The era of public archaeology has arrived, said Wang Wei, director of the Institute of Archaeology at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) and a CASS Member, at the Shanghai Archaeology Forum, which was held from Dec. 13 to 18.

A growing number of scholars have realized that archaeology is not merely about fieldwork and academic research. It is also important to launch archaeology lectures for the general public, to compile and publish readable archaeological books, and to publicize archaeological achievements to expand public access to archaeological sites and museums, thereby involving them in archaeological development, Wang added.

“The Shanghai Archaeology Forum has instituted public archaeological lectures. Moreover, we have planned to post the content of the lectures online, so that more people can get a taste of archaeology’s charm,” Wang said.

At the forum, Colin Renfrew, a professor of archaeology at Cambridge, was honored with the “Shanghai Archaeology Forum Lifetime Achievement Award.” Awards were also granted for 10 major field discoveries and 11 research achievements.

The “Archaeological Investigation into the Tusi Sites in China's Southwest: Imperial Expansion and the Colonization of Frontiers and Borderlands” was one of the awarded field discoveries.

Wang said that historical relics unearthed from the Tusi Sites not only reveal the relationship between border areas and the central courts of the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, but fully reflect Chinese archaeologists’ attention to historical remains and archaeological culture of frontier regions.

In recent years, research methodologies, techniques and facilities of Chinese archaeology have caught up with international standards. At the same time, archaeological cooperation between China and other countries is making robust progress. The “Origin and Spread of Broomcorn and Foxtail Millets,” which was received a research award at the forum, is one example of cooperation between Chinese and foreign archaeologists.

Founded in August 2013, the Shanghai Archaeology Forum is a global initiative dedicated to promoting the investigation, protection and utilization of the world’s archaeological resources and heritage. The recently concluded second session was themed “Archaeology of Cultural Contact and Diversity.”