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Jaia Christy
Alan Griffiths
Anth 2030
17 November 2016

Jiahu Comparison
Jiahu, a region discovered to be from the Neolithic period in China, which has been
excavated to discover its mysteries below the earth. So does a Pollution Report conducted by
students from Salt Lake Community College, where they are discovering pollution in the soil
located on their canvas. In this essay I acknowledge and highlight comparisons within each sites
excavation.
The Henan Cultural Relics and Archaeology Institute carried out six excavations in
Jiahu, where the archaeologists Juzhong, Z. ; Harbottlw, G., Xinghua, X., Changsui, W.,
Zhenweid Y. discovered 25 flutes across 2400 square meters (Juzhong). During this excavation
process they used the map grid technique. For each tomb excavated the archaeologists would
number the tombs so the artifacts excavated would not be mixed up with others. The
archaeologists would record their findings on grid paper. Similarly did the students from Salt
Lake Community College on the Pollution Report follow the same methods. Once the soil was
excavated the students would write in their grid paper to indicate where the core of the soil was
drawn from. They would mark the baggies that held the soil such as P1, P2, and P3 to refer to the
province of where the artifact was extracted/ discovered (Griffiths).
In the first process of the excavation in 1986, the archaeologists first discovered two bone
flutes (Juzhong). Leading to the process of the next five excavations in which 25 flutes were
discovered from the years 1983-1999, some broken, complete, and unfinished (Oldest Musical).

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The archaeologists described that amongst the

seventeen complete bone flutes, there were
fourteen having seven holes, one five hole, one
six hole, and one eight hole (Juzhong). The
artifacts were assembled by the archaeologists
digging in ancient burial grounds and then
numbered. Once each artifact was properly
marked the archaeologists began to do more hands

Figure 1 Oldest Playable Instruments (Crane Bone

Flutes)

on work and analyze the flutes features and complexity. Once observed and tested using tonal
analysis, the archaeologists came to the conclusion based on further ancient Chinese knowledge
that the flutes were comparable to early writing on bone flutes around 5000-7000 BC (Juzhong).
Correspondingly did the Pollution Report do a test to specify/discover the importance of
their study from the excavation. The students extracted soil from the campus and later discovered
through textural analysis that there was black particles that were present in Pollution (Griffiths).
Once that was discovered they ran tests to determine what kind of pollution was exactly in the
soil, and then determine the size of the particles.
The aspects of culture Jiahu reflects is that there was music being produced even in the
beginning of time. The Chinese culture helped industrialize the production of music in the world
while building upon their Chinese Culture. I interpreted that material to indicate those aspects of
culture because even in media we see today we began to witness the origin of the flute. In the
Disney movie Mulan, a metal flute is introduced, even though its not the traditional flute, we
can still observe that the production of the flute and assume that it may be essential to the

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Chinese culture. Also, with the excavation the bone flutes location in the tombs they could have
held some significant meaning to their culture and perhaps religion.
Same does the Pollution Report reflect on cultural aspects, Utah being known for having
the worst rate of pollution has resulted in many individuals in Utah striving to make the air
clearer again, by advocating in carpooling, riding bikes, tracks, or the bus to have less dirt and
debris in the air for its citizens (Edwards and Nemeth). From the increase in pollution there has
been many organization working and educating on enlightening individuals what constant
breathing and exposure of pollution can do to ones body and how the citizens in Utah need to
change their habits to make improvement.
The last comparison between Jiahu and the Pollution Report is the stratum or exactly how
the location or characteristics of a place helps draw connections within the excavation process.
For Jiahu the stratum didnt have a distinct indication of how the evidence was going to appear.
It depended on the tomb, the tomb indicated the social class of the person buried. Tombs that had
a wider area, presented flutes that had more wholes or flutes in general. Tombs that were
excavated and the tomb representing lower class had almost nothing buried with them. Tombs
that indicated higher class individuals and they were buried with flutes, to perhaps present their
importance. The archaeologists dated these changes by absolute dating. Correspondingly did the
Pollution Report explain the same thing in their findings, the students stated Based on an
interpretation that opaque black particles in S18 are remnants of coal furnace or stove
combustion, phase 2 would have ended by a time not long after World War II (see Figure 32).
Such an absolute date is extrapolated from a history of Utah where in Salt Lake City, . . ,
beginning in the 1930s and continuing at an accelerated rate after World War II, most residences

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installed natural gas furnaces, which virtually eliminated residential heating as a major source of
air pollution (Griffiths).
Jiahu and the Pollution Report has various similarities which showed that the excavation
is the most essential part of a discovery. It leads to finding and exploring a subject further than
what is presented. Jiahu and the Pollution Report showed that artifacts and the excavation
process leads to more discoveries such as cultural aspects in our daily lives and connecting and
learning new topics about our own country.

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Works Cited
Edwards, Ashton, and Dave Nemeth. "Utah Gets F on Air Quality Report Card: Check Your
Countys Grade Here." Fox13now.com. N.p., 29 Apr. 2015. Web. 16 Nov. 2016.
Juzhong J., Keen Y. L. The Magic Flutes. Natural History Magazine. September 2005. Web. 5
Oct. 2016.
Juzhong, Z., G. Harbottle, XINGHUA X., and CHANGSUI W. "Discovery and Research on
Jiahu Bone Flutes in Wuyang, China." (Conference). N.p., 01 Nov. 2000. Web. 04 Oct.
2016.
"Oldest Musical Instruments Dated." Oldest Musical Instruments Dated. N.p., 22 Sept. 1999.
Web. 06 Oct. 2016.
"Oldest Playable Musical Instruments Found at Jiahu Early Neolithic Site in China." Oldest
Playable Musical Instruments Found at Jiahu Early Neolithic Site in China. N.p., n.d.
Web. 04 Oct. 2016.

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