Archaeologists in southwest China have discovered large-scale ruins and various items and artefacts.

The ruins were found in Liangsham Yi, an autonomous prefecture in Sichuan province.  Excavations in the Anning river valley that started in August 2016 have yielded almost 2,000 dwellings, burial sites, bits and kiln sites. The area explored covered a range of 20,000 kilometres.

Among the ruins 322 were of semi-subterranean dwellings, the first time such structures are found in Sichuan, since they were usually built in northern China, according to archaeologists from the Sichuan Provincial Cultural Relics and Archaeology Research Institute.

The ruins date back to a period from the late Neolithic era to the Warring States Period (475-221). Among other findings archaeologists have unearthed thousands of mobile items, namely 6,000 pieces of porcelain, stoneware and metal specimens.

Archaeologists believe the discovery might be quite valuable since it can potentially contribute to the study of local culture and cultural exchanges in the area of the Anning river during the pre-Qin Dynasty period.