Since then, more than 10,000 relics, some of which date back 3,000-5,000 years, have been unearthed. The excavations have yielded what are considered some of the most significant archaeological discoveries in China in the last century.

Archaeologists believe the Sanxingdui Ruins, located on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, were home to a few settlements with distinctive cultural features.

Jade ware with unique characteristics and made using relatively advanced technology was discovered on the site, suggesting that one of the earliest settlements to live in the area about 3,700-5,000 years ago interacted with the groups living on the lower reaches of the Yangtze.

The people who made splendid bronze ware in Sanxingdui some 3,000 years ago created a dominant power in the then Shu Kingdom. They didn't live in isolation, either, but had extensive relationship with central and eastern part of the country.

The Sanxingdui Ruins serve as convincing proof that the origins of Chinese civilization are diverse, archaeologists say.

The archaeological discoveries at Sanxingdui have changed Chinese history. Before the excavation of Sanxingdui, it was believed that Sichuan had a history of about 3,000 years.

It is now generally believed that civilized culture appeared in Sichuan about 5,000 years ago, said Chen Xiandan, deputy head of the Sichuan Provincial Museum.

Chen has been studying Sanxingdui since 1980.

In 1986, he and a colleague took charge of the excavation of two large sacrificial pits that yielded the most important archaeological finds at Sanxingdui since the first archaeological dig on the site.

The two pits held bronze, gold, jade and marble articles, pottery, bone implements, and objects made of ivory. Archaeologists also found a profusion of cowries and 800 large bronze relics.

(China Daily 04/18/2001)