By Henan Museum

Synopsis:

This book explains the profound history and culture of the Central Plains over thousands of years in seven sections according to the development order of ancient China, spanning the long period from the Stone Age to the Song/Jin/Yuan Dynasties.

The whole book revolves around the connotations and characteristics of the center of the heaven and earth, highlighting the testifying system of the civilization of Central Plains. The main thread of ancient capital cities including Erlitou (the capital city of the Xia Dynasty), Zhengzhou (the capital city of the Shang Dynasty), Yin Ruins in Anyang, Site of Eastern Zhou Capital, Luoyang City in the Han and Wei Dynasties, Luoyang City in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, and Dongjing City in the Northern Song Dynasty runs through the book to analyze the idea of “choosing Central Plains” to build the capital city in ancient China based on the direct evidence of cultural relics and multiple interpretation of the culture. It explains the formation, development and maturity of this idea, and its transplantation at last, namely the development history of establishing the capital city in Central Plains. So readers can see the source, core part, continuity, integration and innovation of the culture of the Central Plains.