L. Village. Reconstruction. R. Square house
6th millennium BCE Chinese Neolithic Architecture

NEOLITHIC Anonymous (9000 BCE - c. 2000 BCE)
NEOLITHIC Anonymous (9000 BCE - c. 2000 BCE) Primary
c. 5000 BCE
6th millennium BCE
Neolithic
Xi'an. Shaanxi. China.
Xi'an. Banpo Museum.
prehis37.chi01c01
The development of agriculture made possible the development of permanent villages like this reconstruction in Banpo, China. The production of grains not only allowed the stockpiling of food for use in times of scarcity and released certain members of the society from the obligation to devote their time to the gathering of food for their own subsistence, but it ended the nomadic life of the Paleolithic hunters. The more settled communities gave rise to more fully developed social institutions, many of which prepared for the emergence of the great civilizations that were to follow. The foundations of houses of various shapes: round, square and rectangular, have been unearthed at Banpo, and this reconstruction gives us some idea of what one would have looked like. Food pits have been identified as a result of excavations, as well as the remains of defensive walls. One of the most important changes that came about as a result of the more settled way of life was the greater variety of activities made possible as a result of the ability to stockpile food . Life became much more comfortable as textiles were woven from both wool and flax, and as pottery was created from clay that had been burned in the fire.