On the 5th, it was learned from the Hubei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology that researchers have conducted detailed extraction and systematic analysis of metallurgical micro relics at the Dahuzui site in Chibi, Hubei, and have preliminarily restored the complex metallurgical production situation within the site. They have discovered a relatively complete metallurgical production chain, including tin smelting, bronze smelting, bronze smelting, and copper casting. The Dahuzui Site is located in Group 3 of Xialongpu Community, Chibi City, Hubei Province. It is the largest and best preserved early Zhou Dynasty city site south of the Yangtze River. The earliest tin smelting relics in the Yangtze River Basin have been discovered at the site, and the unearthed tin flat pots have a purity of 92.7%, which is extremely rare during the same period. Fan Guodong, a researcher at the Hubei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, introduced that the tin flat pot is an important material for research. At the same time, archaeologists conducted soil sample screening on the units with the most concentrated distribution of slag in the site, obtaining micro relics such as metal particles and smelting slag, providing important clues for the development and utilization of tin materials in the Eastern Zhou period. The discovery of tin smelting slag and metal particles can serve as clear evidence of tin smelting production activities in the Dahuzui site. ”Fan Guodong stated that there are at least three different metallurgical production activities at the site: tin smelting, bronze smelting, and bronze smelting. In addition, the unearthed stone samples indicate that there may have been an independent casting process for making small bronze pieces. The coexistence of a relatively complete metallurgical production chain at the site is in stark contrast to the bronze industry pattern in the Central Plains region, where mining, smelting, and casting processes are separated. Tin is an essential substance for casting bronze. During the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, the channel for long-distance transportation of copper (gold) and tin from the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River to the Central Plains was known as the "Golden Road Tin Route". Fan Guodong stated that the Dahuzui site was a key node in the circulation network of the "Jin Dao Xi Xing" during the Eastern Zhou Dynasty. This discovery suggests that such nodal settlements may not only undertake simple resource transportation functions, but may also have the ability to process and redistribute resources. (New Society)