百年周口店   世界“北京人”

（English version below）

©UNESCO / NHK

：你看过这张照片吗？

：当然看过！这不是中学历史课本上的“北京人”复原像吗？

：对的，它是根据在周口店遗址发现的“北京人”头盖骨化石复原的，说起来，今年正好是周口店遗址被发现100周年哦！本月11号到13号，纪念周口店遗址发现100周年暨史前文化遗产保护、研究与可持续发展国际会议正在北京召开。

周口店遗址考古发掘现场 ©周口店遗址博物馆

周口店遗址发现的“北京人”III号头骨 ©周口店遗址博物馆

周口店遗址发现的“北京人”XII号头骨 ©周口店遗址博物馆

周口店遗址从1918年开始发掘，百年来，科学家们在这里发现了500万年前到10000年前的古人类化石、文化遗迹和动物化石，其中最有名当属1929年发现的轰动世界的第一个“北京人”头盖骨。周口店遗址见证了中更新世时期到旧石器时代人类在亚洲大陆上的生活，展现了进化的过程，在生物学、历史学和人类发展史研究上有着极其重要的价值。

©周口店遗址博物馆

：听说周口店“北京人”遗址还被列为了联合国教科文组织世界文化遗产？

：是的，1987年，这里成为了中国第一批被列入世界遗产的地点之一，来看看世界遗产委员会对它的评价吧：

周口店“北京人”遗址位于北京西南42公里处，遗址的科学考察工作仍在进行中。到目前为止，科学家已经发现了中国猿人属北京人的遗迹，他们大约生活在中更新世时代，同时发现的还有各种各样的生活物品，以及可以追溯到公元前18 000至11 000年的新人类的遗迹。周口店遗址不仅是有关远古时期亚洲大陆人类社会的一个罕见的历史证据，而且也阐明了人类进化的进程。

模拟“北京人”当年生活场景 ©周口店遗址博物馆 

：对于中国、对于世界来说，这都是一处具有特殊意义的遗址，因为它是人类进化的历史性证据。我们一定要好好保护它！

：说的没错。收录进《世界遗产名录》意味着对保护世界遗产地的一份承诺，自从1987年成为世界遗产地之后，详细的保护计划和相关法律法规的实施，让周口店“北京人”遗址一直保存得十分良好。

：想要了解更多关于周口店“北京人”遗址或其它世界遗产的信息吗？欢迎复制链接至浏览器打开 http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/449 

The 100th anniversary of discovery of Zhoukoudian, the site bears historic evidence of human evolution

: Have you seen this picture before?

: Of course! It’s the sculpture of Peking Man. I saw it on my history textbook when I was in middle school. 

: Yes, it’s simulated from the Peking Man fossil excavated at Zhoukoudian. This year is exactly the 100th anniversary of the discovery of the Zhoukoudian archaeological site! From 11 to 13 November, the International Symposium on Protection, Research and Sustainable Development of the Prehistoric Heritage of the Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian was held in Beijing. 

Over the past 100 years, scientists have been excavated ancient human fossils, cultural remains and animal fossils dating from 5 million years ago to 10,000 years ago. The most astonishing finding was the first fossil skull of Peking Man discovered in 1929. The Zhoukoudian site bears witness to the human communities of the Asian continent from the Middle Pleistocene Period to the Palaeolithic, illustrating the process of evolution. It has extremely important value in the study of biology, archeology and history. 

: I heard that the Peking Man site at Zhoukoudian is a UNESCO-designated World Cultural Heritage? 

: Yes. It was inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1987, as one of the first Chinese sites on the List. Let’s take a look at how the World Heritage Committee describes it: 

Scientific work at the Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian, which lies 42 km south-west of Beijing, is still underway. So far, it has led to the discovery of the remains of Sinanthropus pekinensis, who lived in the Middle Pleistocene, along with various objects, and remains of Homo sapiens sapiens dating as far back as 18,000–11,000 B.C. The site is not only an exceptional reminder of the prehistorical human societies of the Asian continent, but also illustrates the process of evolution.

: It is a heritage site of exceptional significance, not just for China, but for the entire world, as it bears historic evidence of human evolution. We must protect it!

: Exactly. An inscription on the World Heritage List is a commitment to safeguard, preserve and protect a World Heritage site for posterity. Since its inscription in 1987, the site has been kept in an excellent state of conservation through the development of conservation plans, implementation of projects, enforcement of related laws and regulations.

: If you want to learn more about it and other World Heritage sites, please visit http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/449