再论史前时期的弃屋居室葬

Restudy of Prehistoric Indoor Burials in Abandoned Houses

史前时期;;房屋废弃;;居室葬;;

Although there have been several published papers discussing customs concerned with abandoned houses in prehistoric China, the problem of how to recognize ritual behaviors among the remains of houses is still unsettled in field work. The present paper focuses on indoor burial, the most common custom with abandoned houses in prehistoric China. Based on the published data of the Lajia site, especially the quantity, position and completeness of the human skeletons and pottery vessels found on the floors of houses, the author argues that the dead may have been intentionally put on the floors before the residents left their settlement rather than were killed by the collapse of houses in an earthquake. Moreover, he points out that indoor burial may have widely prevailed in the territory of Qijia culture.