Conclusion

Did the Xia Dynasty Exists?



The site of Erlitou may be the center capital of the Xia Dynasty as it is known today. This environment may actually be a representation of the culture that is referred to as the Xia. Considering the myths and historical records kept by the Shang, and looking at their own dynasty, it becomes clear that the site of Erlitou that existed before them was different, yet in some ways, they were similar. Perhaps this is probably due to the similarities in culture when considering the nearness of the groups that interacted and their relations to one another. However, their differences are related to their economic and political center, and their different use of items. Dating to an era in the Bronze age, the Xia dynasty itself was not as highly developed as the Shang, perhaps being much smaller, therefore, questionably a dynasty itself (4). Reasons for this might include the time period and the earliness of the civilization. Interestingly, they did begin to develop certain attributes which did carry on to the Shang dynasty, as evidence of their artifacts suggest, but have become different over time. For example, the use of agriculture,and their artifacts like pottery and artwork styling remained similar (5,6). In addition, when examining such artifacts as the weaponry, it is interesting to see that the items from the Xia dynasty resemble items developed later in history, possibly suggesting a link between societies. Therefore, the possibility that a civilization existed, that was grand in scale, before the Shang Dynasty is highly likely and evidence suggest that it does exist. Whether it can be referred to directly as the Xia Dynasty remains to be discovered.