Litou Of Sanxingdui, The Xingdui Of Erlitou
On the Dark Fascination of Archaeology and the Illusion of Civilizational Discourse
1. Introduction: The Battle for Attention, the Silence of Archaeology
There is a dark fascination in archaeology that attracts attention, known as “competitive excavation” — on the surface, it appears to be digging for treasures, but in reality, it is a fight for academic positions and media prominence. Sanxingdui and Erlitou, one wearing a bronze mask and the other dressed in the aura of Central Plains orthodoxy, should not be competing for the singular narrative of “the origin of Chinese civilization.” Yet, they fight fiercely in comment sections and public headlines:
- “Which is the true ancestor of the dynasty?”
- “Sanxingdui crushes Erlitou!”
- “The Central Plains theory is dead!”
Before the archaeologists’ shovels even touch the seventh layer of soil, debates and positions have already reached the trending lists. These ruins, which should be silently bearing the weight of time, have become “fishing grounds” for hype and clickbait.
2. Ideal and Reality: Cracks in Archaeology
The essence of archaeology should be a silent dialogue — with time, with dust, and with the tiny remains and traces left by the nameless. But the reality increasingly turns into a staged rhetorical battle:
- The “excavation sites” we see on camera are carefully designed set pieces;
- The artifacts given meaning in the commentary are repackaged myths, tailored to cater to capital interests.
Whoever has funding can hire a CCTV team; whoever excels at visual storytelling will have their bronze artifacts deemed “more artistic”; whoever can stir the academic community’s emotional resonance will have their arguments considered “more credible.”
This is not a dispute based on evidence, but rather a game of media studies. Archaeology yields to editing, artifacts yield to traffic.
3. Power Struggles: Institutionalized Manipulation Logic
What we see is an absurd play playing out:
- Erlitou is hailed as the “first dynasty inventor,”
- Sanxingdui is hyped as the “alien civilization receiving station.”
Not because of concrete evidence, but because of the marketability of symbols, the hooks in narratives, and the topics that can generate buzz.
Can the Bronze Tree move the hearts of young people? Should a ceramic pig be minted as an NFT? These are the new standards determining "artifact value."
Archaeology has become a “civilization hype” model, losing its baseline of “respect for the nameless,” but growing a hunger for “selling fame.”
4. Persona Detachment: The Triangle Between Experts, Sponsors, and Audiences
In one conference after another, in exhibitions and documentaries, the experts we see may have just toasted with sponsors the night before. The academic perspectives they confidently present today may have been proofread in a business proposal yesterday.
What they study is no longer the truth or falsity of history, but the marketability of discourse. They no longer face ruins, but the sponsors, communicators, and consumers behind the camera.
Archaeology has become a marketing and curation industry, a redistribution mechanism of “high-end narrative capital.” The true sedimentation of time is reduced to a 30-second “civilization miracle,” broadcasted to trending platforms for clicks and forgetfulness.
5. Symbolism and Naming: Who is Piling Up Whose “Civilizational Halo”?
We finally realize:
Litou Of Sanxingdui, The Xingdui Of Erlitou — It's not some underground continuity of evidence, but rather a desire structure repeating on the surface.
Humanity’s chase for halos always piles layer upon layer, never questioning the foundation, only seeking brilliance. Ruins are supposed to be silent, but human hearts are too loud; those bones and artifacts, which have waited thousands of years in the soil, have now become stepping stones for human vanity, piling up layers of “national narratives.”
6. Conclusion: Archaeology is No Longer a Reflection, but an Escape
We initially wanted to approach the past through archaeology, but in the end, we used it to escape the present.
- When the camera illuminates the earth, it does not light up the human heart;
- When historical records pile up the dynasty, it buries the personality;
- When civilization becomes a show, and history becomes a script,
Archaeology is no longer an act of exploration but an art of forgetting. Yes, archaeology is never neutral, it can both unearth civilization and bury the truth. And when everything is piled — we should ask:
Who exactly piled up the "star" into a high ground, and who buried themselves in the light?