A layered history

Except for a few standing pagodas, modern visitors to Kaifeng can barely see traces of other Northern Song architecture above ground.

Archaeologists began their search in the 1980s, and some key discoveries were made. They unearthed Shuntian Gate, a gate smaller than Jinglong, in the western section of the outer city, and found the remains of Zhouqiao bridge, once a downtown artery.

It was no easy task as the ruins of the Northern Song city lie buried 8 to 11 meters beneath current ground level. In addition to deposits of Yellow River mud, the remains of cities from the Jin, Yuan (1271-1368), Ming (1368-1644), and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties are layered on top, and all overlap almost entirely with the urban area of Kaifeng today.

During recent excavations around Jinglong Gate, Wang's team also found a section of the wall of a Ming prince's residence, as well as traces of a courtyard, temple, well, and farmland.

"Finding a suitable place to begin excavations is like threading a needle; you only find scattered pieces," says Dong Xinlin, a researcher at the Institute of Archaeology with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, who focuses on the study of ancient cities. "However, as we put these jigsaw pieces together, we may gradually develop a bigger picture, or even get a sense of the urban layout."

He adds that the Kaifeng of the Northern Song era is critical to understanding how cities evolved from the Tang-era layout of individual enclosed neighborhoods, called lifang, to a more flexible urban design. "The landmark discovery of Jinglong Gate indicates just how well aspects of Kaifeng from that period were preserved underground," Dong explains. "What we have found is awe-inspiring, but we have a long way to go."

Qin Dashu, an archaeology professor at Peking University, says that the findings in Kaifeng have also corrected some inaccuracies in the Dongjing Meng Hua Lu, like the distance between places, as well as the location and structure of gates.

"Compared to memory, archaeological evidence is perhaps more convincing," Qin says.