CHONGQING — In Diaoyu city, an ancient fortress in Chongqing, a special tour recently took place that focused on dilapidated walls, old stones and ordinary-looking locations, rather than the kind of photogenic spots normally favored by tourists.

Diaoyu, which means "fishing" in English, is named after the hill on which it was built in the latter half of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). During the war between the Song imperial army and Mongolian troops in the 13th century, the castle was an important part of the defense system of what is now Sichuan province and Chongqing, and was able to withstand attacks for 36 years.

Ten members of four families were invited to the new archaeology-themed tour, which was organized by Chongqing's Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology. According to Yuan Dongshan, deputy head of the institute, it was designed to "bring the site to life and cultivate an interest in studying history and archaeology among the participants".

Yuan also served as a guide on the special tour and provided attendees with an explanation of the ruins of the Song Dynasty-era government office. Discovered in Fanjiayan, the ruins were listed among China's top 10 archaeological finds in 2018.

"One of the reasons Diaoyu city was granted this honor is that we excavated the earliest remains of a bomb found in China, and possibly in the world," Yuan said.

During the tour, Yuan also explained how the city wall was first discovered in a lush forest on the steep mountainside, how its history was pieced together from a stone tablet buried in moss, and how two tiny brass chess pieces were found at the bottom of a large pond.

"Archaeology is like embroidery because both require subtlety and patience. A stone, a shard, even a sentence in the book, can be the crucial element helping us tie together the history," Yuan told the participants.

Afterward, 12-year-old Liang Ruiqian asked Yuan, who began excavating Diaoyu city 20 years ago, what his most precious find had been.

"In fact, the structure and layout of Diaoyu city is the most valuable find, not one single artifact," Yuan told the boy. "We often attach a lot of importance to artifacts, but archaeological remains are just as important."

Yuan said that he was amazed by the ability of the site's builders to build such a fully-functional military base without modern technology. Their sense of space still intrigues archaeologists.

Official data shows that Chongqing has about 26,000 archaeological sites and over 1.48 million artifacts. In 2021, China had 108 million State-owned artifacts, and about 767,000 archaeological sites. The country has 56 world heritage sites, the second most in the world.

Apart from the tour, Chongqing has tried other means to promote an interest in history and culture, such as opening the country's first archaeology-themed cafe and launching an immersive theatrical experience in a historic structure.

Chongqing's Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology plans to include 10 more historical sites in the municipality in the scope of archaeological tourism. They also plan to cooperate with more schools to spark an interest in history and archaeology in teenagers.

Yuan's tour proved popular with the participants and will be repeated in the future. Meanwhile, archaeological work in the area continues. Yuan excitedly told participants of the recent excavation of Diaoyu's palace gates, and said that more mysteries were waiting to be revealed.

Xinhua