Guandimiao is a Chinese archaeological site in Xingyang, Henan. It is the site of a small Late Shang village, inhabited by around 100 people at its peak, and occupied from c. 1250 to 1100 BCE. It likely exported ceramics (example pictured) and cattle, while importing mass produced goods such as arrowheads and hairpins from the Shang capital at Yinxu, 200 km (120 mi) to the north. The villagers practiced rituals such as pyromancy using locally produced oracle bones and the sacrifice of cattle—as well as, more rarely, pigs and humans. Burials at the site have been noted for the almost complete absence of grave goods beyond occasional cowrie shells and sacrificed dogs. First excavated from 2006 to 2008 during preparations for the South–North Water Transfer Project, excavations have significantly broadened scholars' understanding of rural Shang economies and rituals, as well as the layout of rural villages, which have received relatively little attention in comparison to urban centers.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guandimiao

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1794:

French Revolution: Maximilien Robespierre established the Cult of the Supreme Being as the new state religion of the French First Republic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cult_of_the_Supreme_Being

1798:

War of the First Coalition: A British garrison repelled a French attack on the Îles Saint-Marcouf off the Normandy coast, inflicting heavy losses. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_%C3%8Eles_Saint-Marcouf

1937:

Employees at Fleischer Studios in New York City went on strike in the animation industry's first major labor strike. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1937_Fleischer_Studios_strike

1946:

Masaru Ibuka and Akio Morita founded the telecommunications corporation Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo, later renamed Sony. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

conclave: 1. (Roman Catholicism) 2. The set of apartments in which cardinals are secluded while the process to elect a pope takes place. 3. A group of cardinals assembled to elect a new pope. 4. (by extension, loosely) The cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church collectively. 5. A closed assembly at which cardinals elect a pope. 6. (by extension) A closed, private, or secret meeting, especially one of an ecclesiastical nature. 7. (obsolete) A private chamber or room. 8. To participate in a closed, private, or secret meeting. 9. (Roman Catholicism) Of a cardinal: to attend a closed assembly to elect a pope. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/conclave

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Come, O Creator Spirit blest! And in our souls take up Thy rest; Come, with Thy grace and heav'nly aid, To fill the hearts which Thou hast made. Great Paraclete! to Thee we cry: O highest gift of God most high! O fount of life! O fire of love! And sweet Anointing from above!   --Rabanus Maurus https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Rabanus_Maurus