Henan Finds Reveal the Roots and Continuity of Chinese Civilization
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From Neolithic wind instruments to an ancient turquoise dragon-shaped artifact, this land has witnessed the evolution of Chinese civilization. In Central China’s Henan province, archaeologists have repeatedly reshaped public understanding of history through remarkable discoveries.
In the 1980s, a collection of bone flutes was unearthed at the Jiahu archaeological site in Wuyang county, Henan. Most have seven holes and are considered the earliest wind instruments discovered in China. The bone flutes are regarded as the origin of Chinese musical civilization.
The flutes were made from the ulnae of red-crowned cranes and measure between roughly 6.81 and 9.69 inches in length. They feature fixed shapes and standardized production techniques. The smallest sound hole measures only about 0.04 inch in diameter, and each hole forms a precise circle.
Today, the story of the Jiahu bone flutes continues. A 1:1 replica of a seven-holed flute preserved at the Henan Museum can still produce melodious music.
In June 2025, during a special cultural performance at the United Nations headquarters, this instrument was played alongside others from the United States, Africa and Greece as a representative of Chinese civilization.
With its rich historical and cultural heritage, Henan has become a core region for exploring the origins of Chinese civilization. The province contains a remarkable concentration of ancient settlements, capital sites and imperial tombs.
At the Miaodigou site in Henan’s Sanmenxia city, Yangshao painted pottery featuring petal motifs emerged about 6,000 years ago and quickly spread across much of China, creating what scholars describe as the first aesthetic wave of prehistoric China.
Pottery from the Miaodigou period is abundant, brightly colored, intricately patterned and highly refined. The petal motif is its most distinctive feature. While the earlier Banpo phase of Yangshao culture emphasized realistic designs, the Miaodigou phase — considered the culture’s most prosperous period — saw patterns become increasingly abstract, reflecting advances in human creativity and cognition, experts said.
The ivory-carved silkworm unearthed at the Shuanghuaishu site in Gongyi city, Henan, dates back more than 5,000 years. Measuring 2.52 inch long, less than 0.4 inch wide and only about 0.04 inch thick, the artifact was carved from a wild boar tusk and closely resembles a modern domesticated silkworm.
Based on its overall shape and tense C-shaped posture, with its head raised and tail lifted, experts believe ancient artisans were depicting a domesticated silkworm during the spinning stage.
Combined with the discovery of Yangshao-period silk at the nearby Qingtai and Wanggou sites, the finding suggests people in the Central Plains had already mastered silkworm-breeding and silk-reeling techniques.
The ivory-carved silkworm is considered highly significant for research into the origins of silk production and the development of related handicrafts.
Archaeologists discovered a turquoise dragon-shaped artifact dating back more than 3,700 years at the Erlitou site in Luoyang, Henan, in the spring of 2002. The artifact was assembled from more than 2,000 turquoise pieces. Featuring a large head and curved tail, the dragon’s body bends gracefully, with vivid colors and lifelike form.
Experts said the extensive labor required, large scale, intricate inlay craftsmanship and abundant use of turquoise make it unique among currently known early Chinese dragon artifacts, earning it the title of a “super national treasure” among archaeologists.
The discovery may indicate that as early as the Xia Dynasty (c.21st century-16th century B.C.), Chinese ancestors already revered the dragon as a totem. From the shell dragon unearthed at the Xishuipo site in Puyang, Henan, dating back more than 6,000 years, to the turquoise dragon at Erlitou and dragon motifs found on vessels from the Shang (c.16th century-11th century B.C.) and Zhou (c.11th century-256 B.C.) dynasties, the continuity of dragon imagery in China is evident, further demonstrating the enduring tradition of Chinese dragon culture, experts said.
The flame of civilization in Henan has burned continuously for 5,000 years and continues today. What remains is not a collection of isolated artifacts, but a continuous record of civilization preserved through archaeological evidence.
From music and aesthetics to silk and dragon worship, Chinese civilization has not disappeared — it has evolved and renewed itself across the centuries.
