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The Cave of Peking Man
The Cave of Peking Man（北京人） has been listed as a world cultural heritage site since 1987. It was discovered in Zhoukoudian Village（周口店）, on the Longgu Mountain（龙骨山）, Fangshan District（房山区）, Beijing.
In the 1920s, archaeologists discovered the complete skull of an ape-man dating back 600,000 years, later named Peking Man. Stone tools and evidence of Peking Man's use of furs were later discovered on the mountain. Studies have shown that Peking Man walked on his feet and lived 690,000 years ago, at which time his society lived in groups in caves, surviving as hunter-gatherers. The society could make use of rough stone tools and knew how to use fire for heating and cooking.
The discovery included six complete skulls of Peking men, 12 skull fragments, 15 mandibles, 157 teeth and some sections of broken femurs, shinbones, and upper arm bones belonging to more than 40 individuals of different ages and sexes. In addition, 100,000 fragments of stone tools were found along with fire sites with burnt bones and stones.
The Peking Man era created a unique Old Stone Culture, which greatly influenced the Old Stone Culture of northern China. Stone tools are the principal relics of this remote culture. Also discovered in Zhoukoudian are stone points used as production tools at that time, and bone articles made and used by Peking Man. Other tools found in the caves include the larger end of an antler that had been used as a hammer and the sharp end of an antler used as a digging tool.
Development of civilization was made possible through the use of fire and was a milestone in history. The discovery of Peking Man pushed back the date of man’s first fire use by tens of thousands of years. The largest ash pile discovered in the caves is six meters thick. Fire allowed people to eat cooked food instead of raw food, promoted the development of the brain and improved health. With rough tools and simple living conditions Peking Man created a unique and ancient culture.
In the 1920s, archaeologists discovered the complete skull of an ape-man dating back 600,000 years, later named Peking Man. Stone tools and evidence of Peking Man's use of furs were later discovered on the mountain. Studies have shown that Peking Man walked on his feet and lived 690,000 years ago, at which time his society lived in groups in caves, surviving as hunter-gatherers. The society could make use of rough stone tools and knew how to use fire for heating and cooking.
The discovery included six complete skulls of Peking men, 12 skull fragments, 15 mandibles, 157 teeth and some sections of broken femurs, shinbones, and upper arm bones belonging to more than 40 individuals of different ages and sexes. In addition, 100,000 fragments of stone tools were found along with fire sites with burnt bones and stones.
The Peking Man era created a unique Old Stone Culture, which greatly influenced the Old Stone Culture of northern China. Stone tools are the principal relics of this remote culture. Also discovered in Zhoukoudian are stone points used as production tools at that time, and bone articles made and used by Peking Man. Other tools found in the caves include the larger end of an antler that had been used as a hammer and the sharp end of an antler used as a digging tool.
Development of civilization was made possible through the use of fire and was a milestone in history. The discovery of Peking Man pushed back the date of man’s first fire use by tens of thousands of years. The largest ash pile discovered in the caves is six meters thick. Fire allowed people to eat cooked food instead of raw food, promoted the development of the brain and improved health. With rough tools and simple living conditions Peking Man created a unique and ancient culture.
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