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Four cultural remains which belong to four different cultural phases, namely Late Neolithic period (c. 2000 BC), Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD), Song Dynasty (960 - 1279) and Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644), were found by the Antiquities and Monuments Office (AMO) of Leisure and Cultural Services Department in a large-scale archaeological excavation at So Kwun Wat, Tuen Mun.

Jointly conducted by the AMO and the Department of Archaeology, Peking University the archaeological excavation took place since early March 2000.

An AMO spokesman said today (May 16) that the archaeological team which comprised over 10 professional archaeologists had excavated an area of more than 600 square meters so far and rich cultural remains were found.

"The most spectacular findings made in this excavation should be the discovery of more than 60 bronze Wuzhu coins inside a pit within the Han cultural layer.

"This is ranked as one of the most important discoveries of Han cultural remains in the archaeological history of Hong Kong, after the discovery of the Eastern Han Dynasty brick tomb at Lei Cheng Uk village in 1955 and the excavation of a rich Han Dynasty cultural layer at Tung Wan Tsai, Ma Wan in 1994," said the spokesman.

The archaeological site at So Kwun Wat was discovered in 1930s as cultural relics were collected on the surface. The content and the extent of the site, however, remained unclear till 1997 as the AMO conducted an intensive archaeological survey and discovered that it was in fact a typical ancient sandbar site of South China coastal area, which was well-preserved underneath a playground.

"In advance of proposed development at So Kwun Wat, the AMO, in joint effort with the Department of Archaeology, Peking University formed a strong archaeological team to carry out this excavation, which is divided into two phases," said the spokesman.

He noted that the phase I excavation commenced in early March this year and yielded a Late Neolithic activity floor, a few Han Dynasty pits, and more than 10 burials of Song and Ming dynasties.

On the Late Neolithic activity floor, there are a number of firing hearths as suggested by the circular arrangement of some burnt stones and the distribution of the ash-darkened sand. The excavation of a number of postholes in the vicinity of the hearths suggested the presence of Neolithic house structures.

Large quantity of pottery sherds and a few pieces of complete pottery wares are scattered on the activity floor. The pottery wares, including cauldrons, pots and basins, are mostly stamped with cord and other geometric patterns on their surface, which is a distinctive features of Late Neolithic pottery in South China. Other important artefacts found on the activity floor include pottery spindle whorl and stone tools such as arrowheads, net sinkers, adzes and polishing stones.

The spokesman said, "Careful post-excavation analysis of these findings would produce useful information on the settlement and living pattern of the local Neolithic folks,"

He also noted that two pits were found in the Han cultural layer. A pottery jar stamped with lattice and seal pattern was unearthed from one pit while the other pit yielded more than 60 bronze Wuzhu coins and fragments of hemp and bamboo mat as well.

"These rare artefacts are of high significance for the study of the history of Hong Kong during the Han Dynasty," he said.

Down to the Song and Ming dynasties, the So Kwun Wat site was used as a burial ground. Seventeen burials have been unearthed so far. The Song burials are all orientated in a northwest-southeast direction with the head pointing towards northwest. The Ming burials are in a northeast-southwest direction with the head pointing towards northeast.

The spokesman added that all burials have burial pits with traces of wooden coffin and coffin nails. The skeletons are, however, mostly decay and only fragments of skull, long bones and several teeth were found.

Among the Song burials, five of them yielded two or three pieces of roof tile at the position of the head. Other burial objects include iron dagger, iron scissors, iron sickle, bronze ring and cash coins. The coins can be found both inside and on top of the coffins. A pair of glazed pottery jars with porcelain bowl as the cover was placed at the rear end of the burial pits.

"Since rice gains were found inside one of the jar, study of these gains would provide interesting information on the agricultural development of Hong Kong during the Song Dynasty," said the spokesman.

He noted that the success of this archaeological excavation was due to the assistance rendered by the departments of Lands, Highways, Territory Development, Civil Engineering and Home Affairs, as well as Tuen Mun Rural Committee and the So Kwun Wat villages. He pointed out that all of them had contributed significantly to the preservation of local archaeological heritage.

End/Tuesday, May 16, 2000

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