Bone tools discovered in Honghe ancient river site in Northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province Photo: Xinhua

Shimao walled site in Northwest China’s Shaanxi Province Photo: Xinhua

An annual archaeology forum held in Beijing by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS)  listed six Chinese archaeological sites as China's new discoveries of 2019 in the field on Friday.

The new discoveries comprise: a site from the Neolithic period located in East China's Shandong Province, an ancient river site in Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, a former imperial city in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, a copper-smelting site in North China's Shanxi Province, a royal tomb in Central China's Hubei Province and a cave featuring wall paintings in Northwest China's Qinghai Province.

During the forum, experts jointly created seven academic reports on the archaeological background, excavation processes, main finds, academic significance and future archaeological research work relating to the sites. These gave credence to a link between "historical China" and "modern China" and provided significant support for the discovery, protection and application of China's cultural heritage, according to a re-post by China Social Sciences Network.