China's top archaeological discoveries of 2025

3. The Zhengjiagou site in Zhangjiakou, Hebei province

The discovery of the Zhengjiagou site indicates that northwestern Hebei may have been a significant area of activity for people of the late Hongshan culture, a key Neolithic culture dating back 6,500 to 4,800 years and spanning across today's Hebei and Liaoning provinces and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region. This finding not only extends the lower chronological limit of the Hongshan culture but also greatly expands the known range of its people's activities. It reveals a new trend in the development of the Hongshan culture from the northeast to the southwest and serves as a crucial link in its transition toward the formation of an ancient state.