[HIGHLIGHTS] East-West Question | Li Wenying: The historical relics in the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains reflect the diversity and unity of Chinese civilization

Xinjiang has a vast territory and is surrounded by high mountains to the south, north and west. Its relations with the outside world have always had a natural tendency to lean eastward.

The painted pottery culture in the Yellow River Basin spread from the west to the north and south of the Tianshan Mountains. Microlithic tools discovered at the Tongtian Cave site in Jimuna, Xinjiang, and unearthed from continuous strata dating from 8,900 to 13,000 years ago, reveal that the production technology of the microlITHic tools found in Xinjiang was directly influenced by North China.