A Study On The Abandonment Process Of Chahai Site

Chahai site is one of the typical sites of the early Neolithic age in westernLiaoning Province, with a large number of archaeological remains unearthed. It hassignificant value in the study of archaeological cultures, means of livelihood, socialorganization, spiritual world of early Neolithic age in western Liaoning Province.Studying abandonment processes is a basis to comprehend the meaning ofarchaeological materials. It is also an important perspective on exploring the ancientbehavior and learning about the past.This paper aims at discussing the abandonment process of Chahai site andexploring the pattern and the cause of abandonment of Chahai site.This paper consists of six parts. The first chapter discusses the theory of theabandonment process of archaeological record and then establish the theoreticalframework of this study.The second chapter discusses the phases of Chahai site by the method of potteryanalysis. In this part, we found that Chahai site can be divided into three phasesaccording to the pottery production.The third chapter discusses the reconstruction of behavior system of Chahai site.In this part, we analysis the pottery, lithic tools, and buildings, searching for theconnection between archaeological remains and behavior.The fourth chapter discusses the evaluation of abandonment degree of Chahai site.In this part, we discuss the connection between abandonment behavior andabandonment degree. Then we use the statistical methods to explore the distributionmodel of artifacts in different degree.The fifth chapter discusses the abandonment sequences of houses in Chahai site.In this part, we discuss the connection among phases, abandonment degree andconstruction of buildings. Through that, we speculate the probable abandonmentprocess of Chahai site and discuss the pattern and the cause of abandonment of Chahaisite.The sixth part is the conclusion. Through the research，we draw the followingconclusions: The history of Chahai site can be divided into three phases at least, which meansthe ancients continuously used the Chahai settlement for three times. The three periodsof Chahai site we distinguished are not the phases of the traditional perceptions forconstructing the temporal and spatial framework. They should be interpreted as thedevelopment and abandonment process of Chahai settlement on a perspective offunction.The analysis of the constructing sequence of each phases can be described asfollows: The pioneers build small houses in the surrounding area when they come.After settling down, the ancients build larger houses and other facilities in the interiorarea. In this process, the number increased and the settlement became larger. Houses ofeach phase shows a tend of gathering in spatial distribution and the third group showsa pattern of centering around the graveyard.The livelihood of people in Chahai site is a combination of original agriculture,hunting and gathering,which is a an adapt to the unstable environment of ecotone. Itcauses two types of abandonment process.The first type is leaving from the residence for foraging and collecting in a shortterm with an expected return. Remarkably, the meaning of this type is close totemporary leave instead of giving up the residence permanently. It shows a slightdegree of abandonment, which is represented by the copious archaeological remains ofthe third phase.The second type is leaving from the residence for a long time because of the landutilization periodically. The process may last for a rather long time with anticipation ofnot return. It causes a higher degree of abandonment, which is represented by thearchaeological remains of the first two phases.Synthesizes the above analysis, the abandonment pattern of Chahai site is quiteclear. Chahai site was built for long-term use, but would be abandoned periodicallywith a plan. Chahai site is a typical case of unstable sedentary site of early Neolithicage in western Liaoning Province.