Wujiadaping (late) Sativa L.
Lake Jili Basin (zone 3) Haidong Shell mound 3000–8500 Corded ware Ground
Yangshan (early) Shell mound Ground
Red River (zone 4) Xiaohedong Cave 100–3000 Corded ware Shouldered ax
Lower Nu (zone 3) Dahuashi Cave 2.4 ha Flaked tool
Chuankouba Cave Corded ware Flaked tool
Muchengma Cave
Yingpanshan Cave with structure Sativa L.
211

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Fig. 4 Ceramic and stone tool assemblages of the Neolithic period. Top (left to right): Impressed and
incised ware from Xinguang (redrawn from YPICRA et al. 2002, Fig. 17), corded ware from Chuankouba
(redrawn from LPCMO 1992, Fig. 2), and bird effigy jar from Yangshan (redrawn from Chen 2003,
Fig. 4). Center (left to right): Gray amphora ware from Jigongshan (redrawn from GPICRA et al. 2006a,
Fig. 7) and double-handle jar from northwestern Yunnan (redrawn from Kan and Xiong 1998, Fig. 23).
Bottom (left to right): Ground ax from Xinguang (redrawn from YPICRA et al. 2002, Fig. 10), pecked ax
from Chuankouba (redrawn from LPCMO 1992, Fig. 3), and shouldered ax from Xiaohedong (redrawn
from YPMCRWT 1983, Fig. 3)

found in the subtropical, lowland river valleys of zones 3 and 4. These cultural
groupings further correlate with distinct subsistence and settlement orientations,
highlighting the diversity of cultural ecological systems that shaped the prehistoric
landscape and nature of regional interaction.

Settlement and subsistence patterns

Neolithic subsistence and settlement patterns vary by latitude and climate, as

communities adapted to distinct ecosystems ranging from temperate highland river

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valleys to tropical lowland river valleys. Investigations throughout the Yunnan-

Guizhou Plateau are currently revealing the diversity of Neolithic settlement
patterns ranging from semipermanent to permanent villages and subsistence
strategies ranging from horticultural to agricultural practices. The variability in
cultivation practices should not be surprising as the region differs from both
southern China and Southeast Asia in having a much shorter growing season and an
earlier onset of winter frost.

Upland river valleys of the Jinsha corridor

Neolithic villages were typically small (3000–8000 m2) and reliant on a mixed
economy of rice cultivation and wild resource exploitation. Sites are aggregated
around the tributaries and streams feeding into the Jinsha River. Unlike Southeast
Asia where prehistoric structures are raised on stilts, house structures in the highland
valleys tend to be semisubterranean and constructed with posts and wattle and daub.
Excavators uncovered superimposed house structures throughout the sequence at the
Neolithic sites of Baiyangcun and Dadunzi, suggesting a lengthy occupation and
multigenerational commitment to territory (YPM 1981). These communities appear
to have undertaken public constructions at the village level. Excavators have noted
the discovery of long ditch features that parallel the contour of the slope at several
excavated sites in the middle Jinsha corridor (Kan 1998b). Because sites tend to be
located on graded river terraces, the ditch features may have served to control
erosion and drainage during the rainy season (Kan 1998b, p. 261; YPICRA et al.
2003, p. 266).
Although Neolithic villagers adopted rice cultivation, the extent of rice agriculture
and the reliance placed on this cultivar in the diet remain unclear. Rice remains from
the Jinsha River course indicate that both Sativa L. and Keng varieties were being
cultivated (Kan 1998a). Considerable variation in grain size characterized the
samples. The preponderance of the smaller grain size of the Keng variety observed in
samples could reflect different hill varieties adapted to the particular environment of
the region or, alternatively, could represent transitional varieties in the process of
being domesticated (Kan 1998a; YPM 1981).
The evidence for storage practices beyond the household context is particularly
revealing of collective-level decision making directed toward addressing seasonal
shortfalls. Most of the rice remains were recovered from extensive storage pits
dispersed between households (YPM 1981, p. 365). Indeed, the sites of Jigongshan
and Wujiadaping in the lower Jinsha region may not have been occupational sites at
all, but rather special storage or cache locales with ritual purposes, an interpretation
supported by the discovery of smashed whole vessels at the bottom of these features
(GPICRA et al. 2006b).
The extent of animal domestication in these Neolithic villages remains unclear.
Wild fauna predominate in the incomplete data currently available. Remains from
domestic refuse pits show that villagers hunted an array of woodland and arboreal
fauna (Kan 1998a; YPICRA et al. 2002). Domesticated pigs, chickens, dogs, and
cattle were also reported but the percentages have not been published.

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Lacustrine environments

The broad, fertile lacustrine basins of central Yunnan provide the most optimal
environment for prehistoric habitation. Archaeological survey has uncovered a wide
distribution of shell mound sites with pile structures in the Lake Dian, Fuxian, Jili,
and Erhai basins (Fig. 1), showing communities exploiting rich marshland habitats.
These sites usually range between 3000 and 8500 m2 (Chen 2003; Cultural Relics
Bureau 1999). The shell remains have been identified as belonging to the Margarya
genus, a freshwater snail that is available year-round in highland lake habitats (Chen
2003; Ellen Strong personal communication 2007). These communities engaged in a
diverse range of economic activities associated with land clearance, fishing,
harvesting of gastropods, and hunting centered along the lake marshes.
Recent excavations at the site of Haimenkou (c. 1500 BC) in the Jianchuan basin
have exposed an extensive wooden structure of similar construction technique as
documented in the other lacustrine basins (Lian 2008). Haimenkou, however, is an
extreme anomaly in Neolithic community patterns. Not only is Haimenkou the
largest Neolithic site (5 ha), but it also contained the largest prehistoric wooden
structure (2 ha) discovered to date in China (Lian 2008). Preliminary surveys from
the Erhai and Jianchuan regions have revealed settlement variability defined by size,
location, and architectural features (Cultural Relics Bureau 1999).
The discovery of carbonized wheat and millet remains along with rice at Haimenkou
provides additional support for the range of cultivation strategies employed by villagers
to support permanent communities. By integrating multiple cultigens, presumably with
preference toward crops suited to arid winter conditions, villagers in temperate highland
zones could buffer against seasonal shortages (Lian 2008).

Subtropical–tropical river valleys

In the subtropical valleys of the Nu, the Lancang, and the Red Rivers, Neolithic sites
tend to be located in steep valleys and caves overlooking tributaries and streams.
Sites in the lower Nu and Lancang River systems (700–800 m asl), such as
Chuankouba and Dahuashi, are typified by shallow deposits and an assemblage
dominated by expedient flaked stone tools (Table 2) (BPCMO and LPCMO 1991,
pp. 501–504). These site patterns have led some archaeologists to interpret them as
semipermanent occupations oriented around swiddening, with correlations drawn to
subsistence and settlement practices of contemporary ethnic groups in the region
(Wang 1992; Yin 2001). Few postholes have been found at these cave sites, with the
exception of Yingpanshan and Shifodong (Wang 1998a, p. 55), which may have
been used as permanent occupations based on the presence of rice storage features
and deeply stratified deposits (Cultural Relics Bureau 1999, p. 294).

Interregional interactions

While the various Neolithic traditions or ‘‘cultures’’ appear to be circumscribed

within physiographic zones, interregional interaction emerged during this period as
evidenced by the circulation of nonlocal objects between highland and lowland

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regions. Cowrie shells from the Indian Ocean have been discovered at the site of
Shifodong in the lower Lancang River valley and at Yingpanshan and Qiaojia in the
lower Jinsha River valley (Bai 1993, p. 227; Dai Zongpin personal communication
2004). Cowrie shells appeared to have circulated widely from Southeast Asia to
Tibet (Karuo site), Sichuan, and the Central Plains during the second millennium
BC and ostensibly were used by the Shang, Zhou, and Sanxingdui polities as a form
of ancient currency. The Southwest Silk Road (Fig. 1), one of the primary access
routes connecting China, Southeast Asia, and India during the first millennium BC,
passes through the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, so the appearance of cowrie shells in
Neolithic period sites and especially in the lower Jinsha corridor is not surprising.
By extension, the circulation of cowrie shells through this region substantiates the
identification of the Jinsha corridor with historically known routes.
Bird effigy pitchers, characteristic of the Lake Jili ceramic assemblage, also
appear to have circulated widely (Fig. 4). Outside the Lake Jili area, they have been
found only as singular items in burial contexts, for example at Dadunzi in the
middle Jinsha region and at Daxingzhen near the Tibetan border (Fig. 1) (Ho 1984,
p. 306). Beyond the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, the only other region where bird
effigy pitchers are common is eastern Guangdong province on China’s southern
coast (Yang 1998, p. 193). These two areas are connected by the Pearl River system,
the upper reach of which is the Nanpan River that drains Lake Jili. The wide
distribution of pitchers intimates at a potentially vast communication network that
extended from the southern coast of China into the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau.
Despite the large geographic extent, mechanisms of interregional interaction
appeared to have been small scale and possibly motivated by emerging social
differentiation, competition, and discord within expanding late Neolithic communi-
ties. The incorporation of exotic goods such as cowrie shells and effigy vessels into
the mortuary repertoire may have served to delineate social differences emerging
within respective communities. Mortuary evidence from the Jinsha corridor indicates
that warfare was prevalent. Skeletal remains from Dadunzi and Baiyangcun were
either embedded or found in association with broken projectile points, suggesting
traumatic injuries incurred during combat (Cheng 1998; Wang 1992).
In sum, current data indicate two emergent interregional networks in the
Neolithic: an overland route connecting southwestern China with the Central Plains
and a riverine route with coastal southern China. These routes also served to connect
the highland and lowland Neolithic communities within the Yunnan-Guizhou
Plateau and introduced nonlocal goods into the mortuary program of various
societies. The significance of these exchange routes linking highland and lowland
regions should not be underestimated as they presage the dynamics of interregional
interaction that led to the transmission of bronze metallurgy and the subsequent
development of Bronze Age polities.

The emergence of bronze metallurgy

The emergence of bronze metallurgy in southwestern China continues to be debated,

with questions about the timing and origins (independent versus exogenous) of

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this technological tradition. Because bronze metallurgy appeared relatively late

(Fig. 2) on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau, archaeologists have argued that bronze
technology must have been transmitted from either Central Asia, southern China,
Southeast Asia, or central China, regions with earlier bronze metallurgy traditions.
In Southeast Asia, archaeologists increasingly view southern China as the source
of bronze technologies and traditions (Higham 2004; Pigott and Ciarla 2007).
However, unlike Southeast Asia, the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau was linked not only
to southern China (where bronze was well in use in the upper layers of the Shixia
culture 1200–900 BC) but also to the Central Plains and Sichuan. To account for the
possibility of multidirectional networks, a ‘‘serial’’ model that conceptualizes
multiregional pathways of transmission should be considered an alternative to the
standard unidirectional model of transmission. Processes behind the expansion of
bronze metallurgy could have been successive or sequential, with Neolithic
communities gaining the rudiments of metallurgical manufacturing and passing
their knowledge via exchange, relocation, or alliance.
A larger question concerns the social conditions under which local populations
adopted a nonindigenous technology. In Southeast Asia, communities appear to
have incorporated bronze metallurgy as an extension of existing Neolithic patterns
of economic and social activity. To what extent did the initial adoption of bronze
metallurgy in southwestern China follow a similar trajectory?

Timing of bronze metallurgy in southwestern China

The sites of Haimenkou and Nagu in the upper Jinsha region have provided the
earliest evidence of bronze manufacturing on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau in the
early first millennium BC. Disputes about site stratigraphy have led some scholars
to dismiss these dates in favor of the middle of the first millennium BC finds at the
mortuary site of Wanjiaba (Li and Han 2006). However, the re-excavation of
Haimenkou in 2008 proved that original cultural layers were indeed intact, and
bronze artifacts were found in stratified deposits directly above Neolithic deposits
(Lian 2008). In addition, unpublished radiocarbon dates from the Wayao site in
Guizhou and Yeshicun near Zhaotong in the Jinsha River region corroborated the
early first millennium BC dates from Haimenkou (Chiou-Peng personal commu-
nication 2008; Sun 2007, p. 14). Wayao has yielded bivalve molds of projectile
points or harpoons. As a result, current assessments again lean toward an incipient
phase of bronze production possibly beginning as early as the late second
millennium BC.

Sources of bronze metallurgical tradition

Potential sources of bronze metallurgy in southwestern China include Southeast

Asia, Sichuan, and southern China. Both Chinese and Western scholars have noted
similarities between bronze ax forms and their preceding Neolithic stone
counterparts (Chiou-Peng 1999; Wang 1998b): bronze axes from Haimenkou have

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a curvilinear shape whereas counterparts from the Red and lower Lancang Rivers
have an asymmetrical shoulder. While this morphological continuity suggests the
adaptation of bronze metallurgy to distinctly localized contexts, other stylistic
features evince the influence of external sources in the design of bronze implements.
For instance, in addition to the predominant use of bivalve molds often referred to as
the ‘‘southern bronze tradition,’’ the semilunate shape and the horizontal line
decorations on the socket of Haimenkou axes recall examples from the Ban Chiang
site in northeastern Thailand centuries earlier (Higham 2002, p. 136).
The influence of steppe cultures on the transmission of bronze metallurgy is an
important but elusive element in the Jinsha River corridor, where the cist tomb
culture is represented by mortuary sites composed of stone-lined graves and dolmen
structures. Their assemblage is distinct from local Neolithic variants and is instead
considered to be closely aligned with an expansive ‘‘pan-regional’’ steppe tradition
extending from the Caucasus to Sichuan and northeastern China (Wang 1992).
Because these cist tomb sites in the Jinsha corridor have not been dated, the
relationship between these ‘‘pastoral’’ bronze-using societies and Neolithic com-
munities remains unclear. Cist tombs have been found as intrusive features cutting
into terminal period Neolithic deposits (Guo 2002, p. 69; YPICRA et al. 2003,
pp. 282–284), suggesting that the arrival of steppe peoples may either coincide in
time with the emergence of bronze technology in the Jinsha corridor or perhaps
intimate at existing interactions. The influence of steppe cultures on southwestern
China bronze metallurgy has most recently been suggested by Chiou-Peng (1999,
p. 290), following the apparent discovery of pure copper daggers and swords at the
Yongzhi site in the upper Jinsha River corridor.
The influence of northern Vietnam on the emergence of bronze metallurgy in
the tropical river valleys of the Red and lower Lancang drainages is evidenced by
the spread of pediform or boot-shaped bronze axes (Wang 1998c). Bronze axes
with a pediform shape first emerged in the Dong Dau culture (*1500 BC) of
northern Vietnam. By the early-to-mid-first millennium BC, pediform axes were
the most prevalent bronze implements at Bronze Age sites in the Red and the
lower Lancang River valleys. The pervasiveness of this form may be illustrative
of both the continuity of an existing Neolithic shape and the extent of interactions
and influence emanating out of northern Vietnam into southwestern China’s
tropical river valleys.

Trends in the incorporation of bronze technology

Bronze did not arrive in southwestern China as a fully developed technological

tradition; instead, early bronze is characterized by a limited array of artifact forms
of both pure copper and tin alloy compositions. Artifact forms conform to Neolithic
objects formerly available only in stone, bone, or shell (e.g., knife, projectile point,
ax, adzes, and bangles). According to the excavators of Haimenkou, bronze artifacts
constitute a small percentage of the assemblage with a limited range of tool forms,
primarily axes, fishhooks, and pins (Wang 1998b). Bronze artifacts at Yinsuodao in
the Lake Erhai region consist of hammered bronze fishhooks (Lian and He 2003).

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Bivalve molds for casting axes have been discovered at Haimenkou, Nagu, and
Dahuashi in the lower Nu region (Wang 1998b, p. 115), whereas remnants of
ceramic crucibles have been found at Yinsuodao in the Lake Erhai region (Lian and
He 2003). Compositional analysis of 14 weapons from Haimenkou showed wide
variability in alloying and the use of a variety of production techniques suggesting
technological experimentation (Li and Han 2006). X-ray fluorescence results
indicated that four objects (knife, awl, chisel, and pin) were of pure copper whereas
the remaining bronze implements contained less than 10% of either tin or lead (Li
and Han 2006, p. 82). In addition to casting with stone molds, manufacturing
techniques included forging, used in making hoes and axes, and cold working after
forging, used in the manufacture of a bracelet and awl (Li and Han 2006, p. 83).
A similar pattern of bronze use also has been documented at the Wangjiadun site in
the Lake Dian region, where stratified deposits presumably show a progression from
Neolithic layers into a ‘‘chalcolithic’’ period of small-scale bronze manufacture and
use (Jiang 2002, pp. 238–239).
These trends parallel the pattern in Southeast Asia, where bronze manufacture
began in Neolithic communities between 1800 and 1500 BC in northern Vietnam
(Dong Dau period), the lower Mekong region in central Thailand, and the Khorat
Plateau. Like the Haimenkou bronzes, alloy composition from central Thailand sites
also consists roughly of a 10% mixture of tin and copper (Higham 2004, p. 53). In
all these areas, there was an initial appearance of a limited range of artifact forms
during the late Neolithic, followed by the use of bivalve molds and poorly
controlled alloys to cast projectile points, fishhooks, spearheads, and axes, and the
subsequent development of improved alloys (Higham 2004; Nguyen et al. 2004,
p. 192).
In sum, bronze production along the Jinsha and Nu River courses emerged at least
400 years later than in Southeast Asia, but in both areas there is evidence of local
experimentation and technological improvements over time. Neolithic communities
across the highly varied landscape of southwestern China first began exploiting and
experimenting with copper and tin to produce a limited range and quantity of
implements that have obvious Neolithic counterparts. These initial bronze workers
made socketed axes, fishhooks, spearheads, and bracelets using both bivalve molds
and forging techniques. This pattern indicates that a rather generic suite of
technological knowledge had wide currency across the region. Higham (2002,
p. 118) views the emergence of bronze metallurgy as a timely development, which
happened ‘‘coincidentally at the very time when Neolithic societies were being
exposed to imports and presumably ideas.’’ A critical mechanism behind its
transmission may be the aforementioned expansion of Neolithic communication
routes, and it is likely that this communication moved simultaneously in many
directions. In other words, one must contemplate a ‘‘serial’’ as opposed to a
‘‘unidirectional’’ model of metallurgical transmission in this region where techno-
logical knowledge and innovations did not necessarily emanate from a single source.
As communities developed general metallurgical knowledge, both local innovation
and flow of information and materials along different routes of interaction promoted
differential patterns of bronze development. The result is a complex web of social,
economic, and technological interactions and change.

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Political formations from a wider regional perspective (c. 800–300 BC)

The emergence of bronze technologies and the development of Bronze Age polities
on the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau are separate issues, which unfortunately are often
treated synonymously. In the archaeological literature, the Bronze Age is typically
associated with the protohistoric societies documented in Han textual accounts, most
notably the polities of Dian and Yelang. The salience of Han textual accounts and
the discovery of spectacular bronze finds associated with the ‘‘Dian Kingdom’’ have
led to this unfortunate conflation of bronze technology with political complexity.
The time delay separating the initial appearance of bronze use at Haimenkou
(c. 1000 BC) in northern Yunnan and the emergence of complex formations (eighth
to seventh centuries BC) point to a disconnect in space and time, exposing what are
essentially different sociohistorical processes. In other words, although bronze
technology and production were undeniably central to the economy and politics of
the complex societies in Yunnan, the basis of their formidable rise to power should
not be confused with the mere existence of bronze metallurgy. Unfortunately,
attempts to understand the rise of complexity during the first millennium BC are
frustrated by the poor chronological resolution offered by most Bronze Age
cemetery sites and the absence of stratified settlement sites that would afford a
diachronic framework for documenting sociopolitical trends (Allard 1998; Murow-
chick 2002). The view from the spectacular cemetery sites offers but a snapshot of
these societies in maturity.

Polity versus polities

The emergence of complex sociopolitical formations in southwestern China must be

viewed as a region-wide phenomenon, inclusive of concurrent developments in the
Dong Son region in northern Vietnam. As discussed earlier, the conventional
historiographic approach attributes the emergence of the Dian, as well as the Dong
Son, to influence (and indeed migration) from Central Plains China. Population
movement is documented in historical texts, including that of the Chu general
Zhuang Qiao from the middle Yangzi River (c. fourth century BC), the Zhuang
King of Minshan in Sichuan (c. sixth century BC), and the Pu-Liao tribal exodus
from the Chu state in 611 BC (YPICRA et al. 2005, p. 865). This paradigmatic
approach has been extended to explain the rise of the Dong Son culture where the
discovery of bronze drums in the Hanoi basin was interpreted as evidence of
influence from the Dian culture. As a counterpoint to the Sino-centric narrative,
Vietnamese archaeologists argue instead that the cultural influence emanated from
Vietnam to southwestern China (see Han 2004), accepting the migrationist
perspective but turning it on its head.
Neither of these exogenous propositions is tenable based on current understand-
ings of the timing of political developments in southwestern China and Vietnam.
Current radiocarbon determinations for the Lake Dian region (Fig. 1) predate the
seventh century BC (Fig. 5), suggesting that the Zhuang Qiao and Pu migration
hypotheses are not supportable (also see Watson 1970). The discovery of an intact
continuous archaeological sequence from Neolithic to Dong Son periods in northern

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Fig. 5 Radiocarbon determinations for the Bronze Age period showing one sigma range. Calibration
based on Reimer et al. (2004) data provided in Oxcal 3.10

Vietnam also undermines the impact of Central Plains China on the rise of the Dong
Son culture (Higham 2002).
These diffusionist perspectives rely on implicit assumptions that a distinct and
singularly powerful polity presided over the region, constituting a ‘‘core’’ from
which bronze drums originated and were then dispersed to less-developed regions.
However, the possibility that these archaeological manifestations may represent
distinct polities has remained a thorny issue. For instance, in the five decades since
the discovery of the Dian royal necropolis at Shizhaishan, there is still little
consensus over definitions of the Dian culture and kingdom(s), the organization of
bronze production in that region, and the dimensions of interregional interaction.
Local archaeologists have acknowledged archaeological finds and Han texts

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supporting multiple, competing entities in the region, further complicating the

notion of Dian and Dong Son as territorially extensive polities (Sun 2007; YPICRA
et al. 2005).
Two different models that have been applied primarily to the Aegean and
northern Europe during the Roman period are particularly relevant for re-exploring
the synchronous social and spatial patterns in southwestern China and northern
Vietnam. In addition to their inception as frameworks for examining regions
increasingly drawn together by exchange, the prestige goods control and peer-polity
models articulate two contrasting views on the relationship between the emergence
of complexity and geographic scale.
Under the prestige goods control model, the ability of one group to monopolize
control of circulation and exchange over its neighbors creates distinct asymmetries
in the regional distribution of wealth and political power, transforming existing
peers into dependents (Barnes 2007; Haselgrove 1987). The corresponding
archaeological record should indicate disparities in the distribution and production
of prestige items (e.g., bronzes and nonlocal goods) tending toward a centripetal
pattern of flow. The formalization of these relations subsequently leads to greater
social elaboration within dependent societies.
In contrast, the peer-polity model envisions political transformations across the
wider region as the result of interaction and competition between autonomous
neighboring polities that are analogous in scale. Competition (warfare, trade, and the
transmission of innovation) between peers leads to intensified production and the
development of specialized administrative roles and institutions at the regional scale
(Renfrew 1987, pp. 4–5). The corresponding archaeological record should indicate
parallel and contemporaneous sociopolitical developments represented by similar
production and consumption patterns, as well as a shared recognition of symbolic and
ideological frameworks. Each polity appears as a homolog of its peers.

Temporal span

The absolute dates for Bronze/Iron Age cemetery sites range widely, from roughly
900 BC to AD 100, with limited internal differentiation recognizable at present
(Fig. 5). The radiometric determinations all carry significant margins of error due in
part to the flatness of the calibration curve for the first millennium BC. Radiocarbon
estimates typically have a 300–400-year range, rendering insufficient resolution to
distinguish the temporal distribution of burials both within and between sites.
Instead local archaeologists have relied on a fairly complex seriation scheme based
on typological changes in various categories of bronze artifacts (swords, halberds,
spears, and drums). With the exception of cemeteries in the Qujing alluvial basin
(Yao 2008), Bronze Age cemetery sites from the region lack stratigraphic contexts
that would support independent verification of the relative dating methods.
Because of these problems, the stratified Qujing area sites are used here to
provide a general framework for eastern Yunnan. Radiocarbon dates from basal
level graves date the beginnings of the Bronze Age communities in eastern Yunnan
to between 900 and 700 BC. A radiocarbon date from an upper stratum at the
Batatai site and Han coin dates from upper-level burials at Pingpo and Hengdalu

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place a terminal date in the first centuries AD (YPICRA 2002). Published dates from
the Lake Dian region currently postdate the Qujing area, with most falling in two
phases from 600 to 400 BC and from 350 BC to AD 1 (Fig. 5).
Outside the eastern Yunnan and Guizhou region, Bronze Age cemeteries in the
middle Jinsha corridor near Chuxiong Prefecture are roughly contemporaneous with
Lake Dian area sites, contrary to earlier chronological estimations that placed them
earlier. The earlier placement was based on the technological and stylistic evaluation
of bronze drums, where the Wanjiaba (pre-Heger) drums were considered to be more
primitive than the Shizhaishan (Heger I) drums (Wang 1985; Zhang 2004). However,
radiocarbon determinations from two graves at the Wanjiaba site are consistent with
the earliest date from the Yangfutou site in the Lake Dian basin (Fig. 5). Cemeteries
such as Aofengshan in the northwestern corner of Yunnan also show a long use-span
extending over several centuries.
The current chronological scheme suggests the division of Bronze Age sites into
three ranges: 900–700 BC (early), 600–400 BC (middle), and 350 BC–AD 1
(transitional Iron Age).

Regional traditions

Regional Bronze Age traditions in southwestern China are represented by distinct

archaeological complexes, each manifesting unique burial practices, bronze
weaponry, bronze ornaments, and ceramic assemblage. These three groups are
spatially discrete and are referenced here by their geographic locations: the
lacustrine basins and river valleys of eastern Yunnan and western Guizhou, the
upper Jinsha River corridor, and the middle and lower Jinsha River corridor in
central Yunnan (Table 3).

Eastern Yunnan and western Guizhou

The geographic scope of this complex extends from the Lake Dian and Fuxian
basins to the northeastern corridor of Yunnan (Zhaotong and Ludian counties) and
western Guizhou (Zhongshui, Wazang, and Bijie counties) (Fig. 1). Graves are
usually pit tombs with or without wooden coffins. Cemeteries tend to be located on
hillslopes or hilltops with limited superpositioning. The only exceptions are the
accretional burial mounds in the Qujing alluvial basin where graves were dug into
constructed earthen layers. These layers were added over successive episodes of
cemetery construction, leading to the creation of anthropogenic mounds (YPICRA
2002). Diagnostic weaponry types found across this region include a hollow round
hilt dagger, halberds, and socketed short spears (Fig. 6 and Table 3). According to
local archaeologists, hollow round hilt daggers were replaced by short hilt guard
daggers in later tombs.
Another defining feature in the eastern area of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau is the
use of large bronze drums, referred to in the archaeological literature as Heger I or
Shizhaishan type (Fig. 7). The drums are characterized by a large drum face with a
centrally raised sunburst pattern, an upward flaring torso, a tapered base, and decor
throughout the vessel body of feathered warriors and birds (Zhang 1993, p. 19).

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Table 3 Bronze/Iron Age archaeological cultures and their distributions

Drainage system Associated sites Burial type Bronze drum Bronze weaponry

Upper Jinsha Aofengshan Pit Spiral hilt sword and

leaf-shaped spear
Daxingzhen
Nagu Cist tombs
Middle Jinsha Wanjiaba Pit Pre-Heger Spiral hilt sword
Dabona Pit
Lower Jinsha Yingpanshan Pit Spiral hilt sword and
hollow hilt dagger
Lacustrine basins Shizhaishan Pit Heger I Frog-motif halberd
Tianzimiao Pit Hollow hilt daggers
Yangfutou Pit Unclear
Pearl River Lijiashan Pit
Batatai Pit Pre-Heger
Red River Co Loa Fortified ‘‘citadel’’ Heger I Frog motif halberd
Lang Vac Cemetery Pre-Heger Pediform and flared axes
Vinh Tuy
Mau Dong
Dong Anh
Van Qui

Interestingly, the spatial reach of these drums appears to concentrate in the Lake
Dian and Fuxian basins (Fig. 1) and in the Hanoi basin in northern Vietnam.
Outside these two zones, their distribution is very limited, with single finds in
Zhaotong, Guangnan County near the Guangxi border, and Malipo County along the
Red River near northern Vietnam (Fig. 1) (Zhang 1993, p. 19).
The ceramic assemblage varies widely in the region, leading archaeologists to
define local subcultures. Dian style wares, of flared neck jars and low-fired conical
bowls (Fig. 6), are associated with graves in the lacustrine and alluvial basins along
the southern extent of this region. The small conical bowls are found with high
frequency in occupation contexts in the Lake Dian region and in cemetery sites in
the Qujing region. In addition, high-fired black-painted pottery has been discovered
at Yangfutou and Batatai (Yao 2008; YPICRA et al. 2005).
Farther north of the lacustrine zone is a strikingly different ceramic assemblage.
The site of Yingpancun in Zhaotong consists of two adjacent cemeteries character-
ized by contrasting grave orientations and ceramic vessels. Ceramics excavated
from the southern cemetery correspond with the Bronze Age sites of western Guizhou
(i.e., Liyuan in Weining and Kele in Wazang) and are described as thick-walled
pedestaled cups and basins and jars having distinctive pottery markings incised on the
exterior surface (Fig. 6) (YET 1995, p. 5). Vessels recovered from the northern extent
of the excavation area consist primarily of spouted jars, which Sun Hua (2007, p. 18)
suggests are associated with the Dulishu site in Weining, Guizhou. These apparently
contemporaneous cemetery sites in the same area contain similar bronze implements

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Fig. 6 Archaeological complexes of the Bronze Age in southwestern China. Left: ‘‘Dian’’ assemblage of
bronze hollow hilt sword, frog-motif halberd, flared jars, and bowls (redrawn from Kunming City Cultural
Management Office 1985, figs. 9, 33). Center: ‘‘Cist’’ tomb assemblage consists of bronze spiral hilt
swords and double loop jars (redrawn from Kan and Xiong 1998, Fig. 20). Right: Lower Jinsha
assemblage consists of ceramic vessels with incised symbols (redrawn from YET 1995, Fig. 6)

Fig. 7 The typological differences characterizing Wanjiaba- and Shizhaishan-style drums. The body of
the Shizhaishan drum (top left) is typically decorated with warriors wearing feathered headdress rowing a
boat (top right) (redrawn from Higham 2002, p. 179). The body of the Wanjiaba drum (bottom left) is
decorated with spiny figures (redrawn from Li and Huang 2007, Fig. 4); the drum face has a raised
sunburst pattern (bottom right)

but different mortuary ceramic assemblages; the reasons underlying these differences
remain to be determined.

Cist tomb culture: Southern bank of the Jinsha River course

Along the southern bank of the upper and middle Jinsha River course, cist and
dolmen burials are widely distributed in steep valley slopes of Deqin, Zhongdian,

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Lijiang, Yuanmou, and Yangyun. The tombs vary widely, from rectangular
aboveground collective dolmen tombs to pit chambers lined with stone slabs (Guo
2002; Tong 1990a; Zhang 2004). Tomb assemblages are characterized by leaf-
shaped bronze spears and spiral hilt daggers with three-prong guard (Fig. 6), the
latter also found in Wanjiaba and Dabona in central Yunnan. In the northwestern
extent of this regional complex near Deqin, burial assemblages never contain bronze
agricultural tools, while cist graves in the middle Jinsha region do (Guo 2002,
p. 72). The ceramic assemblage found across this region is characterized by
amphora-shaped jars with large lobe handles (Fig. 6) (Zhang 2004, pp. 318–319).
Beyond the Jinsha corridor, a similar archaeological complex is found in the
northwestern corner of Yunnan, with pit tombs at Aofengshan in Deqin and
Daxingzhen in Ninglang (Guo 2002, p. 71; Kan and Xiong 1998). Tombs in
Aofengshan include distinctive bronze headband ornaments that archaeologists have
long equated with long plaited hair styles of nomadic groups (Higham 1996, p. 181).
These northwestern Yunnan sites are thought to be linked with groups located in the
Anning and Min River regions of Sichuan (Chiou-Peng 1999; Higham 1996).

Central and western Yunnan

The bronze assemblage in central Yunnan (Chuxiong and Xiangyun) is defined by a

composite of bronze implements from the Dian and cist grave complexes. Graves
are primarily pit tombs, with more elaborate graves having a timber plank coffin or,
in the case of the single excavated grave from Dabona, a bronze sarcophagus
weighing 257.1 kg (Higham 1996, p. 179). Local archaeologists distinguish early
graves with spiral hilt daggers from later graves containing Dian-type weaponry
implements. Given that spiral hilt daggers have a long use-span (YPMCRWT and
SUHAD 1978, p. 16), this artifact-based periodization is problematic and should be
treated cautiously. Spiral hilt swords also have been reported as far south as the
middle reaches of Nu River near Changning Prefecture (Geng and Zhang 1991).
Another defining feature in this region is the use of bronze drums typically
classified as pre-Heger style or Wanjiaba type. Unlike the Shizhaishan drums,
Wanjiaba drums have limited adornment on the vessel body beyond the sunburst
pattern on the drum face and isolated spiny figures on the shoulder (Fig. 7) (Zhang
1993, p. 18). Wanjiaba drums also are characterized by a smaller drum face, bulbous
torso, short waist, folded base, and two loop handles attached to the waist. The
spatial reach of Wanjiaba drums appears to be concentrated in the Chuxiong and
middle Jinsha River area, but some have been found in Wenshan and Guangnan
counties bordering Guangxi Province (Li and Huang 2007).
The identification of these three general Bronze Age complexes based on grave
inventory generates some inconsistencies where tomb construction does not correlate
neatly with ceramic assemblages and bronze weaponry (Table 3). For instance, shaft
tombs sometimes contain weaponry typically identified with cist grave assemblages.
The spatial overlap in the distribution of these complexes cannot simply be reconciled
by diachronic variation, which underscores inadequacies in the current conceptual
framework. In effect, while much more work needs to be done, this reexamination of
spatiotemporal dimensions suggests the presence of different regional traditions,

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networks of interaction, and the importance of bronze production in configuring

interpolity development.

Evaluating the prestige goods control and peer-polity models

To effectively evaluate the two proposed models, regional Bronze Age groups must
show clear contrasts in scale, in both social hierarchy and territorial extent. Greater
internal specialization of economic and social roles may indicate the central position
of one polity vis-à-vis its neighbors. Numerous quantitative analyses have been
conducted on cemeteries in the Lake Dian and Chuxiong regions. In the Chuxiong
region, a multivariate analysis of the Wanjiaba site revealed two anomalously
wealthy graves with the largest wooden coffins and opulent grave offerings (drums
and plows), a subset of four graves with less elaborate material treatments, and the
remaining burials with few offerings (Higham 1996, p. 177). The vertical scaling of
grave construction and offerings underwriting Wanjiaba’s mortuary program alludes
to the complex social structures organizing this community.
In contrast, in the northwestern corner of Yunnan, burials at Aofengshan exhibit
limited social differentiation, with a similar range of material offerings distributed
equally in the graves. Even the largest graves in the center of the site do not have
unique material offerings indicative of social distinction (Kan and Xiong 1998,
pp. 330–336).
Compared to the Chuxiong region, mortuary patterning in the Lake Dian region
indicates an unprecedented level of social complexity. Lee’s (2002) and Yao’s
(2005) studies corroborated the existence of a sumptuary system used to symbolize
and formally differentiate ranked social positions. The degree of internal social
elaboration varies by sites, revealing a pattern of community inequalities possibly
reflective of an organized regional settlement system (Yao 2005). Located 90 km
northeast of the Lake Dian region, the Batatai cemetery in Qujing also reveals
parallel developments perhaps as early as the eighth century BC (Yao 2008).
While the mortuary data clearly set the Lake Dian region apart from its
neighbors, the timing of this dramatic social transformation remains unclear.
Specifically, archaeologists have suggested that the most opulent cemeteries, such
as Shizhaishan, were late, occurring no earlier than the fifth to fourth centuries BC
(Pirazzoli-t’Serstevens 1996–1997; YPICRA et al. 2007). Recent excavations at
Yangfutou, however, suggest that there may have been an earlier center (or centers)
in the basin by the seventh century BC (YPICRA et al. 2005).
Preliminary investigations of settlement sites in the Lake Dian basin suggest the
association of large occupation sites adjacent to each elite cemetery, a pattern that
may reflect the presence of multiple political units within what has been previously
treated as a unified region (YPICRA et al. 2005, p. 862). Archaeologists are now
arguing for the internal division of the Dian basin into multiple territorial units. The
implications from these findings in the presumed heartland of Dian culture suggest
that a prestige goods control model may not be applicable. The formation of
complexity was a long process that initially developed concurrently across Qujing,
Chuxiong, Lake Dian, and Lake Fuxian region, possibly before the advent of the
Shizhaishan phenomenon.

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The simultaneous timing of these developments across the region suggests that
peer-polity dynamics is a compelling alternative framework with which to evaluate
regional social transformations (Renfrew and Cherry 1987). That these societies
interacted with each other is attested to by not only textual documentation but also
the circulation of distinct bronze artifacts and semiprecious agate and carnelian
beads, presumably imported from Southeast Asia and India. Modeling the scope and
nature of this interaction relies on determining the kind of goods (utilitarian and
prestige) in circulation and the direction(s) of flow. Specifically, understanding the
axis and correlates of exchange helps approximate the nature of interpolity
interaction: symmetrical versus asymmetrical trade or unilateral versus multilateral
politics. Identification of these patterns will allow a concomitant evaluation of the
prestige goods control model.
Bronze weaponry presents a useful class of objects for evaluating exchange
relations because their particular function indexes warfare and their ubiquity
indexes widespread consumption. If weaponry production and distribution proves to
be localized, then regional polities were likely both limited in territorial extent and
characterized by closed networks of internal production and circulation. Current
studies indicate two distinct alloy techniques in the Lake Dian and middle Jinsha
River valley that apply to both bronze drums and objects such as weaponry and
ornaments. Plows, spears, axes, swords, and knives from the Dian necropolis at
Shizhaishan were all made from a copper and tin alloy characterized by
approximately 80–85% copper and 15% tin (Li et al. 2004, pp. 77–80). Implements
such as ploughs, axes, and spears from Wanjiaba were cast from copper even though
many tin artifacts were recovered. Dian-area ornaments (bracelet and buckles) have
3.71% tin, whereas western counterparts have a higher tin content ranging from 8.16
to 15.58% (Zhang 2004, p. 271).
Swords are among the most frequently occurring classes of weaponry in Bronze/
Iron Age graves and are spatially discrete in their circulation. As mentioned above,
Dian-region daggers and spiral hilt swords are unique to eastern Yunnan and
western Guizhou (Tong 1990b). Graves in western Yunnan contain spiral hilt
swords while Dian daggers are found only in eastern Yunnan. The daggers and
swords also have been found outside of their respective zones, often in low
frequency in elite graves (Higham 1996, p. 177; YPICRA et al. 2005, p. 32;
YPICRA et al. 2007, p. 169). This segregation of weaponry types, while certainly
reflective of regional traditions, also hints at the differentiation of exchange
networks. Although the two sword types did circulate beyond their immediate
zones, their limited distribution and exclusive consumption by elites suggest a
pattern of ‘‘closed’’ exchange.
Dian frog-motif halberds (Fig. 8), another abundant weaponry type in the
mortuary assemblage, are rarely found in either central or western Yunnan (Tong
1990c). Instead, this kind of halberd has a wide distribution spanning eastern
Yunnan, western Guizhou, and northern Vietnam (YPICRA 2002; YPICRA et al.
2005, 2007; Zhang 1997).
The spatial segregation of swords and halberds suggests that weapons did not
circulate openly but were tightly controlled. A recent detailed examination of 46
halberds from the Batatai site in Qujing (Yao 2008) shows that the production and

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Fig. 8 A bronze halberd from

the Batatai site bearing the frog
motif. The different symbols are
located on the upper right and
left corners of the hilt.
Photograph by author

circulation of frog-motif halberds may be linked to an orchestrated network. The

halberds are marked by a system of symbols on the hilt intended to distinguish
between different casting molds, metallurgists, or workshops. Cast into the upper-
right- and left-hand corners of the halberd hilt are solid and empty circles and circles
with interior hatch marks, with the most commonly occurring set consisting of two
empty circles (Fig. 8) (Yao 2008). This intriguing system of paired markings
distinguishes what are otherwise halberds with the same frog motifs and dimensions.
The effort and investment directed toward distinguishing these implements provide
preliminary insight into the scope of specialization, which may have evolved in the
coordination of region-wide bronze production. This hypothesis needs to be tested
with a more comprehensive assessment of marking conventions applied to halberds
from adjacent regions before any postulations about production centers can be made.
If the circulation of weaponry alludes to two separate networks, the distribution
of bronze paraphernalia such as drums, musical chimes, and cowrie-shell containers
further underscores the competitive nature of peer relations as well as the increasing
significance of alliances. Analyses of two Wanjiaba drums reveals they were cast
almost entirely of copper, with only 3.5% lead (Higham 1996, p. 177). Visible
seams from where the molds did not join and casting flaws show that the Wanjiaba
producers had not sufficiently gained control over the casting of large vessels.
Compared to the Wanjiaba drums, Heger I drums from eastern Yunnan exhibit a
greater mastery over casting and the use of tin and lead alloys (Li et al. 2004, p. 76).
It must be emphasized that this technological characterization of Wanjiaba and
Shizhaishan style drums is problematic given the discovery of Wanjiaba style drums
from other regions that are clearly alloyed with tin (Li and Huang 2007, p. 231).
Nonetheless, the distribution of the two drum types shows distinct spatial patterns:

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Wanjiaba drums have been found in the western half of Yunnan, in particular along
the western stretch of the Southwest Silk Road (Fig. 1), while Heger I drums are
concentrated in the lacustrine basins of eastern Yunnan, the Hanoi basin, and
northern Vietnam (Huyen 2006). If the stylistic similarities characterizing the Dong
Son drums are taken to represent a shared symbolic system, then the circulation of
the Heger I drum tradition could be coextensive with the Red River region,
suggesting the dynamic interplay of two societies occupying two primary ends of
the north-south axis of the Southwest Silk Road (Fig. 1). Recent reports from
Myanmar indicate that contemporaneous chiefly societies near Mandalay also
participated in this network, as evidenced by the discovery of Heger I drums and
bronze musical items similar to those recovered from the Lijiashan (Moore 2007,
pp. 110–112).
The spatial pattern exhibited by the two drum types suggests at least two pan-
regional networks. Because the two drum types rarely co-occur at the same site, it is
possible that the drums symbolically represent formalized alliances emerging
between polities: networks aligned either along the western stretch or along the
north-south axis of the Southwest Silk Road. However, the distribution of pre-Heger
drums in the Hanoi basin and Heger I drums near Mandalay suggests that alliances
possibly extended beyond these immediate networks. One possible explanation for
these anomalous occurrences may stem from competition for affiliates under
increasingly expanding networks. The discovery of actual production center(s)
should help specify the direction of circulation, which can then help test the
centripetal versus centrifugal patterns of interpolity relations.
The distribution of musical chimes further illustrates the competitive nature of
interaction as well as relative autonomy maintained by individual polities (Fig. 9).
Across the elite cemeteries in the Dian basin, the apical burials identified at
Shizhaishan (grave M6) and at Lijiashan (grave M51) both contained a set of six
bronze chimes, scaled in increasing size from approximately 30 to 50 cm in height
(Yao 2005). At Wanjiaba and Dabona, these chime sets also were found with the
apical individuals, suggesting that elites region-wide employed identical iconic
symbols of leadership. These chime sets also have been discovered in central and
western Yunnan at Jiancun in Xiangyun and at Futulong in Mouding (Liu 2007;
Zhang 2004, p. 303). While these societies incorporated the same iconic symbol,
they selected different representational motifs to be depicted on the chimes. These
motifs vary from a double crane design (Jiancun, Futulong, and Ma’anshan), double
serpent or dragon design (Dabona and Shizhaishan), and S-motifs (Lijiashan) to
altogether novel shapes such as the horned chimes recovered from Wanjiaba
(Fig. 9). Without an understanding of production sites, the use of different motifs is
difficult to interpret. However, their use among societies in the lacustrine basins and
across central and western Yunnan suggests that regional interaction undoubtedly
contributed to the escalation of hierarchical differentiation such that reigning peer
elites within each area opted for the same iconic display but used distinct motifs to
actively self-differentiate. The spatial correlation of weaponry and ritual vessels
indicates that the circulation of bronze objects was distinctively structured and
divided between two separate networks situated along the primary axis of the
Southwest Silk Road.

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Fig. 9 Bronze chimes recovered from cemeteries. Top (left to right): Two chimes from grave M6 at
Shizhaishan showing double-dragon motif (redrawn from Jiang 2002, p. 140); chime from a set of six
found in grave M51 at Lijiashan showing spiral motif (redrawn from YPICRA et al. 2001, Fig. 12); chime
from E’Shan in western Yunnan (redrawn from Liu 2007, Fig. 5). Bottom: Set of six-horned chimes
recovered from grave M1 at Wanjiaba (redrawn from Cultural Relics Bureau 1999, Fig. 3)

The apparent absence of bronze chimes from northern Vietnam suggests that elite
culture in the Dong Son and Lang Vac societies was not entirely coextensive with
highland Yunnan. Beyond the concurrent use of Heger I drums, elites in northern
Vietnam appear to have developed other forms of ritual vessels unique to the Red
River estuary or Bac Bo region. In particular, archaeologists have recovered bronze
thap, a large bronze container used for caching bronze implements, in multiple
Bronze Age localities in northern Vietnam, suggesting that elites in that region had
commissioned distinctive ritual vessels to express status and wealth (Higham 1996,
p. 110). The stray occurrences of these containers in highland Yunnan and in
southern China indicate that while these objects may have circulated as goods
exchanged or gifted along the trade routes, their consumption as elite symbols was
specific to the Red River estuary region. The maintenance of discrete elite
representations lends support to the political and territorial autonomy of these
polities.

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Sources of interpolity competition

While peer-polity interaction appears to be competitive in nature, what remains

unclear are the sources that generated these interregional divisions which became
increasingly hostile. Warfare appears to have become formalized by the fourth
century BC. In the Lake Dian region, the elaboration of social roles according to
distinctive warrior identities was evident in the mortuary display across all elite
cemeteries (Yao 2005). Martial themes figure prominently in the iconographic
depictions associated with Dong Son bronzes, which, when viewed in tandem with
the construction of the Co Loa fortification by the third century BC, indicates a
period of increased militarism (Higham 1996; Miksic 2000).
Potential reasons for increasing factionalism include competition over access to
trade routes, ore deposits, agricultural land, and pasture. It is possible that polities in
the Lake Dian and Hanoi basins engaged in a period of localized internecine warfare
over prime agricultural lands that eventually resulted in the emergence of
consolidated territorial entities by the fourth to third century BC, i.e., the Dian
and the Au Lac kingdoms, respectively. Once these polities emerged as formidable
powers, they sought to control additional sources at the regional level, namely, trade
goods, ores, and the transport routes themselves. The wide circulation of iron,
semiprecious stones, glass beads, and gold in the fourth to third century BC also
coincides with depictions of foreign envoys and conquest of other tribes on Dian
cowrie shell containers. The wealth and diversity of trade items found in northern
Vietnam also highlight the significance of the Bac Bo region in maritime exchange.
Recent archaeological investigations have uncovered a possible bronze produc-
tion site located 10 km from the Han-period copper mine at Jiudingshan, which
points to dimensions of control over bronze production and circulation (Zhang
2000). Occupying the primary pass between Lake Dian and the Erhai region,
Hejiashan consists of a stone storage structure divided into two rooms. Inside the
structure, local archaeologists discovered a cache of ‘‘miniature’’ bronze imple-
ments consisting of plows and circular axes (yue-style) that are similar to the nearby
grave assemblages (Zhang 2000). Particularly intriguing finds are bivalve molds
with distinct connections to Dian-area bronzes rather than the local Bronze Age
assemblages (Zhang 2000, p. 49). Hejiashan’s proximity to the Jiudingshan copper
mine and the primary pass linking Lake Er and Lake Dian on the Southwest Silk
Road underscores the importance of control over ore sources and communication
routes. The casting of Dian utilitarian weapons in the presumed territories of central
Yunnanese polities raises many questions about interpolity interactions. Did the
Dian have reciprocal or tributary relations with local elites for access to ores and
trade routes or had they consolidated control over this strategic location?

Discussion and conclusions

The dimensions of interregional interaction are critical to understanding social

developments from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age. In the Neolithic, the outlines of
interregional communication networks began to take shape by the mid-second

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millennium BC, as evidenced by the circulation of cowrie shells and bird effigy
pitchers. These routes linked southwestern China with southern China via the
Nanpan (Pearl) River course and with central China via Sichuan through the lower
Jinsha corridor. Neolithic communities consisted of geographically localized groups
with a variety of subsistence practices.
In the middle Jinsha region, Neolithic villages were clustered along the valleys of
major tributaries. These communities cultivated rice on steep valley slopes but
remained heavily dependent on hunting. These settlements were occupied over a
long period of time and invested in the communal storage of rice. Patterns of social
discord and differentiation emerged in the late Neolithic as individuals show signs
of violent injury and residences began to be distinguished by size differences. In
contrast, Neolithic communities in the middle reaches of the Lancang and Nu River
valleys occupied caves and terraces of the steep river valleys, showing seasonal
patterns of occupation. In the fertile lacustrine basins, villages contained substantial
pile dwelling structures. These communities cultivated rice but appeared to be
heavily dependent on local aquatic resources like fish and freshwater snails of lake
marshes.
It is within the context of these late Neolithic villages and semimobile groups that
we find the expansion of exchange networks and the emergence of bronze
metallurgy by 1000 BC. This recent finding reiterates the importance of separating
bronze metallurgy from social complexity while drawing attention to the parallels
shared with Southeast Asia. As Vietnamese archaeologists have demonstrated, in
northern Vietnam bronze metallurgy emerged following the Neolithic period Phung
Nguyen culture and gradually developed from incipient metalworking in the Dong
Dau phase to the addition and control over tin alloys in the Go Mun phase.
Similarly, bronze production in southwestern China appears to have begun on a
small scale oriented toward the manufacture of utilitarian items with equivalent
functional counterparts from the Neolithic period. Early bronze implements were
cast almost entirely from copper, and associated stone molds for casting axes were
stylistically modeled after Neolithic shapes. Based on the recovery of bivalve ax
molds, bronze metallurgy appears to have been adopted along the Jinsha River
course, as well as the lower Nu and Red River region in subtropical environments.
The present evidence suggests a complex pattern of received transmission from
Southeast Asia and steppe groups in Sichuan. The pattern is better conceived
according to serial patterns of dissemination as opposed to centrifugal or
unidirectional diffusion.
Within two to three centuries following the emergence of bronze metallurgy,
complex political formations developed in central and eastern Yunnan. Recent
radiocarbon determinations from Qujing suggest the establishment of these Bronze
Age polities between 900 and 700 BC. By the seventh century BC, societies in central
and eastern Yunnan had developed elaborate social hierarchies. The territorial reach
of these political formations was, however, local. Perhaps population movements
from afar did reach and impact local communities, but the vestiges of this migration
currently lack evidence. Instead, the archaeological record recalls existing parallels
found in the Neolithic periods. The spatial division of regional entities in central and
eastern Yunnan recalls Neolithic period variability in ceramic traditions (incised/

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impressed ware versus corded ware) that distinguish central and western Yunnan
from the lacustrine basins.
Contrary to a Dian-centric or gravity model of political formation, the emergence
of complexity in southwestern China developed from a network of interacting peer
polities in which northern Vietnam played an important role. The correspondence
between bronze weapons and ritual vessels along the two axes of the Southwest Silk
Road underscores the articulation of these networks and the participatory dynamics in
the making of this cross-cultural hub. As regional Bronze Age societies increasingly
engaged in exchange networks, the demarcation of social boundaries intensified
while elite culture developed standardized symbols of legitimacy and authority
(Baines and Yoffee 2000). As these groups became inextricably linked, they
increasingly sought to secure a stake in the emerging system. In this light, the genesis
of sociopolitical complexity in the southwestern periphery can only be viewed as
multicentric in scope: the Shizhaishan and Co Loa phenomena represent but the
apogee of social processes that had long been set in motion.
Recent investigations in Yunnan and Guizhou have provided new archaeological
data that are changing our understandings of the Bronze Age in southwestern China.
The current archaeological record directly challenges textually based interpretations
of regional social development and foregrounds the shortcomings of the regionalist
paradigm that has characterized Chinese archaeology. In venturing into new and
uncharted grounds, archaeology of frontier regions is in a unique position to
examine recent discoveries using alternative conceptual frameworks. The compar-
ative scope afforded by adopting this approach also enables a more discursive and
meaningful engagement with the historiographic tradition. Viewing the distribution
of ‘‘static’’ assemblages of southwestern China in comparison with wider trends in
Southeast Asia reveals broader developments that emerged from the formalization
of exchange networks initiated in the second millennium BC; these networks until
now had been alluded to only in ancient Chinese texts.
Future directions need to identify the many valences of interaction leading to
regional transformation in the first millennium BC. Possible catalysts of regional
interaction range from the irregular distribution of ore sources to demands for
foreign goods, slaves, and horses. Determining the location and centers of these
resources can reveal the primary axis and coordination of this trade network. The
subsequent mapping of these resources in relation to the geography of communi-
cation routes will reveal the dynamics transfiguring relations at the micro and macro
scales. More specifically, the relationship between a constellation of interacting
peers sharing in the same bronze weaponry and ritual items versus the relationship
between regional factions divided along the two main axes of the trade route
underscores the dynamics of corporate integration and territorial fragmentation.
These dimensions carry important implications for understanding the ‘‘geopolitics’’
underwriting the emergence of these communication routes, which will inform on
the precise parameters leading to the ascendancy of these polities.

Acknowledgments I thank Gary Feinman, Linda Nicholas, Carla Sinopoli, and five anonymous
reviewers for providing insightful comments on the article. In addition, I thank Chiou Tzehuey for sharing
her bibliographic resources, making available Chinese publications that cannot be accessed in the West,

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and Vivian Lee for assistance with the illustrations. The shortcomings of the article, however, remain my
own.

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