Chongqing - The announcement of the top ten archaeological discoveries in the Sichuan–Chongqing region for 2025 has opened a new window onto the origins and evolution of civilization in southwest China. Like a key carefully shaped by time, these discoveries unlock a deeper understanding of how human activity and cultural interaction shaped the Chengdu–Chongqing twin-city region over tens of thousands of years.
From a prehistoric campsite along Sichuan's Taohua River to the wartime fortifications of Chongqing's Diaoyu Mountain, and from a 2,000-year-old wooden bridge in Chengdu to an ancient mountain pass in Bishan, the discoveries trace a continuous thread of civilization. Together, they tell a story of adaptation, innovation, and enduring connection between the two regional hubs.
Taohua River Site (Shehong, Sichuan)
A large-scale Paleolithic site cluster discovered for the first time along the Fujiang River
Taohua River archaeological site in Shehong City, Sichuan Province. (Photo: the interviewed institution)
When discussing the origins of civilization in the Sichuan–Chongqing region, the Taohua River site in Shehong, Sichuan, discovered in 2025, provides a critical new chapter. As the first large-scale Paleolithic site cluster identified in the Fujiang River basin, it fills a major gap in knowledge of Paleolithic remains in the middle and upper reaches of the river.
The discovery offers crucial evidence for studying stone-tool technology, human migration, and cultural development in the region. Archaeological analysis shows that as early as several hundred thousand years ago, prehistoric humans active along the Fu River had already mastered complex and standardized stone-tool production, reflecting planned and organized manufacturing behavior.
Especially rare are the well-preserved prehistoric activity surfaces uncovered at the site. These allow researchers to "see" how early humans lived and worked, rather than relying solely on scattered artifacts.
Preliminary optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating indicates that the main phases of human activity span from the late Middle Pleistocene to the early Late Pleistocene—a critical period in human evolution and environmental change. Combined with animal fossils of cattle, deer, elephants, and rhinoceroses, the site functions as a "time capsule," enabling reconstruction of ancient ecosystems in the Sichuan Basin and analysis of how early humans adapted to climate fluctuations.
Experts note that the Taohua River site ranks among the most technologically complex and spatially organized Paleolithic sites in southern China for its period. It demonstrates that the Sichuan–Chongqing region was not a cultural periphery, but a vital stage for early human evolution, laying deep foundations for later Bashu civilization.
Caiqiao Site (Chengdu, Sichuan)
A 2,000-year-old wooden bridge revives ancient Shu transportation networks
Caiqiao archaeological site in Qingyang District, Chengdu, Sichuan Province. (Photo: the interviewed institution)
The timeline then leaps forward from the Paleolithic Fujiang River valley to the heart of the Chengdu Plain over two millennia ago. Archaeological investigation in Caiqiao Subdistrict, Qingyang District of Chengdu, conducted ahead of urban development, unexpectedly uncovered a remarkably preserved ancient wooden bridge buried for more than 2,000 years.
The Caiqiao site contains cultural layers spanning from the Baodun Culture of the Neolithic period, through the Sanxingdui and Shi'erqiao cultures of the Bronze Age, to the Warring States, Qin, and Han dynasties. Its most striking feature is a wooden bridge constructed in the late Warring States period and used through the Han and Jin eras.
Measuring approximately 46 meters in length, the bridge displays an unusually sophisticated structure for its time. Archaeologists found that the eastern section was wide and complex, consisting of base planks, wooden piles, side panels, and railings. Advanced techniques such as trenching the riverbed and using mortise-and-tenon joints to stabilize piles against subsidence were employed. The western section, simpler in form, used wooden piles reinforced with bamboo baskets filled with pebbles—suggesting multiple phases of construction and maintenance over centuries.
The discovery proves that by the Warring States and Han periods, the Chengdu Plain already possessed advanced timber-processing skills, hydrological engineering knowledge, and integrated transportation planning. Similarities with other Han-era covered bridges in the region point to a long-standing tradition of bridge construction and technical continuity.
More broadly, the Caiqiao bridge illustrates how Chengdu developed as a city shaped by water and sustained by connectivity, helping explain why it remained a regional civilizational center for centuries.
Sanguishi Site, Diaoyu City (Hechuan, Chongqing)
A three-dimensional perspective on the Diaoyu City defense system
The Diaoyu City archaeological site in Hechuan District, Chongqing. (Photo: the interviewed institution)
Shifting eastward to Chongqing, where the Yangtze, Jialing, and Fu rivers converge, stands Diaoyu Mountain—famous for the epic defense of Diaoyu City during the Southern Song dynasty.
In 2025, archaeological research at the Diaoyu City site advanced beyond grand historical narratives to reveal the precise structural logic of its fortifications. Focused excavation at the Sanguishi site, located between the imperial palace ruins and the Jiadan soil site, achieved a major breakthrough: archaeologists fully uncovered and traced the eastern inner city wall for the first time, determining its exact alignment and extent.
Rather than a simple wall, the remains form a three-dimensional defensive system integrating gates, walls, platforms, and roads. Construction methods and spatial relationships reflect the military ingenuity of its builders and the realities of wartime defense.
These findings allow scholars to move from flat schematic reconstructions to three-dimensional analysis, enabling deeper study of construction sequences, functional zoning, and strategic adaptations during different phases of conflict.
Diaoyu City represents not just a single battle, but the core of a wider mountain-defense network across the Sichuan–Chongqing region during the Southern Song dynasty—a testament to ancient Chinese military engineering, landscape adaptation, and collective defense.
Laoguankou Site (Bishan, Chongqing)
An ancient landmark of frequent Chengdu–Chongqing exchange
Excavation site of the Laoguankou section of the Chengdu–Chongqing Ancient Road in Bishan District, Chongqing. (Photo: the interviewed institution)
If Diaoyu City reflects shared destiny in wartime, the Laoguankou site in Bishan District reveals the everyday ties between Chengdu and Chongqing during peaceful eras. Located at a natural mountain pass in the Jinyun range, Laoguankou was a strategic chokepoint on the eastern route of the Chengdu–Chongqing ancient road during the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Rescue excavations in 2025 uncovered a compact yet information-rich site displaying a fully functional transportation and defense complex. Discoveries include stone-cut roads carved directly into bedrock, paved flagstone paths, cliff inscriptions marking boundaries and terrain, and integrated fortifications such as gates, walls, watchtowers, and barracks.
Based on stratigraphy, unearthed coins such as Jiaqing Tongbao, and historical records, archaeologists identified two major phases of development from the Ming period through the Qing and into modern times.
Laoguankou's true value lies in its role as a hub. Eastward, it connected to Baishiyi and Chongqing; westward, to Laifengyi and Chengdu. Officials, merchants, migrants, and goods passed daily through this gateway, making it a tangible symbol of long-standing economic, demographic, and cultural exchange between the two cities.
Together, these discoveries—spanning from the Paleolithic era to the Ming and Qing dynasties—form a continuous narrative of human activity and cultural transmission across the Sichuan–Chongqing region. They demonstrate that interaction between Chengdu and Chongqing is not a modern invention, but a historical constant shaped by geography, mobility, and shared resilience.
Experts at the 2025 conference emphasized that these projects fill critical gaps in Paleolithic research, clarify prehistoric and pre-Qin population interactions, and enhance the reconstruction of historical-period societies. Collectively, they provide vivid archaeological evidence for the "pluralistic unity" of Chinese civilization.