An aerial view of the Qingdun Neolithic Site in Hai'an, a county-level city in Nantong, East China's Jiangsu province, March 4 [Photo/ntfabu.com]

The Qingdun Neolithic Site is located in Qingdun village, Nanmo town, Hai'an, a county-level city in Nantong, East China's Jiangsu province.

The site was discovered and excavated in the 1970s, shaking the archaeological community. It was included by the State Council in the sixth list of cultural relics under national protection in 2006.

Covering an area of about 70,000 square meters, the site is the largest and best-preserved Neolithic ruin with three culture layers in the eastern Jianghuai (the Yangtze River and Huaihe River) area.

A large number of cultural relics have been unearthed at the site, including jade wares from the ancient civilization of Liangzhu, China's latest cultural site to be inducted into the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Ruins of stilt-style architecture, first discovered at the Hemudu Neolithic Site in Zhejiang province, have also been found there, suggesting that the ancient people of Qingdun adopted the same building techniques as those in Hemudu.

Qingdun Culture is now recognized as the origin of Jianghuai Culture. The local government has established a museum and a research institute for Qingdun relics, aiming to protect and develop the ancient culture.