Archaeologists have made a discovery in southern subtropical
China which could revolutionise thinking about how ancient humans lived in the
region.
They have uncovered evidence for the first time that people
living in Xincun 5,000 years ago may have practised agriculture –before the
arrival of domesticated rice in the region.
Current archaeological thinking is that it was the advent of
rice cultivation along the Lower Yangtze River
that marked the beginning of agriculture in southern China.
Poor organic preservation in the study region, as in many others, means
that traditional archaeobotany techniques are not possible.