Professor Bin Bai visits CU
Professor Bin Bai of Sichuan University visited CU at the invitation of the Center for Chinese Studies. Prof. Bai is a prominent and very active archaeologist who has worked on sites across China. He is a specialist in the archaeology of southwest China and on the archeology of the Daoist religion, and shared with us many images unavailable in published sources based upon his own research.
Professor Bai participated in three activities while visiting campus. On Monday, April 2, Prof. Bai gave a public lecture on the Sanxingdui and Jinshan bronze-age cultures of the Chengdu basin. These cultures have only been unearthed during the last three decades. Prof. Bai worked on the Sanxingdui dig as a student and led a team on the Jinshan site, so we were privileged to hear first-hand insights into the excavation process. The lecture, in Humanities 250, was well attended by students, faculty from several departments on campus, and even some members of the community. The lecture lasted just over and hour and was followed by vigorous questioning for the next thirty minutes.
Through coordination with Arizona State University, Professor Bai was able to visit both institutions and meet with a wide variety of faculty and students. At both venues, he spoke both on recent archaeological discoveries relevant to his native region as well as his work on the material remains of China’s indigenous organized religion, Daoism. In both these areas, Prof. Bai was able to offer first-hand insights not available in any textbook.
Posting authored by Professor Terry Kleeman, Department of Asian Languages and Civilizations.