Atlas of China
Lantian Man Site, Gongwangling 蓝田猿人遗址Lántián Yuánrén Yízhǐ
National heritage site · Xi'an, Shaanxi
- Time needed
- 1–2 hours
- Days to budget
- Half a day
- City
- Xi'an
- Region
- Shaanxi
- Type
- Heritage
- Listed as
- National heritage site
About Lantian Man Site, Gongwangling
At Gongwangling in Lantian County a partial skull of Homo erectus was recovered from the loess in 1964; known as Lantian Man, it was dated in 2015 to about 1.6 million years ago, which would make it the oldest firmly dated Homo erectus fossil in East Asia. Animal bones from the same beds include giant panda, tapir and the elephant-like Stegodon, species now typical of southern China. A small state-run site museum stands at the find spot.
How to get to Lantian Man Site, Gongwangling
In Jiujianfang town about 15 km east of Lantian county town, roughly an hour and a half by road from central Xi'an.
Nearby
- Terracotta Army 兵马俑 30 km
Thousands of life-size clay soldiers standing guard for China's first emperor - Huaqing Palace 华清宫 30 km
Hot springs at the foot of Mount Li where a Tang emperor wintered with Yang Guifei - Datang Everbright City 大唐不夜城 50 km
A lantern-lit, Tang-themed avenue of street performers, sculptures and evening crowds - Big Wild Goose Pagoda 大雁塔 50 km
A Tang-dynasty pagoda built for scriptures a monk carried home from India - Shaanxi History Museum 陕西历史博物馆 50 km
Tang gold and silver, original tomb murals and finds from Shaanxi's Zhou, Qin and Han past
Also within 20 km: Wangshun Mountain 王顺山 (under 10 km), Shuilu'an Temple 水陆庵 (under 10 km).
On the map
Open Lantian Man Site, Gongwangling on the illustrated map to see the terrain around it and what else is close, and to add it to a trip.
Open Lantian Man Site, Gongwangling on the map