bucketschina3

Caoxieshan, rescue excavations April 2008, by the Suzhou Museum archaeology team, directed by Professor Ding, Jin-long. An example of archaeology just ahead of (or during) construction. Dr. Qin Ling of Peking University and UCL's Dorian dropped in to provide some help and advice on archaeobotanical sampling.

Collecting soil samples from paddyfield features at Caoxieshan.

A flotation station, created in one of the small courtyards of the Zhong Wang residence (local rulers during the 18th-19th century), now part of the Suzhou Museum.

Laboratory work is ongoing, but includes rice remains in many forms, from incimpletely formed (immature) grains to fully mature grains, and a mixture of spikelet base moprhologies including domestic-type non-shattering, wild-type shattering, and "stalked" types that may be immature wild or domesticated. For example illustrations, see the Antiquity Project-Gallery contribution on the continuing debate about the study of Lower Yangzte rice domestication.