appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

hooksArticlePageFloatingButtonConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Ling Xin

Chinese archaeologists are heading to South America for the first field project on the continent in search of ancestral bonds between ancient Chinese and native American civilisations.
Under an agreement signed by national research institutions from the two countries in Supe, Peru on Friday, archaeologists from China will soon start working with their Peruvian counterparts in the Caral archaeological zone – home to the oldest known urban centre in the Americas.
The joint archaeological team will start the project with field surveys exploring the basins of the Chancay-Huaral and Supe rivers and key sites such as the Sacred City of Caral and the coastal settlement of Aspero.
Jia Xiaobing from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences’ Institute of Archaeology, who led the Chinese delegation in Supe, said the collaboration would cover field surveys and excavations, the use of advanced technologies in archaeology, heritage conservation and researcher training.

The archaeological community believes that Chinese and American civilisations descended from the same ancestor.
Despite being separated by vast oceans, Chinese and Peruvian civilisations share interesting similarities in areas such as astronomical observation and spiritual beliefs, according to a statement from Jia’s institute.
It said the Chinese team would be searching for first-hand archaeological data on early American civilisations, which would help comparative studies of ancient civilisations around the Pacific Rim and offer a Chinese academic perspective to global research on the origins of early complex societies.
Caral emerged about 5,000 years ago in what is now Peru. Its people built large settlements and monumental architecture centuries before pottery became common in the region, and the civilisation flourished for more than a thousand years.
The institute said the research partnership would later expand into the Andean highlands to study the remains of the Inca civilisation and compare ancient societies in China and South America.
According to the statement, the Peruvian team – headed by the Ministry of Culture and the National University of San Marcos – will draw on China’s experience in archaeological technologies and cultural heritage conservation.
The joint excavations could provide physical evidence to better understand how these distant civilisations developed along different paths, the statement said. The project is also intended as a model for archaeological cooperation between Global South countries.
The Peru project is the latest stop in a growing global footprint for Chinese archaeology.
In the past decade, Jia’s institute has carried out fieldwork in Egypt, Honduras, Uzbekistan, Romania and Pakistan, China News Service reported in May. In April, it also launched a joint archaeological project in Greece.


Jia told the state-owned news agency at the time that overseas excavations had allowed Chinese archaeologists to play a growing role in the study of world civilisations, bringing “an Eastern perspective and Chinese insights” to the field.
China is seeking to transform its archaeology from a field focused largely on discoveries at home into one with global reach, according to the report.
It said Chinese researchers were no longer content to be “observers” in the study of world civilisations, but wanted to help shape how their stories were told.
“The longer-term goal is to develop distinctly Chinese ideas about how civilisations and history should be understood, and bring those perspectives into global research to help build a fuller picture of the human past,” Jia said.


T. rex was warm-blooded and had body temperature close to ours, study finds

China uses 100,000 home-grown AI chips to build leading weather forecast system

Geologists find unexpectedly large water sources in Xinjiang beneath China’s largest desert

Chinese scientists build world’s smallest CT scanner, weighing just 6kg

Science

China sends archaeologists to South America to trace ancestral links for the first time

The team will soon start work in the Caral archaeological zone in Peru’s Supe Valley. Photo: Shutterstock

The team will explore sites such as the Sacred City of Caral in the Supe Valley. Photo:  Shutterstock

Revealed: the ancient Andean secrets behind Peru’s vibrant potato varieties

Potatoes dry in the sun in Peru’s Sacred Valley. Photo: Shutterstock

“Super potatoes” have high concentrations of iron and zinc, and some contain up to 10 times more antioxidants than blueberries and five times more vitamin C than citrus fruits. Photo: Coltur and Lightfoot

A farmer works on the selection and classification of potatoes in Pisac, Peru. Photo: Getty Images

Manuel Choqque Bravo, the agricultural engineer known as “the potato whisperer”. Photo: Kissa Castañeda

A bowl of crisps made from Manuel Choqque Bravo’s “super potatoes”. Photo: Coltur and Lightfoot

The pigment is a marker of polyphenols, naturally occurring compounds celebrated for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory qualities. Photo: Coltur and Lightfoot

Ingredients used in the second part of chef Pia León’s signature dish, Muchos Tubérculos (“Many Tubers”). Photo: Camila Novoa

The Central Andes course at Mil Centro showcases the potato varieties papa qecoranne, papa yema de huevo, papa sangre de toro and papa puka boli. Photo: Camila Novoa

Research boosts South Korean-Chinese links in WWII resistance against Japan

Sin Kyu-sik, the exiled Korean politician, poet and freedom fighter had a bigger role in China than previously realised. Photo: Baidu

China is sending scientists to Iran for rare earth ‘exploration and processing’

A display of rare earth elements at the National Museum in Beijing. China holds the largest reserves of the metals in the world. Photo: Reuters

Why Peru wants to shift its relationship with China beyond raw mineral supplies

Exports of raw materials such as copper are a mainstay of the Peruvian economy. Photo: Reuters

Peruvian ambassador Carlos Vasquez addresses the forum. Photo: Handout

News

China

Joint project with Peru will start with field surveys in the Caral zone, which is home to the oldest known urban centre in the Americas


Joint project with Peru will start with field surveys in the Caral zone, which is home to the oldest known urban centre in the Americas.


China sends archaeologists to South America to trace ancestral links for the first time

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Joint project with Peru will start with field surveys in the Caral zone, which is home to the oldest known urban centre in the Americas

Joint project with Peru will start with field surveys in the Caral zone, which is home to the oldest known urban centre in the Americas