Gold-coated small Asoka pagoda found among relics from Qinglong town, Qingpu district, Shanghai, Tang (618-907) to Song (960-1279) dynasties. [File Photo]

Site of Qinglong town in Qingpu, Shanghai

A large number of ceramic and porcelain products from Tang to Song dynasties for trade were unearthed at the site of Qinglong town in suburban Shanghai's Qingpu district.

The artifacts unearthed indicated that the Qinglong town might be the earliest port in the current Shanghai area for overseas trade and an important start point of the maritime Silk Road.

The excavation found the base of the tower of the Longping Buddhist Temple, which was built in 1023-1032, a rare example of ancient Chinese Buddhism architecture.

The tower, standing in the northern tip of the ancient Qinglong town, was also used as a lighthouse, guiding busy commerce ships into the Wusong River harbor. Thus, it must have been the landmark of the port.

Artifacts discovered in the tower base include a King Asoka tower, a 4-layers box and more than 10,000 coins of different periods.

This archeological discovery revealed that Shanghai was an important harbor on the maritime Silk Road 1,000 years ago.

Site of Qinglong town in Qingpu of Shanghai was listed as one of China's top 10 archaeological discoveries in 2016.