Archaeologists unearth the ruins of an ancient city from the Warring States period at a newly-discovered site in Jinan, East China's Shandong Province. Photo: Xinhua

Archaeologists have unearthed the ruins of an ancient city from the Warring States Period (475BC-221BC) at a newly discovered site in Jinan, East China's Shandong Province. 

At more than 2,000 years old, the artefact is by far the earliest ancient city site discovered in the city, Xinhua News Agency reported on Tuesday. 

The recently discovered site is approximately 140,000 square meters in the area, and includes a trench, said Dong Wenbin, head of the archaeological team.  

Archaeologists believed it is a border town of the ancient State of Qi used for military defense during the Warring States Period.

Relics such as tube tiles and slab tiles confirmed the existence of large buildings in the city at that time.Archaeologists also discovered broken urns, pots, and other daily objects in garbage under the ruins. 

Dong explained that the ancients used to bury all their litter, including food waste, in holes in the ground. 

"Thanks to their environmental awareness, we got to learn about their ancient lifestyle from underground garbage some 2,000 years later," Dong told the media.

 "Most of our archaeological research is based on the garbage they had left behind," he said.