5,800-yr-old tile-shaped earthenware found in central China

ZHENGZHOU, Dec. 22 (Xinhua) -- Archaeologists in central China's Henan Province have unearthed a large number of fragments of tile-shaped earthenware, which may be the earliest earthenware tiles dating back some 5,800 years.

The fragmented earthenware discovered at the ruins of Beiyangping in the city of Lingbao is believed to have been used on house ridges to prevent rainwater leakage, according to Wei Xingtao, deputy chief of the Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Heritage and Archaeology.

Wei, who is also the team leader of the excavation project of the ruins, said smaller pieces of the earthenware were found in previous years at various parts of the ruins, but they were too fragmented to ascertain their specific use.

"Now with the discovery of larger pieces resembling earthenware tiles, we assume that the tile-shaped objects might have served as construction materials used on roofs," Wei said.

If the assumption can be further validated, the discovery will extend the history of Chinese earthenware tiles to the middle Yangshao period about 5,800 years ago, he added, noting that the findings also provide important materials for studying the history of Chinese architecture and the origins of tiles as construction materials.

The Yangshao culture, dating back 5,000 to 7,000 years, was a Neolithic culture that originated along the middle reaches of the Yellow River.