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The Middle and Late Neolithic Periods of China: Major Themes, Unresolved Issues, and Suggestions for Future Research

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Handbook of East and Southeast Asian Archaeology

Abstract

This chapter discusses interpretations of evidence about settlement patterns, development of urbanism , ritual activities, and craft goods from the Middle and Late Neolithic Periods of China. The focus is on sites from the central Yellow River Valley, lower Yellow River Valley, central Yangzi River Valley, and lower Yangzi River Valley. It makes suggestions for future research and argues for intensive studies of individual regions in order to highlight variation in political, economic, and social organization.

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Acknowledgments

I thank Shen Dewei and Fu Yonggang for preparing Fig. 29.1, and Jill Seagard at The Field Museum for preparing the base map.

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  1. Department of Anthropology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Anne P. Underhill

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  1. Anne P. Underhill
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  1. Department of Anthropology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, California, USA

    Junko Habu

  2. Department of Anthropology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA

    Peter V. Lape

  3. School of Anthropology, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA

    John W. Olsen

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Underhill, A.P. (2017). The Middle and Late Neolithic Periods of China: Major Themes, Unresolved Issues, and Suggestions for Future Research. In: Habu, J., Lape, P., Olsen, J. (eds) Handbook of East and Southeast Asian Archaeology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-6521-2_29

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