Ancient civilization of engineers lived on territory of modern China

Archaeologists from China and Great Britain came to the conclusion that before the state of Yin, which is considered the first ancient Chinese state formation, there was an ancient civilization/

"Its representatives were able to develop complex engineering structures that protected large cities from floods. The article published in the journal Antiquity reads that the authors reviewed recent archaeological discoveries related to the recently discovered culture of Lianzhu," the message said.

The state of Yin (also known as the Shang state) appeared around 1600 BC. 

However, as early as 1936, archaeologists discovered an ancient Chinese settlement, named Lianzhu, which was located in the Yangtze River Delta, 160 km west of Shanghai, in Zhejiang Province. In the graves excavations in 1986 the cientists found graves where representatives of the nobility were buried. It proved existence of a clear distinction between classes. The research proved that the age of graves reached 4800-5300 years.

Later, archaeologists discovered a complex system of platforms and fortifications, designed to protect the settlement from flooding. The width of the city wall was estimated to be no less than 20 meters, and the height in some places reached four meters. Thus, the Lianzhu settlement turned out to be one of the largest cities of the late Neolithic period. 

There was also a water supply system, which was used to irrigate farmland. The ancient Chinese created a system of dams and artificial water reservoirs, the total volume of which reached 50 million cubic meters.