8 May 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

New evidence pushes the origins of the Great Wall back by 300 years

Recently discovered evidence from the Changqing district of Jinan, located in East China’s Shandong Province, reveals that the origins of the Great Wall can be traced back 300 years earlier than previously thought.

The excavations in the Changqing district of Jinan, located in East China’s Shandong Province, have uncovered that the earliest known sections of the Great Wall date back to the late Western Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC-771 BC) and the early Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC-476 BC). This discovery pushes the timeline for the construction of the Great Wall back by approximately 300 years, as reported by Jinan Daily.

The excavation, conducted from May to December 2024, spanned an area of 1,100 square meters in Guangli village. This marks the first proactive excavation of the Great Wall of Qi State, following earlier surveys and investigations.

Archaeologists utilized a multidisciplinary approach, collecting not only traditional artifacts but also specimens such as plant silica and animal bones. They gathered samples for optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) and carbon-14 dating, resulting in a wealth of archaeological findings.

The Great Wall of Qi is a significant component of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Great Wall. As the earliest and longest of China’s Great Walls, it extends a total of 641 kilometers.

Zhang Su, the project leader from the Shandong Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, explained that the excavation revealed substantial evidence of multiple construction phases. The team unearthed large rammed-earth structures, roads, slopes, residential foundations, trenches, ash pits, and walls from various stages of the wall’s development.

Aerial View Photography Of Great Wall Of China. Credit: Tom Fisk, Pexels
Aerial View Photography Of Great Wall Of China. Credit: Tom Fisk, Pexels

According to Zhang, the walls can be categorized into two main phases: early and late. The earlier walls, dating back to the Spring and Autumn Period, are approximately 10 meters wide and may have been constructed as early as the Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC-256 BC). The later sections primarily belong to the Warring States Period (475 BC-221 BC).

The third phase of the walls is the best preserved, showcasing the most advanced construction techniques and measuring over 30 meters in width. This section was likely built during the peak of the Qi State in the Warring States Period.

“This archaeological discovery pushes the construction date of the Great Wall back to the Western Zhou period, establishing it as the earliest known Great Wall in China,” Liu Zheng, a member of the Chinese Society of Cultural Relics, stated to the Global Times on Sunday. “It marks a significant breakthrough in Great Wall archaeology and is a milestone in clarifying the origins and development of research on China’s Great Wall.”

In addition to the walls, two residences from the Zhou Dynasty were discovered beneath the early walls in the northern excavation area. These homes, characterized by square foundations with rounded corners, are typical of the semi-subterranean dwellings of that era. This suggests that prior to the wall’s construction, the area may have been part of a small settlement, potentially linked to river defense, Zhang noted.

The archaeological team, led by Zhang, also uncovered an ancient settlement known as Pingyin City, which is mentioned in historical texts. This site is located about 1.5 kilometers north of the Great Wall.

“The layout, location, and associated infrastructure of the Great Wall of Qi reflect the advanced military planning and strategic responses of the Qi State to external threats. Its close connection to Pingyin indicates that the wall served not only as a defensive structure but also played a strategic role in controlling key transportation routes,” Zhang remarked.

This discovery not only reshapes our understanding of the Great Wall’s history but also highlights the advanced military strategies of the Qi State, emphasizing the wall’s dual role as both a defensive structure and a crucial element in controlling trade and transportation routes in ancient China.

Cover Image Credit: Jinan Daily

Related Articles

Archaeologists find a Roman military watchtower in Morocco for the first time

7 November 2022

7 November 2022

A Roman military watchtower the first of its kind was discovered by a team of Polish and Moroccan archaeologists in...

Irish archaeologists discover a rare 1,600-year-old idol in the Roscommon bog

13 August 2021

13 August 2021

A 1,600-year-old wooden pagan idol has been discovered in a bog in Co Roscommon by Irish archaeologists. This rare artifact...

Ancient Roman coin thought to be fake -certainly authentic and proves the existence of ‘forgotten’ leader Sponsian, study claims

26 November 2022

26 November 2022

History is littered with artifacts that were later discovered to be forgeries, but the opposite can also occur. A new...

Unprecedented 1800-year-old marble bathtub recovered in Turkey

23 April 2022

23 April 2022

The 1800-year-old marble bathtub, which was seized when it was about to be sold by historical artifact smugglers in Aydın’s...

The place of Puduhepa’s hometown Lawazantiya will be illuminated with Tatarlı Höyük

9 November 2021

9 November 2021

Excavations at Tatarlı Höyük (mound) are trying to reach findings that will enable the determination of the location of Lawazantiya,...

Archaeologists found gold coins from the time of Justinian the Great in Northern Bulgaria

3 September 2024

3 September 2024

Archaeologists have discovered five gold coins dating from the reign of Justinian the Great (483-565) in Debnevo, the largest village...

4,000-year-old War Memorial of Banat-Bazi in Syria

28 May 2021

28 May 2021

Archaeologists have identified a memorial monument built before 2300 BC in the Banat-Bazi region in Syria. Known as the “White...

Large Roman Complex found in Swiss Gravel Quarry

30 August 2023

30 August 2023

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of walls of a Roman building complex built nearly 2,000 years ago in the Äbnetwald...

Evidence of Brain Surgery performed 3,000 years ago discovered in the ancient city of Tel Megiddo

27 February 2023

27 February 2023

Researchers have discovered a rare instance of delicate cranial surgery, possibly the earliest of its kind in the Middle East,...

The colored skeletons of Çatalhöyük provide insight into the burial rituals of a fascinating society that lived 9000 years ago

18 March 2022

18 March 2022

New research provides new insights into how the inhabitants of the “oldest city in the world” in Çatalhöyük (Turkey) buried...

2,000-year-old unique luxury Roman villa with “underfloor heating” found in Germany

3 November 2022

3 November 2022

A luxury Roman villa with a thermal bath and underfloor heating has been unearthed in Kempten, Bavaria, one of the...

Swiss Scientists Identify Arrowhead Made from a Meteoritic Iron

1 August 2023

1 August 2023

In a recent study of archaeological collections in the Lake Biel region in Switzerland, an arrowhead from the Bronze Age,...

The World’s oldest and first swords ever discovered

11 March 2023

11 March 2023

The 5,000-year-old swords found 43 years ago during the excavations in the old mud-brick palace structure in Malatya Arslantepe Mound...

Excavations of Aççana Mound, the Capital of the Mukish Kingdom, Continue

16 July 2021

16 July 2021

2021 excavations have started at Aççana Höyük, the old city of Alalah, in Hatay’s Reyhanlı district. The ancient city of...

New Type of Amphora Found in 5th-Century Roman Shipwreck

28 April 2024

28 April 2024

The first in-depth analysis of the cargo of a 4th-century Roman shipwreck found off the coast of Mallorca in 2019...