Pre-historic artifacts uncovered in the Bali area
Archaeologist Liu Yi-chang previously unearthed pre-historical artifacts in the area set aside for a buttress of a bridge. The bridge was part of project near the Port of Taipei, and was a vital part of the Bali – Xindian east – west highway. Liu carried out the digging as part of the environmental assessment required ahead of the construction of the bridge. The “rope line pottery” artifacts found by Liu were dated back to the middle part of the New Stone Age, which means that they are over 4,000 years old. Liu successfully unearthed other red pottery shards with designs and rope lines, and other artifacts from the era.
Liu, who is a researcher at the Academia Sinica’s Institute of History and Phi logy, said that in around 1990 at the time that the Shihsanhang relics were being unearthed in the Bali area, archaeologists were surprised to find in the area examples of rope line pottery. After research by experts, it was determined that the pottery, which has relatively thick mouths and no apparent designs, came from the latter Dabenkeng culture of the Neolithic period. Most people refer to this as the rope line pottery culture.
Liu said that examples of rope line pottery had been found in regional cultures in central and southern Taiwan, such as the Niumatou and the Niuchouze cultures. However, no regional cultures belonging to northern Taiwan had been found. It was only in 2002 that research on the Xuntangpu culture, which is the ancient name for the area around Bali, was formally released. Liu said that artifacts that were unearthed in the land slated for the buttress of the bridge included red pottery vessels that appeared to be used to hold rice and stone knives. He said this proves the actual existence of the Xuntangpu culture.
The team of archaeologists presently has set up shop in the area of the Port of Taipei around Bali. They have carried out digging in the slated site for the bridge, which is nearby the Liaotiending Temple. All of the artifacts they have uncovered are at least 4,000 years old. In addition to discovering artifacts used in everyday live during the New Stone Age, they have also uncovered items used in cooking and holding food. This proves that there was a culture of people who lived in this area thousands of years ago.
The archaeological dig is expected to be completed in December. It remains to be seen whether further digs in the bridge area will be held in the future, which could provide even more insight into the Xuntangpu culture. If future digs are to be carried out, research organizations and the Ministry of Transportation and Communications officials will first need to iron out various issues.
All sorts of ancient artifacts have been retrieved from the land in Bali. These include items that date back 5,000 to 7,000 years to the Dabenkeng culture in the Guanyin Mountain area. There have also been items unearthed that date back 3,500 to 4,500 years ago that belong to the Xuntangpu culture, which is also a rope line pottery culture. Finally, there are items unearthed of the Shihsanhang culture that dates back to the Metals Age, many of which are now housed in the Shihsanhang Museum. Together, this area has become a primary focus of archaeologists studying Taiwan history and culture, and has made an enormous contribution to research on Taiwan pre-historic culture.
