Introduction of Research Center for Ancient Civilizations
From：Chinese Archaeology NetWriter：Date：2015-04-30
The Research Center for Ancient Civilizations is a research institute affiliated CASS. Li Tieying, the former director of CASS, serves as the honorary advisory counselor. Li Xueqin serves as the Director of the Center. Chen Zuwu, the director of the Institute of History, Xin Deyong, the Vice director of the Institute of History, Liu Qingzhu, the Director of the Institute of Archeology, and Wang Wei, the vice Director of the Institute of Archeology in charge of academic research, serve as the vice Directors of the Center.
Also, the Center hires several influential scholars, who have done profound researches on the origin and development of ancient Chinese civilization, to compose an Expert Committee. Liu Qingzhu and Chen Zuwu both serve as the Directors of the Expert Committee. The Vice Directors are acted by Yin Weizhang and Wang Yuxin. The responsibility of this Expert Committee includes: to examine projects that have been initiated, their budgets, and the members; to supervise and investigate the research of each project; to evaluate the results. Furthermore, in order to broaden the impact and to improve the research level, the Center plans to invite some well-known scholars both from China and abroad, who are accomplished in pre-Qin history, prehistoric archaeology, Xia-Shang-Zhou archaeology and etc. as the academic counselors.
The Center basically is based upon the scholars in the research offices of Prehistoric Archaeology and Xia-Shang-Zhou Archaeology of the Institute of Archaeology, research office of the Institute of Archaeology, as well as several scholars from the Institute of World History. We will focus our studies on the origin and early development of ancient civilizations, the impact of Chinese civilization on abroad, and the comparison studies between ancient Chinese and Foreign civilizations.
Responsibilities:
- To set up and put into execution the research projects on ancient civilizations and to prepare for the initiated project of searching the origin of ancient civilizations;
- To collaborate with the other institutions either inside or outside of China to improve the studies of ancient civilizations together;
- To organize various academic activities related to the study of ancient civilizations, such as conferences and workshops, etc.;
- To apply for various research funding;
- To introduce ancient Chinese, East Asian and World civilizations through editing books, shooting videos and organizing exhibitions and so on.
There is a Secretariat affiliated to the Center, which is located in the Institute of Archaeology of CASS. Wang Wei, the vice director of the Institute of Archaeology, serves as the secretary general.
The Center also publishes Message of the Research Center for Ancient Civilizations of CASS, collecting and communicating the academic information about the study of ancient civilizations. Meanwhile, the Center periodically publishes the Study of Ancient Civilizations.