A Study On The Faunal Remains Of Prehistoric Period In Guanzhong Region

This thesis makes a preliminary report on the study of the faunal remains of prehistoric period in Guanzhong Region. According to the analysis of the faunal remains in this region, it concludes characteristics and evolutive law of climate, environment and the relationship of environment and cultural evolution of hominids in this region, and discusses the development and changes of agriculture, livestock farming and hunting during the different periods, as well as exploitation of animal bones.1. According to analyzing the pollen and typical faunal data collected from Paleolithic sites of Lam Tin and Dali area, this paper concludes environmental characteristics and climate variation in Paleolithic Guanzhong Region. These characteristics are concluded as follows: the environment presents forest-steppe landscape in Early and Middle Pleistocene, with mild and humid climate, during which there are periodic fluctuations and inter-regional differences in temperature and humidity, such as "Gongwangling incident" reflected climatic deterioration; the Guanzhong region is on relatively dry and cold weather in Late Pleistocene, forming the ecological environment of grassland-based type. Since the beginning in Early and Middle Mid-Pleistocene, it existed a lot of alternation about cold and warm, dry and wet in Guanzhong Region, the main trend is towards the dry and cold grassland-based direction, and gradually go into the last glacial of Pleistocene. Hominids depend on the environment in Late Pleistocene, gathering, fishing and hunting is the main way on finding foods, it is called as snatching economic model. By comparison, the living-level of people is low, they have to move constantly and live a nomadic life in order to obtain ample food resources. Hominids in Early Paleolithic Xishuidong site can make fire and burn or toast food, and have the ability of preserving fire for a long time, making and retouching bone tools.2. According to analyzing the habits of wild animals unearthed from Neolithic sites, combined with the results of pollen analysis, we can conclude developing trend of economics and evolutionary laws of environment: the climate is mild and sub-humid in the former Yangshao period, at the beginning of the warmer period of the Holocene, agriculture and livestock industry are developed; up to Yangshao early stage, the temperature rises further, increases in precipitation, hydrothermal conditions are conducive to the continued development of primitive agriculture, the temperature reached at this time peak; to the Yangshao middle and late stages, especially late stage, the temperature decreases slightly, but overall climate is still warm and dry sub-humid to semi-dry, agriculture and livestock industry continues developing, occupying a dominant position; up to the Longshan period, the climate becomes gradually cold and dry, agriculture and animal husbandry industry have a further development and become the main sources of human foods.3. This paper also discusses and analyzes livestock in Neolithic of Guanzhong Region: domestic pigs are the main animal in domesticated animals of Guanzhong Region in Neolithic, followed by cattle, dog, sheep and chicken, pigs are domesticated earlier, followed by cattle and dog. Domesticated cattle are distributed popularly in Guanzhong Region, the number is less than pig, water buffalo have been domesticated in Pre-Yangshao, with wet climate and ample water; whereas, buffalo is the main domesticated animals in Longshan, the number of domesticated buffalo and sheep is bigger. Hominids used to taking use of dog for hunting, however, thd dog are not the main food resource. Nowadays, we can not know the time when the sheep are domesticated. The chicken are domesticated in Pre-Yangshao, they are popular in Pre-Yangshao sites; the chicken is a kind of small livestock so that they can not provide plentiful meat for hominids, hominids have not enough experiences to take a large-scale breeding. Therefore, the number of domesticated chicken is low in Neolithic sites. Besides domesticated chicken, Cervus nippon and Cervus elaphus have been probably domesticated in Neolithic.4. This study also concludes and analyzes the exploitation of bone tools in Neolithic. Hominids take use of animal bones for making tools and adornments, aiming at religionary sacrifice or funerary things in Guanzhong Region. Bone tools are plentiful, including shovel, awl, arrow, fork, shuttle, knife, needle and saw. Adornments are classified into bone beads, bone hairpin, Swertia, Sophora, snail clam shells, and so on. Another choice for multi- Hominids are inclined to choose vertebrate shoulder as religious Bogu, such as cattle, sheep, pig and tortoise shell. Sacrificed animals are generally found vault, such as complete skeleton of pig, cow and dog. In addition, there is the phenomenon of burning animals in special ritual places. The resources of sacrificed animals are classified into three categories: first, the loved animals are generally buried in tombs with grave-owner, for example, some scholars suppose buried Desman as pet of grave-owner; second, ancient people can bury some favorite foods into grave, such as chicken and fish unearthed from Beishouling site; third, ancient people can bury some favorite bone tools into grave, such as bone knife and all kinds of adornments. When ancient people build the houses, they usually use animal bones for the sake of reinforcing buildings or special ritual conventions. Therefore, we can conclude that there is a close relationship between animal bones and living of ancient people, they make full use of animal bones in Neolithic.5. This paper makes an explanation about the differences of inter-regional economic models. The economic models are divided into two changing trends in Neolithic Guanzhong Region. In east region, agriculture and animal husbandry have been developed into production-based economics in Yangshao period, this trend emerges a scene of stagnation and reversal , especially, durative and converse developed trend in JIangzhai site. In west region, the trends of depending on environment transformed gradually into depend on agriculture and animal husbandry, from unstable snatch-based model into stable production-based living model. The differences between east and west regions exist close relationship with changing environment of thee sites. In east region, climate and environment is in the stable state, less changes. However, the changes of environment in east region are more prominent than west region. Therefore, ancient people in west region begin to found up agriculture and animal husbandry in order to adapt changing environment; ancient people in east region are inclined to adapt stable environment, losing the creativity and initiative of ancestor in Pre-Yangshao, especially Jiangzhai site. Thus, the sudden change of climate is an important factor affected the development of human culture.