With National Science Foundation support Drs. Anne Underhill, Gary Feinman and their colleagues will conduct an archaeological survey in southeastern Shandong province which is located in the Yellow River region of China. The goal of this one month field season is to conduct a preliminary evaluation of the region, determine the extent of surface materials present, and establish a program of long term collaborative U.S. - Chinese research. Previous work in the region has revealed the presence of abundant remains from the late Neolithic Period, including large walled sites that were probably centers of settlement hierarchies, cemeteries indicating social differentiation and finely made craft goods such as jade ornaments and elaborate pottery vessels. Given the early dates for these sites, the region has long been recognized as a likely center for the development of complex societies. Research to date however has focused on individual sites and has not attempted to set these into a broader regional context. It is not known how such central places interacted with or extended their power over surrounding hinterlands. Research into complex societies in other parts of the world has demonstrated that full understanding can be gained only when individual sites are viewed from this broader perspective. Drs. Underhill and Feinman will use survey techniques which were developed and have been broadly applied in Middle America and test their feasibility in the Shandong region. They will conduct a systematic survey of a 50 km square region and the results will provide the basis to design a larger scale project. Archaeologists wish to understand how complex societies arose and were maintained in many parts of the prehistoric world. Through the comparison of individual cases they hope to discern underlying general processes. While it is clear that complex societies developed independently in China, and while many sites have been excavated, they have not been set into the necessary regional contexts. The Underhill-Feiman research is important because it will accomplish just this. It will introduce a new archaeological approach to China and further collaboration between Chinese and American scientists.
