Representatives of the 20th National Congress | Fang Qin: Rooted in the Yangtze River for more than 30 years to explore the source of the Yangtze River civilization

　　China News Service, Wuhan, October 4th,

　　Reporter Liang Ting

　　"In the past ten years, with the normalization of multidisciplinary participation, archaeological research is gradually moving from plane to three-dimensional." Fang Qin, director of Hubei Provincial Museum and director of Hubei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, said in a recent interview that the exploration of the origin of the Yangtze River civilization is in progress. With steady progress, many new breakthroughs have been made, deepening people's understanding of the Yangtze River civilization.

　　For more than 30 years, it is Fang Qin's original intention to take root in the land of Jingchu and explore the source of the Yangtze River civilization.

　　Since graduating from Peking University's Department of Archaeology in 1991, Fang Qin's work has never left cultural relics.

Starting from infrastructure archaeological work, Tianhe Airport, Wuchang Railway Station, Huahu Airport and other construction sites have left him busy. No matter how difficult the working environment is, he has never thought of leaving the cultural relics and archaeological work.

　　Located in the heart of the Jianghan Plain in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, the Tianmen Shijiahe site in Hubei is the largest and highest-level prehistoric settlement group in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River.

Fang Qin's relationship with archaeology also began here.

Photo courtesy of Fang Qin's interviewees at the archaeological site

　　In 1989, Fang Qin was under the tutelage of Mr. Yan Wenming, a leader in Chinese archaeology, and witnessed and participated in the excavation and confirmation process of the Shijiahe site of more than 1.2 million square meters.

At that time, he was determined to do his best to excavate, research and promote the civilization of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River in his lifetime.

　　Today, Fang Qin has already taken over the "relay baton" to continue the careers of Yan Wenming and many other gentlemen, and preside over the excavation and research tasks of the Shijiahe site.

　　"With the deepening of research, the understanding of the Shijiahe site is still enriched." Fang Qin said that with the development of science and technology, multidisciplinary methods have been applied to archaeological research, and "microscopes" and "telescopes" have been installed for archaeological research. ".

For example, in archaeological excavation, it is not only limited to cultural relics, but also environmental archaeology, plant archaeology, and social form research are also carried out at the same time, and the understanding is more comprehensive and three-dimensional.

　　From the prehistoric ancient city to Guo Yuanzui, a new settlement center established by merchants in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River after Panlong City, to the archaeology of Zengguo such as Sujialong and Guojiamiao... Since 2013, Fang Qin has led the Hubei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology. , the archaeological excavation project has won the top ten national archaeological discoveries 9 times in the past ten years, 6 of which have been selected as the top 100 archaeological discoveries of the century, and 2 of the world's major new field archaeological discoveries.

　　In recent years, new archaeological discoveries in Hubei have frequently been "out of the circle", setting off a "cultural boom".

Talking about the Shijiahe civilization, telling the story of Zeng Guo... Fang Qin's figure also appeared in various archaeological and cultural programs.

As the head of the Hubei Provincial Museum, Fang Qin also deeply felt the love of young audiences for traditional Chinese culture.

　　"Every cultural relic worker is a messenger of cultural promotion." In Fang Qin's view, with the popularization of many archaeological cultural programs, archaeologists who were previously unknown to the public came to the front desk and attracted attention.

It is the duty and mission of archaeologists to tell the story of Chinese civilization well. Exploring diversified means and telling the stories behind the cultural relics is a new task faced by all cultural and bloggers.

　　In fact, the development of museums has never stopped to play the cultural service function of museums and meet the cultural needs of the public.

In the new Hubei Provincial Museum, which will open to the public in December 2021, themed exhibitions such as "Zeng Houyi", "Eight Hundred Years of Chu Kingdom", "Zeng Family - Zeng Kingdom Revealed by Archaeology" and "Special Exhibition of King Gou Jianjian of Yue" tell the story of Jing Chu civilization; the Hubei Archaeological Museum, which officially opened in June this year, has created a "gene bank of Jingchu culture" and has become an important position for the dissemination of Jingchu culture and Yangtze River culture.

　　Shuttling through the bustling crowd, Fang Qin said that this is not only the contribution of all cultural bloggers, but also a manifestation of cultural confidence.

　　In May 2020, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage officially included the research on the progress of civilization in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River (Xia, Shang and Zhou projects) into the major research project of "Archaeological China". The excavation and research of the site have yielded a series of results.

　　He said that in the future, the Hubei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology will also conduct in-depth explorations on topics such as "Research on the Civilization Process in the Middle Reaches of the Yangtze River" and "Research on the History of Zeng Kingdom", explaining the important value of Jing-Chu culture in the history of Chinese civilization.

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