Loong is the spiritual totem of the Chinese nation. At the Chahai site in Fuxin City, Liaoning Province, which dates back to more than 8,000 years ago, not only a cylindrical jar carved with a snake biting a toad but also pottery fragments with loong patterns were discovered. Notably, in the central area of the settlement site, a 19.7-meter-long stone-piled loong was also excavated, which is the earliest and largest loong image ever found so far, and regarded as “China’s first loong.” These archaeological discoveries provide further evidence that “loong originated from the Liaohe River”.

The Chahai site is an important Neolithic site in west Liaoning, which is located in the southwest of Chahai Village, Shala Township, Fuxin Mongolian Autonomous County. In 1986, an archaeological team conducted a trial excavation there for the first time. Since then, six more excavations have been carried out to unveil the appearance of the Chahai site. A 19.7-meter-long loong made of piled stones was found to lie on the hillside in the center of “Chahai Village”. For strict protection, the stone-piled loong unearthed that year has been reburied at its original site. Meanwhile, the archaeologists used similar stones to repile a loong in the original shape in situ.

Standing on the hillside, one can overlook the giant loong: its head rises high, facing southwest, and its tail swings toward northeast, as if it were about to fly up into the air. With the reddish-brown stones, the giant loong appears to be coated with scales of the same color under the sunlight. Against the blue sky, it becomes more lifelike and seems ready to come out at one’s call.

The stone-piled loong at the Chahai site provides a more concrete image for the Chinese loong culture. It resides in the center of the village, with important relics underground such as the central tomb area and sacrificial pits. All these indicate that the loong-shaped stone pile is the most significant relic for sacrificial worship in the “Chahai Village” and may probably be the place of gathering and worshipping for the Chahai people, fully embodying that the ideas of primitive religion represented by the extraordinary divine loong were formed in the hearts of Chahai people 8,000 years ago.

The loong-shaped stone pile at the Chahai site is the earliest and largest loong image ever excavated in China. Hence, it is regarded as “China’s first loong.”

In 1991, Su Bingqi, a leading archaeologist in China, was delighted to write down the inscription “Birthplace of the Jade Loong, Origin of a Civilization” after seeing the China’s first loong and the world’s first real jade relic excavated at the Chahai site. These words can be easily understood but have abundant connotations. In his view, the Chahai site plays a vital role in the development and evolution of Chinese civilization.