Stone carvings and pottery silkworm pupae unearthed from the ancient ruins of Hejin

On July 28th, China Cultural Relics News released new archaeological discoveries at the Yangshao Culture Site of Guduo in Hejin, Shanxi Province.

Six pottery or stone-carved silkworm pupae were unearthed at the site, a discovery that lifted the veil of mystery surrounding the origin and spread of early silk technology.

At present, these silkworm carvings are on display at the "Tracing Roots - The Latest Archaeological Achievements of Yuncheng" exhibition at the Yuncheng Museum.

▲ Exhibition Hall of Yuncheng Museum

The Guduo Ruins are located on a terrace to the south of Guduo Village, Hejin City, Shanxi Province. From December 2022 to April 2025, the Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology, in collaboration with the Yuncheng Municipal Cultural Relics Protection Center, the Yuncheng Municipal Institute of Archaeology, the Yuncheng Municipal Archaeological Team and other units, conducted archaeological excavations at this site.

The site has a total exposed area of 2,180 square meters. Five Yangshao Culture house sites, 139 ash pits, four kilns and four fire pits have been discovered, and a number of important physical materials have been unearthed.

▲ Geographical location map of the Guduo Ruins

▲ Left: Aerial view of the excavation area of the Guduo Site from 2024 to 2025

Right: Middle phase house address F3 of Yangshao Culture

Among them, the house site is semi-subterranean, which is basically consistent with the construction method of the large-scale house sites of the Yangshao Culture discovered in the southern Shanxi and western Henan regions at present. The ash pits generally show a concentrated distribution feature. Their planes are mainly elliptical and circular, and their structures are mostly straight-walled flat-bottom and arc-walled round-bottom. Most of the kilns only have their bottom structures remaining. There are repeated overlapping and breaking relationships among different types of relics, reflecting the evolution trajectory of the settlement pattern layout in the excavation areas of different periods.

▲ Mid-Period pottery kilns of Yangshao Culture (Y3)

The unearthed artifacts at this site are mainly pottery and stone tools. Among the pottery types, bowls, basins, jars, bottles, cauldrons and vats are the most common. The painted pottery comes in black, red and white colors, with black being the most common. Common patterns include stripe patterns, variant fish patterns, "flower" patterns, grid patterns and dot patterns.

▲ Painted pottery basin

Most notably, six pottery or stone-carved silkworm pupae were unearthed at the site. The stone-carved silkworm pupae are highly lifelike in shape, and their overall design is highly similar to that of modern mulberry silkworm pupae. Some of them are oval in shape, with a plump and round middle. Some feature simple patterns, with spiral-shaped designs outlining the head, abdomen and tail of the silkworm pupae, demonstrating the superb carving skills of the ancients.

▲ Small stone balls

In addition, pottery spinning wheels and bone needles were unearthed at the site. A pottery spinning wheel with holes in the middle can be used for spinning yarn. Bone needles, polished throughout, with a thicker top and a thinner bottom, sharpened at both ends and perforated at the top, can be used for weaving cloth. From the meticulous carving of silkworm pupae to the matching use of textile tools, it vividly demonstrates the wisdom of the prehistoric people and the early signs of the textile civilization.

Turquoise pendant (left) and flint pendant (right)

▲ Sand-holding jar

According to the staff of the archaeological project, based on the excavation results, the age of the Guduo site extends from the early Dongzhuang type of Yangshao to the middle Miaodigou Culture (Xiyin Culture) period of Yangshao. The excavation of the site has filled the gap in the discovery of early Yangshao archaeological culture in the lower reaches of the Fen River, providing a research perspective on the evolution process from the early Dongzhuang type of Yangshao to the middle Miaodigou Culture (Xiyin Culture) in the southern part of Shanxi Province. The repeated overlapping and breaking of different types of relics within the site also provides a typical case for studying the evolution of the settlement functional layout of the early and middle periods of the Yangshao Culture in the middle reaches of the Yellow River.

At present, the silkworm pupae of the Yangshao Culture discovered through archaeological excavations have shown a "multi-point blooming" situation in the southern part of Shanxi Province. They have been found at the Shicun site in Xia County, the Qiujiazhuang site in Wenxi County, and the Guduo Site in Hejin County. This holds significant implications for the study of issues such as Leizu's "sericulture and silk reeling" recorded in ancient history, the origin of silk weaving, and the important position and role of southern Shanxi in the process of Chinese civilization.

▲ Spiral-patterned small jar