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Prehistoric water control works in the Loess Plateau: an ancient ditch system at Shuanghuaishu, China

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 October 2025

Peng Lu ,
Xin Du ,
Panpan Chen ,
Qingbin Liu ,
Yijie Zhuang ,
Yan Tian ,
Yayi Hu ,
Jiqin Zhang ,
Zhen Wang  and
Duowen Mo
Peng Lu*
Affiliation:
Institute of Geographical Sciences, Henan Academy of Sciences, Zhengzhou, P.R. China
Xin Du
Affiliation:
Zhengzhou Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Zhengzhou, P.R. China
Panpan Chen
Affiliation:
Institute of Geographical Sciences, Henan Academy of Sciences, Zhengzhou, P.R. China
Qingbin Liu
Affiliation:
Zhengzhou Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Zhengzhou, P.R. China
Yijie Zhuang
Affiliation:
Institute of Archaeology, University College London, UK
Yan Tian
Affiliation:
Institute of Geographical Sciences, Henan Academy of Sciences, Zhengzhou, P.R. China
Yayi Hu
Affiliation:
Zhengzhou Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Zhengzhou, P.R. China
Jiqin Zhang
Affiliation:
Zhengzhou Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Zhengzhou, P.R. China
Zhen Wang
Affiliation:
Institute of Geographical Sciences, Henan Academy of Sciences, Zhengzhou, P.R. China
Duowen Mo
Affiliation:
College of Urban and Environmental Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, P.R. China
*
Author for correspondence: Peng Lu bulate_0@163.com
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Abstract

The emergence, on the Loess Plateau of Central China, of settlements enclosed by circular ditches has engendered lively debate about the function of these (often extensive) ditch systems. Here, the authors report on a suite of new dates and sedimentological analyses from the late Yangshao (5300–4800 BP) triple-ditch system at the Shuanghuaishu site, Henan Province. Exploitation of natural topographic variations, and evidence for ditch maintenance and varied water flows, suggests a key function in hydrological management, while temporal overlap in the use of these three ditches reveals the large scale of this endeavour to adapt to the pressures of the natural environment.

Keywords

Central AsiaNeolithicradiocarbon datingOSLdepositional environmentwater management

Information

Type
Research Article
Information
Antiquity , Volume 99 , Issue 408 , December 2025 , pp. 1515 - 1534
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of Antiquity Publications Ltd

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