Publication Highlight: Chengdu Plain Archaeological Survey. Results from the 2005-2010 Seasons

April 21, 2026

Rowan K. Flad (Harvard University), Joshua Wright, Lin Kuei-chen, Zhou Zhiqing, and Jiang Zhanghua have published a new volume, Chengdu Plain Archaeological Survey: Results from the 2005–2010 Seasons (Cotsen Institute of Archaeology Press, UCLA, 2026).

Book Abstract:

The Chengdu Plain Archaeological Survey (CPAS) was a large-scale international collaborative project conducted over five field seasons beginning in 2005. Directed by Rowan Flad (Harvard), Pochan Chen (National Taiwan University), Gwen Bennett (Washington University, St. Louis / McGill), Jiang Zhanghua (Chengdu City Institute of Archaeology) and Li Shuicheng (Peking University). The project investigated site distribution and landscape use across approximately 350 km² in the Sichuan Basin, focusing on the region surrounding the Neolithic walled sites of Pi Xian Gucheng and Yufucun (ca. 2600–1700 BCE).

Employing a combination of surface collection, systematic coring, geophysical survey, and test excavations, the project generated thousands of data points that illuminate long-term patterns of land use and settlement change from the Neolithic through the Bronze Age and into the Qin and Han periods. These data reveal a diachronic trajectory culminating in the emergence of the Sanxingdui polity in the second millennium BCE, as well as later cultural developments prior to the Qin conquest in 316 BCE.

This volume synthesizes the full results of the survey alongside broader discussions of regional prehistory and environmental context. It represents the first comprehensive, systematic regional survey dataset for the Sichuan Basin and establishes a critical foundation for future archaeological research in southwest China.

The report is being published in two versions, one in English from the Cotsen Institute Press of the University of California, Los Angeles, and one through Science Press in Beijing. Digital files from the project are available Open Access at: Open Context: Chengdu Plain Archaeological Survey (CPAS) 成都平原考古调查: 2005-2010年成果.