A recent archaeological discovery in Shandong province, China, has pushed back the start date of the construction of the Great Wall by 300 years. The excavation, which took place between May and December of last year in an area of 1,100 square meters in the village of Guangli, included the recovery of artifacts, animal bones, and plant remains.
Zhang Su, an expert from the Shandong Institute of Antiquities and Archaeology and head of the excavation, explained that the age of the walls is divided into an early phase dating back to the Zhou Dynasty and a late phase that mostly dates to the Warring States Period (475-221 BCE). "The layout, location, and associated infrastructure of the Great Wall of Qi reflect the Qi State's advanced military planning and strategic response to external threats," said Zhang, according to The Travel. "Its close connection to Pingyin indicates that the wall served not only as a defense mechanism but also played a strategic role in controlling key transportation routes."
"This discovery advances the construction date of the Great Wall and places it as the oldest known section in all of China," said Liu Zheng, a member of the Chinese Society of Cultural Relics. Liu noted that this archaeological discovery "marks a milestone" in the research on the most famous monument of China.
In addition to the walls, two semi-subterranean residences from the Zhou period were found during the excavation, showing square foundations with rounded corners characteristic of that dynasty. Zhang explained that the homes were part of a small settlement built to defend the river. The findings suggest that before the Great Wall, there was a small settlement in this location.
Another finding, a kilometer and a half north of the Great Wall, was the city of Pingyin, a settlement with records in historical texts. Pingyin City has long been thought of as a pivotal military site for the region. The combination of Pingyin City and the Great Wall would have been formidable for any enemies who dared to enter the region.
The collected relics were tested using carbon-14 dating and optically stimulated luminescence, providing accurate dating to establish a true timeline of when the construction of China's Great Wall began.
Previously, the oldest sections of the Great Wall were believed to have been erected between the end of the Zhou Dynasty (1046-771 BCE) and the beginning of the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 BCE). The new discovery suggests that the construction began even earlier.
The Great Wall is formed by what were originally numerous disconnected sections built by small states to defend against invasions from the north, constructed over different phases. During the Spring and Autumn Period, the Great Wall was approximately 32 feet in width. The Warring States Period showed great advancement in building capabilities, with most of the late phase of the Great Wall dating back to this period.
"The construction techniques varied during the 300 years of construction of the oldest portion of the wall," Liu said. "With the discovery of the earlier portions of China's Great Wall, the improvement of construction techniques over time has been revealed," he added.
Today, the Great Wall extends along more than 20,000 kilometers, covering 15 provincial-level regions, including Beijing, the northern provinces of Hebei and Inner Mongolia, and the northwestern provinces of Gansu and Xinjiang.
Qin Shi Huang, the self-proclaimed first emperor of China (221-210 BCE), decided to unite the sections of the Great Wall, connecting thousands of kilometers that prevented Mongolian horse archers from easily accessing the empire.
This article was written in collaboration with generative AI company Alchemiq