In every general world history book I've read, China is listed as one of the first "cradles" of civilization. Specifically in one of the river valleys (Yellow River)? But this is seldom explored, the texts instead focusing on Egypt or Sumer. Even the Indus River Valley civilization is discussed more.
So I want to know, what do we know about early Chinese civilization (way before the first dynasty). Did they leave behind any texts or intriguing art? What was the religion or social organization?
I realize this is a very broad question, but I'm eager for any good answers. Additionally, why is the history of early China covered so little?
You are correct in that early civilization in China developed around the Yellow River. However, was it an early Chinese civilization? That's one question historians and archaeologists are still puzzling over. It's not exclusive to China either, it's like asking how German or French the ancient La Tène civilization was. Same place doesn't equate to same culture - people move around for a variety of causes, after all.
Still, if you're looking for more information not exclusively on early Chinese civilization, but early civilization in China, there's quite a bit out there.
The oldest civilization in China that is historically verified would be the Peiligang civilization, which can be traced back to the Neolithic era (as far back as 7000BC to around 5000BC). The Peiligang civilization was based in and around the Luo River, a tributary of the greater Yellow River. Peiligang civilization was fairly advanced for its time, and the Peiligang civilization is known to have practiced agriculture in the form of millet cultivation, animal husbandry revolving around cattle, pigs, and poultry, as well as fishing and most likely hunting and gathering. The oldest pottery in China can also be dated back to Peiligang civilization.
The Peiligang civilization was immediately succeeded by the Yangshao civilization which can be traced back to 5000BC till around 3000BC. The closeness of the two civilizations in terms of the eras within which they existed indicates some kind of close succession. Based upon the Huangtu Plateau, with extensive archaeological evidence along the entirety of the Yellow River, the Yangshao civilization was quite similar to the Peiligang civilization with a few notable differences.
Like the Peiligang civilization, the Yangshao practiced agriculture, also cultivating millet, but appeared to be the first to start cultivating rice as well, along with hemp. Agriculture is believed to have been more slash-and-burn rather than permanent, with exhausted areas being burned and left to recover as the village was uprooted and moved to a new location. The Yangshao were the first recorded civilization in China to practice the cultivation of silk fabrics to a limited degree. Cultivated hemp was woven into clothing. Strangely, compared to the earlier Peiligang civilization, animal husbandry revolved more around just pigs and dogs, rather than a wider variety of animals, although evidence of sheep, cattle, and goats kept in Yangshao settlements were still found, albeit rarely.
Yangshao civilization was then succeeded (how, why, etc., is still under research) by the Longshan civilization (3000BC - 1900BC). Although very similar to previous Peiligang and Yangshao civilizations, the Longshan civilization is still distinct due to the higher skill level of its craftsmen, specifically in the area of pottery. The famous "black eggshell pottery", or "Ancient Chinese black pottery", comes from Longshan civilization, and to date is one of the most valuable and prized archaeological finds in China due to its sheer antiquity and rarity. In terms of agriculture, apart from millet and rice, Longshan civilization appeared to also cultivate wheat, and specialized tools for agriculture such as grinders have been found. Pigs and dogs continued to be the dominant animal used in animal husbandry, and the pace of silk production had begun expanding to small-scale sericulture.
Longshan civilization was chronologically succeeded by the Erlitou civilization (1900 to 1600/1500BC). Many consider the Erlitou civilization to be part of the semi-legendary Xia Dynasty, the first dynasty of China. Yet, the Xia Dynasty, despite being an important part of the Chinese dynastic lineage and the Chinese founding myths, is mostly - well - fiction, to put it bluntly. No hard historical records or archaeological evidence authenticate its existence. The earliest mention of the Xia Dynasty was about 1000 years since it purportedly existed, and if it did exist, it kind of makes sense that the succeeding Shang Dynasty would have some mention of it in their language (oracle bone script, or 甲骨文) - which they don't. But, since your question explicitly states 'way before the first dynasty', and the Xia Dynasty is theoretically the first dynasty, I suppose we've come to the end of your question!
Erlitou civilization - or the Xia Dynasty - whichever you prefer, was then succeeded by the Shang Dynasty in 1600/1500BC. From that point on, the dynastic rule of China began.
It is important to note that while Pre-Dynastic China may seem to form a convenient chronological order from Peiligang -> Yangshao -> Longshan -> Erlitou/Xia Dynasty, this may not be the case. Although Peiligang is definitely the oldest, from the Peiligang civilizations onwards there were several 'branch-off' civilizations that may have had differing cultures and practices instead of being part of a 'greater' Chinese whole.
Hope this helped!
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