Shang-era ruins found to be ancient garrison

Through the excavation of the two ancient cities at Wangjinglou heritage site, archaeologists found an interesting saucer-shaped ancient city gate, which has been proven to be a part of Wengcheng, an ancient garrison town. Its discovery pushes Wengcheng's history back to early Shang period in ancient China, Henan Commercial News reported.

Wengcheng is a kind of small town and an enclosure for defense outside the city walls. In a recent archaeological excavation of the Wangjinglou heritage site in Xinzheng city of Henan province, Zhengzhou Academy of Cultural Relics and Archaeology accidentally discovered two large-scale ancient city ruins from the Xia and Shang dynasties with a total area of nearly 1.7 million square meters.

According to archaeologists' initial speculation, the city from the Xia period might have been the capital of a kingdom, while the city from the Shang period might have been an important garrison town.