Excavations in Shandong Province, eastern China, have found that some of the oldest sections of the Great Wall were built roughly 300 years earlier than scholars previously thought.
Archaeologists digging in the Changqing area found the Great Wall wasn’t a single construction project but a series of fortifications erected during the reigns of several different dynasties.
The wall was built to protect China’s northern borders from nomadic invaders of the Eurasian steppes. Historical records show construction of this UNESCO World Heritage site stretched across several centuries, but surviving documents don’t give the full picture of the wall’s origins.
For a long time, researchers believed that most ancient parts of the wall were built around the 7th century BC and later unified during the Qin Dynasty around the 3rd century BC.
However, during last year’s excavations, which covered more than 1,000 square meters, archaeologists uncovered wall sections dating to the late Western Zhou Dynasty (1046–771 BC) and the early Spring and Autumn period (770–476 BC). The findings illuminate engineering advances that allowed the Qi state to expand the wall by about 30 meters at the height of its power.
Some ancient texts describe the wall sections going through multiple cycles of construction, use, occasional collapse and neglect, and later restoration attempts.
To date the discovered sections, researchers analyzed artifacts from the site as well as samples of ancient plants and animal bones, the Independent reports.
Zhang Su, project leader at the Shandong Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, said that in addition to the wall sections, archaeologists unearthed fragments of roads, foundations and house walls, along with trenches and ash pits.
Liu Zheng, an expert with the Chinese Society of Cultural Relics, said one of the best-preserved stretches was built with more advanced techniques during a later period, between 475 and 221 BC.
Recent studies also showed the oldest section sits close to the city of Pingyin, which appears in historical chronicles. That suggests the Great Wall didn’t just keep invaders out — it also helped move goods and supported trade.
