Zhouyuan 周原遗址

About Zhouyuan

For a practical introduction, start at Baoji Zhouyuan Museum in Zhaochen Village. Its excavated bronzes show the ritual and political life of the Western Zhou, while roof tiles, pottery pipes and building remains explain the settlement behind those ceremonies. The interest lies in reading these everyday and ceremonial objects together; the wider archaeological area is not a single fully reconstructed ancient city.

Zhouyuan was the birthplace of the Zhou people, who according to tradition moved south from Bin (豳) under Ancient Duke Tai (古公亶父) and settled here, taking 'Zhou' as their state name; earlier the area held remains of the Yangshao, Shaanxi Longshan and Qijia cultures. Zhouyuan grew into the early Zhou capital and political centre, and even after King Wen moved the capital east to Feng, and King Wu again to Hao, it kept its status as the site of the royal ancestral temples until Rong invasions and King Ping's move to Luoyang left it abandoned as farmland.

It lies backed by Mount Qishan (岐山) to the north and facing the Wei River (渭河) to the south, with its name first recorded in the Book of Songs (诗经). Excavated remains include large building-foundation groups at Fengchu (凤雏) on Qishan and at Zhaochen (召陈) in Fufeng, together with major bronze hoards, which form the basis of the archaeological site referred to as Zhouyuan today.

The site was listed as a Major Historical and Cultural Site Protected at the National Level (全国重点文物保护单位) in 1982, was named one of the 'Centennial Hundred Major Archaeological Discoveries of China' (中国百年百大考古发现) in 2021, and has been selected among the National Top Ten New Archaeological Discoveries (全国十大考古新发现) three times, in 2003, 2015 and 2024.

What to look for

• Western Zhou ritual bronzes, including the Zhe Gong vessel described in the museum’s collections.
• Pottery water pipes, roof tiles and architectural remains that reveal the construction of the settlement.

Location & getting there

Getting to Zhouyuan

Use Baoji Zhouyuan Museum in Zhaochen Village, Famen Town, Fufeng County, as the first destination.

• The archaeological landscape extends beyond the museum; follow the areas identified as open locally rather than entering excavation land.