Wang Jianxin still remembers an academic conference 30 years ago.
It was June 1991, and the famous Japanese archaeologist Takayoshi Higuchi came to Northwest University to give an academic report on archaeology in Afghanistan.
As an archaeologist, Wang Jianxin, who is proficient in Japanese, served as a translator.
During the report, Higuchi Takakang asked: "Where are the archaeological and cultural relics of Yueshi in China?" The crowd was dumb.
Takashi Higuchi said: "You must know that China is the hometown of Yueshi."
The Yueshi was a nomadic nation that was once active in the northwestern region of our country. It was defeated by the Huns in the Western Han Dynasty, moved west to Central Asia, and then established the Great Yueshi Kingdom through several changes.
In 138 BC, Zhang Qian joined the Da Yue clan to attack the Huns and made his first mission to the Western Regions. This opened up the road from the Han Dynasty to the Western Regions, marking the completion of the world-famous "Silk Road".
As a Chinese archaeologist, he is not clear about the historical traces of a nomadic people whose hometown is in China; the initiator of the Silk Road was Chinese, but his archaeological research was dominated and dominated by European, American, Russian, and Japanese academic circles... The question stung Wang Jianxin deeply.
Distressed, he made up his mind, "We must make achievements in the archaeology of the Silk Road!"
Time flies. In February 2021, the Northwest University Central Asian Archaeology Team led by Wang Jianxin was selected as the seventh batch of "Three Qin Models" in Shaanxi Province.
In the past 30 years, this archeological team has faced scientific research difficulties with diligent scientific spirit and made a series of first major archaeological discoveries-finally confirming the ancient Yueshi and Kangju culture recorded in the "Historical Records", "Hanshu" and other documents. The remains, thereby building the Chinese discourse power and research leadership of Silk Road archaeology, providing a widely recognized "Chinese solution" for Silk Road archaeology, and bringing the archaeological theory and practice of Chinese nomadic culture to an internationally leading level.
As early as 1999, at the annual meeting of the Chinese Society of Archaeology, Wang Jianxin actively explained to his colleagues the importance of Chinese archaeology going abroad: "Chinese archaeology must go abroad. Only when China is placed in the context of world culture can it be improved. Clearly recognize the characteristics and advantages of Chinese civilization..." "We have first-hand information on world civilization, and we can no longer eat'academic leftovers' to make a'Chinese voice'!"
It was in this year that the archaeological team, which was fully academically prepared, walked into the vast Gobi to explore the history of more than 2,000 years ago.
In the past 10 years, they have traveled hundreds of times to my country's Shaanxi, Gansu, Xinjiang and other places, and put forward the theory of "nomad cultural settlement archaeology" in practice, breaking the academic circles' long-standing thesis that "nomads live in no fixed place".
In 2007, the team discovered the "Dongheigou Site Group" suspected to be the site of the King's Court of the Dayue Family in the East Tianshan area, and this result was selected as one of the top ten archaeological discoveries in the country.
However, is this major discovery the Da Yueshi site?
If you want to be recognized by the international academic community, you must enter Central Asia, "go out" along its westward migration route, and find the remains of the Dayue clan who moved westward to Central Asia.
"Going out" is easier said than done.
Facing an unfamiliar country, Wang Jianxin was both at a loss and worried-can archaeological research there get the support and cooperation of foreign colleagues?
Can you get policy support and conditions guarantee?
Is there any diplomatic support for archaeological research in Central Asia?
"Since Chinese archaeology must go out, let me start!" In 2009, Wang Jianxin became the first Chinese scholar to enter Central Asia to carry out archaeological research.
Starting from East Tianshan, follow the route of Yueshi's westward migration to Uzbekistan.
In the overseas archaeological work, the archaeological team has gradually explored a research model of "a combination of large-scale systematic regional surveys and small-scale scientific and precise excavations."
In 2015, the archaeological team first found the Sazhagan site belonging to the Kangju cultural heritage in the piedmont area of the northern foothills of the Western Tianshan Mountains in the southwest of Samarkand. This discovery is very exciting.
This is because according to the "Historical Records·Dawan Biography", Zhang Qian arrived at Yueshi via Kangju.
In 2016, in Baisson, a small city in the southern part of the Republic of Uzbekistan, an archaeological team discovered a cemetery in Rabat.
After a systematic comparative study of time and space, cultural characteristics, etc., the international academic community has unanimously recognized that the Rabat site is probably the Da Yueshi who has been searching for a long time and moved westward to Central Asia!
This means that the archaeological team used Chinese words to provide empirical data and scientific basis for interpreting the true history of the Silk Road.
In the 12 years of "Going Global", archaeology in Central Asia has achieved initial results.
In 2019, the "China-Uzbekistan Joint Archaeological Achievement Exhibition-Archaeological Discoveries of Yueshi and Kangju" was exhibited at the National Museum of Uzbekistan History, which attracted great attention from the local public, international academic circles and major media around the world.
In December 2020, the "Exhibition of Archaeological Achievements of the Silk Road (Uzbekistan Section)" co-sponsored by Northwest University and the Palace Museum was held in the Palace Museum.
This is an important breakthrough for Chinese scientists in the field of archaeological research in Central Asia.
These results challenged some popular opinions in the international academic community and even the conclusions written in textbooks, thus gaining an academic voice that cannot be ignored.
When the archaeological team first visited Uzbekistan, they met at a meeting the Italian scholar Tokin, one of the internationally recognized "Big Three" of Eurasian archaeology.
Tokin said unceremoniously: "We have been investigating here for more than ten years, and everything should be clear. What else are you doing?" Now, when he learns that the Central Asian Archaeological Team is in the place he has investigated After discovering a number of ancient nomadic settlement sites and making new breakthrough discoveries, the attitude of the Chinese archaeological team took a "big turn", not only invited the archaeological team to drink, but also discussed research cooperation.
The Western Regions are dry in summer, which is a prime time for archaeological excavations.
In the Great Desert Gobi, archaeological team members often set up exploratory expeditions, looked at sections, and cleaned up cultural relics while enduring sun exposure and mosquito bites.
In addition, there is no mature experience to learn from and insufficient conditions to guarantee. What we have to face are domestic misunderstandings, local scholars’ doubts, as well as unfamiliar environments and language barriers... But in the eyes of the team members, "As long as you work hard every day , Will make progress every day."
Overcoming various disadvantages, the archaeological team discovered hundreds of ancient cultural relics in the Western Tianshan region of Uzbekistan, a "blank zone" considered by the international academic community, and unearthed the largest Kangju noble tomb so far, and established Uzbekistan’s first archaeological site protection shed in the archaeological history of Uzbekistan found a long-searched cultural relic, which is most likely to be the Dayue clan, the Rabat Cemetery...
Speaking of the 20-year arduous journey, the gray-haired Wang Jianxin is still full of passion: “Archaeology connects with the past and serves the present and the future. If we want to know where our civilization will go, we must find our roots.”
In December 2013, with the support of the Shaanxi Provincial Government, Northwest University and the Institute of Archaeology of the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Uzbekistan signed a cooperation agreement, and the two sides formed a Sino-Uzbek joint archaeological team.
The academic research is in depth with the national strategy and can serve the construction of the “Belt and Road”. The Central Asian archaeology team members are more confident in their work.
Since entering Uzbekistan 10 years ago, the Central Asian Archaeological Team has created and implemented a three-combination work model of "archaeological excavation + site protection + personnel training", which has trained a large number of professionals for the country.
Under their promotion, Northwest University and the Institute of Archaeology of the Uzbekistan Academy of Sciences signed a cooperation agreement to jointly build the "Silk Road Human and Environmental International Joint Laboratory" to jointly seek new breakthroughs in Silk Road archaeology.
"We can't conduct predatory archaeology in Central Asia, as long as the materials are used, cultural relics are not protected." Wang Jianxin said.
From the first day of excavation in Central Asia, the Central Asian Archaeological Team has maintained a responsible attitude-all the explorers who excavated must be backfilled for protection after the archaeological work is completed.
This is a costly and laborious task, rarely seen in Central Asian archaeological teams in various countries for many years.
In 2019, the Central Asian Archaeology Team won the title of "Advanced Collective of National Education System".
Professor Wang Jianxin was successively selected as the "Most Beautiful Struggler" candidate for the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, Shaanxi Province Moral Model, and Shaanxi Province Post Model Lei Feng.
China Youth Daily·China Youth Daily reporter Sun Haihua Correspondent Li Chen Source: China Youth Daily