Name: Peking Man Skull

Latin name: Homo erectus in Beijing

abstract

In the 1920s, archaeologists began to dig in Zhoukoudian and found some complete ape-man skulls about 600,000 years ago. They were named Beijingers, officially named "Beijing species of Chinese apes", and now they are often called "Homo erectus in Beijing" in science, belonging to the Paleolithic age.

Discovery process

1929 12, located at the site of Peking Man on Gulong Mountain, Zhoukoudian Village, Fangshan District, Beijing, China archaeologists discovered the first Peking Man skull fossil, and later found five relatively complete skulls and more than 200 bone fossils, as well as a large number of stone tools, animal fossils and ashes. The excavation of Zhoukoudian was a pioneering work with a large scale and a long duration, which was unprecedented in China at that time.

Later, some stone tools and fires used by apes were found in Gulong Mountain. Through the study of these archaeological materials, it is proved that Beijingers were homo erectus about 690 thousand years ago. They live a cave life dominated by hunting, can use and make rough stone tools, and also learn to use fire to keep warm and eat cooked food.

As early as the Northern Song Dynasty, there was a spread of "keel" in Zhoukoudian, Beijing. People regard "keel" as a godsend medicine. It is said that grinding it into powder and applying it to the wound can relieve pain and promote healing. Because it is rich in keel, people call a mountain here Gulong Mountain. Recently, after the research of paleontologists, it is considered that the so-called "keel" is only a paleontological bone fossil. This attracted many paleontologists and archaeologists to the Zhoukoudian area for excavation and investigation.

1926, scientists found two teeth belonging to early humans in Zhoukoudian. In June+10 of the same year, when the scientific community in Beijing reported this important discovery, it immediately caused a sensation at home and abroad. Later, scientists decided to name the owners of these two teeth "Beijingers" and later "Beijing Chinese Apes". In this way, the mystery of the so-called "keel" was solved. This is not a godsend skeleton, but a fossil of human ancestors and their contemporaries.

1927, the large-scale excavation of Zhoukoudian Peking man site began. The organizers of this excavation are China Geological Survey and Peking Union Medical College. In the second year, Yang and Pei Wenzhong, two capable young paleontologists in China, participated in the excavation of Zhoukoudian. They are full of energy and bring life to the whole scene. By 1929, the miracle that shocked the world academic circles finally happened: the first complete Peking man skull was found in Zhoukoudian. It was the early winter of this year. During the excavation, the staff suddenly saw a small hole. The gap in the hole was very narrow and only one person could enter and exit. In order to find out the truth, Pei Wenzhong came to the cave and looked at it carefully. He is very happy. It turns out that many animal fossils have been found here by accident. In spite of the cold, he decided to continue digging. By 4 o'clock in the afternoon on February 2, 65438, the sun had set and the sky outside the cave gradually darkened. A cold wind blew in Shan Ye, and it felt colder in the cave, but in the dim candlelight, people were still absorbed in their work. Suddenly, Pei Wenzhong shouted happily, "It's an ape!" Everyone gathered around and found the skull of an ape-man, half of which was exposed to the ground and the other half was buried in hard soil. People are so excited that they can't take their eyes off them. It's getting dark at this time, but everyone's mood is impatient. Pei Wenzhong resolutely decided to continue digging until the first Peking man's skull was completely unearthed. Nobody slept well that night. Early the next morning, Pei Wenzhong sent someone to report the good news to the Beijing Geological Survey. A few days later, on February 6th, 12, Pei Wenzhong personally took a car and escorted this rare treasure into the city with his own two quilts, plates and blankets.

1936, Jia Lanpo discovered three "Peking Man" skull fossils in the Ape Cave. During World War II, five complete and relatively complete skulls unearthed in Zhoukoudian Ape Cave disappeared mysteriously, which shocked the world again.

6 skulls, 12 skull fragments, 15 mandibles, 157 teeth, femoral fracture, fishbone, etc. A total of Peking man fossils were unearthed, belonging to more than 40 men, women and children. Archaeologists have also discovered more than 654.38 million stone tools, ash smoke sites with fire, charred stones and bones. Beijingers created a unique Paleolithic culture, which had a far-reaching impact on the development of Paleolithic culture in northern China.

lose

Beijing ape-man fossils are preserved in Peking Union Medical College Hospital. 1940, 1940 On February 26th, 1940, the Japanese army occupied Beiping, and the US-Japan war was imminent. It's not safe for the skull to stay in Beiping. Yin Zanxun, deputy director of the Central Geological Survey in Chongqing at that time, wrote to Pei Wenzhong, technical researcher of the Central Geological Survey in Beiping at that time and deputy director of the Cenozoic research office, describing the sinister situation and worries about the preservation of Peking man's skull fossils, and proposed to entrust American friends to American academic institutions for temporary preservation.

Weng Wenhao, secretary-general of the Central Administration Department of the Kuomintang, also began to actively coordinate the transportation of the "skull" to the new york Museum of Natural History for temporary preservation. 194 1 year 1 month 10, Weng and Yin Zanxun wrote letters to Hutton, Dean of Union Medical College, and Honorary Director of Cenozoic Laboratory respectively. "In view of the growing tension between the United States and Japan, the United States is standing on the same front with China against Japan, and we have to consider the safety of scientific specimens in the Cenozoic laboratory in Beiping. We are prepared to agree to transport them to the United States and entrust an academic research institution to temporarily keep them for us during the period of China and War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. "

At the same time, Weng Wenhao also wrote directly to Zhan Sen, the US ambassador to China, to clarify his intention to transfer the "skull". However, according to the previous agreement, the cultural relics unearthed in Zhoukoudian funded by Rockefeller Foundation must stay in China and may not be exported. The United States politely refused.

Hutton wrote in his reply to Weng Wen Hao: "It is unrealistic to try to transfer these fossils out of Beijing. Transporting them out of China or Japanese-occupied areas is easy to be confiscated. " Considering the safety of the "skull", both Hutton and Dunrui Wei think that it should not be transferred, nor can it be transferred. It's best to put it in the safe and then put it in the vault in the school basement.

The efforts of Weng and other Chinese personnel have not stopped. They applied again and again, but American officials and scientists repeatedly refused and exchanged ideas for several months. 194 1 year 1 1 month, after repeated coordination by Weng, and finally with Chiang Kai-shek's nod, Chongqing Kuomintang government made it clear that it promised to leave the country. Thanks to Weng's repeated entreaties and mediation, the United States finally agreed to arrange for the Americans to take them out of China and temporarily store them in the American Museum of Natural History in new york.

According to the archives released by Li, the transfer of the "Skull" began as planned and was escorted by the US Marine Corps. Take the special train from Beiping to Qinhuangdao to Qinhuangdao port, where I boarded the ship named "President Hudson" and planned to arrive in Qinhuangdao on February 8, 65438. On the morning of the 8th, the train arrived in Qinhuangdao. At this time, Japan's air attack on Pearl Harbor had begun, and immediately, the Japanese troops stationed in Shanhaiguan, Qinhuangdao suddenly attacked the US military. The trains and soldiers of the US Marine Corps, including the personnel of Holmes Barracks in Qinhuangdao, instantly became the prisoners of the Japanese army, and the materials and luggage including "Beijingers" of course became the trophies of the Japanese army. Since then, they have disappeared. ...

There are five missing Peking man skulls. Skulls of three Neanderthals; Dozens of Peking man's skull fragments; Beijingers have nearly 100 teeth; Remaining mandible 13 in Beijing area; Upper clavicle of Peking man 1 block; Peking man's 1 upper carpal bone; Beijing superior nasal bone 1 block; 7 human pelvic bones in the cave; The shoulder blades of three people in the cave; There are three caveman kneecaps and two monkey skull fossils. 5. Monkeys' mandible fossils; 3. Fossil remains of monkey maxilla; Box 1 fossil fragments of monkey skull; There are four cavemen's mandibles and a large number of other precious fossils.

seek

After the end of World War II, the United States, China and Japan all carried out the search for Peking man skulls, but so far no trace of these precious fossils has been found. For many years, the search for "Beijingers" has remained at the level of folk operation and scholars' appeal. 1998, the academician of China Academy of Sciences 14, headed by Jia Lanpo, a famous paleoanthropologist and one of the discoverers of "Peking man" skull fossils, called on relevant people to take action to look for "Peking man" fossils. 1999, the relevant departments of Fangshan District also issued an appeal for "the search at the end of the century". However, due to the intervention of foreign governments and related people such as Japan and South Korea, it is difficult to make progress by private efforts alone.

2005-07-02 The Fangshan District Government of Beijing, the hometown of Beijingers, officially announced the establishment of a working committee to search for Peking man skull fossils. At this point, under the leadership of the government, a unified coordination of civil forces to find "Beijingers" was born.

According to the Fangshan District Government, Nie Yuzao, secretary of Fangshan District Party Committee, and Qi Hong, acting district head of the district government, will serve as the political commissar and director of the working committee for finding "Peking man" skull fossils respectively. Expert consultants of the Committee include Wu Xinzhi, an academician of China Academy of Sciences, and Zhou Guoxing, a professor of anthropology and prehistoric archaeology. This work will be carried out by Zhoukoudian Peking Man Site Management Office and Zhoukoudian Paleoanthropology Research Center of vertebrate paleontology and Paleoanthropology Institute of Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The Committee has an office and a search task force, which are responsible for: formulating a search plan, reporting it for examination and approval, and going out for investigation; After tracking the clues on the spot, sort out the data and report it in time; For valuable and important clues, after reporting for approval, with the support and assistance of relevant departments, dig deep and search for domestic clues.

Significance of Peking man's skull

According to the study of cultural deposits, Beijingers lived 700,000-200,000 years ago. The average brain capacity of Beijingers is 1088 ml (modern brain capacity is 1400), and the estimated height of Beijingers is 156 cm (male) and 150 cm (female). Beijingers belong to the Stone Age, and the main method of processing stone tools is hammering, followed by smashing and occasionally anvil striking. Beijingers were also the earliest ancient humans who used fire and hunted large animals. According to statistics, 68.2% of Beijingers 14 years old died, and less than 4.5% were over 50 years old.

At the top of 1930 Gulong Mountain, an ancient human fossil, named "Neanderthal", which lived about 20,000 years ago, was excavated. 1973, a "new caveman" was found in two years, which indicates the continuation and development of Beijingers.

The discovery of Peking ape-man sites and fossils is a major event in the history of paleoanthropology in the world. Up to now, no ancient human site has so much information about ancient humans, ancient cultures and ancient animal fossils as Zhoukoudian Peking Man Site. Peking man fossils have become a rare treasure that attracts worldwide attention. "Peking man" is not the earliest human being, but as a representative of the link from ape to man, it is called "the most meaningful and touching discovery in the whole ancient human history", so the preciousness of "Peking man skull" can be imagined.

But because of this, it has also become the coveted object of some speculators and imperialists. Five Peking man skulls and a batch of fossils excavated by Pei Wenzhong mysteriously "disappeared" during their stay in War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. This incident became a theft that shocked the world. Since the 1950s, people have been looking for it. It is annoying that there is still no result so far. This case has attracted more and more attention in the world. We believe that in the near future, Peking man's skull fossils should be returned to their descendants.

The Mystery of Peking Man's Skull Missing

Seven versions make history confusing.

Where are the skull fossils of Beijingers? Since the Pacific War broke out in 194 1, the mystery of "Peking man's skull" (hereinafter referred to as "Peking man") has been solved, but it has not been realized so far. 1998, 14 senior academicians of the Chinese academy of sciences, including Jia Lanpo, who is known as the father of Beijingers, launched the "big search at the end of the century" without any results.

Recently, with the establishment of the working committee for finding "Peking man's skull" fossils in Fangshan District of Beijing, the old topic of "Peking man's whereabouts" has once again become the focus of public attention.

Peking man may be ruined.

"Do Peking man skull fossils still exist in the world?" Yang Haifeng, director of Zhoukoudian Peking Man Site Management Office, was optimistic when asked by the Morning Post reporter. "I personally think that the' Peking man skull' fossil is not only alive, but also should not be difficult to find, because it has not disappeared for a long time, and the possibility of finding it is still relatively large."

It is reported that over the years, experts have basically held three attitudes towards the question of whether the "Peking man skull" fossil is alive, one thinks that the fossil is still alive, the other thinks that the fossil has been destroyed by the war, and the other is vague about the whereabouts of the fossil and thinks that it is impossible to speculate.

"I think it is still alive because the fossil packaging is quite beautiful." Yang Haifeng added, "Even if people who don't have much literacy see it, they won't throw it away or destroy it easily." He believes that according to Hu Chengzhi, a paleoanthropologist in China and the last old man to see fossils, the fossils, including the "Peking man skull" at that time, were all wrapped in six layers, and they were very careful from the inside out. Even if it was packed in two wooden boxes without special signs, I believe that even ordinary Japanese soldiers at that time would report it.

"I dare not, nor can I jump to conclusions." When it comes to the whereabouts of fossils, 88-year-old Hu Chengzhi is quite cautious. "Because I don't have any evidence to prove or speculate on the whereabouts of fossils." He said that at that time, wars were very cruel and frequent. If it's gold and silver jewelry calligraphy and painting, it may still be preserved. But for several bones ("Peking man skull" fossils), it is hard to say that the Japanese army has such a high resolution. In this regard, Jia, who has been a secretary to his father Jia Lanpo for ten years, also holds the same attitude, and it is hard to draw conclusions about fossils.

"Combining all kinds of information and clues at present, I think it is very likely that fossils will be destroyed by war." In this regard, Chen Chun, a professor in the Department of Cultural Relics and Museums of Fudan University and a student of Jia Lanpo, the "father of Beijingers", said that "the hope of finding fossils should be rather slim." 1998, teacher Jia Lanpo and more than a dozen other academicians launched a "century-end search", but in the end, they didn't find any valuable clues.

Chen Chun said that from the current data, the "Peking man skull" fossil should have been placed in the basement vault of Union Medical College Hospital at that time. The Japanese army suddenly launched a war and occupied the hospital, but the fossils were not transported away at all, and the Japanese army destroyed them in the basement. In addition, he also said, for example, that even the president of the Union Medical College Hospital and members of the US Marine Corps were arrested at that time, and it was too late to escape. Who cares about fossils?

Fossils are buried in ritan park

"Yes 1996. An old Japanese soldier sent a message to the relevant departments in China before he died, saying that the fossil was buried under a pine tree in ritan park, which had a special mark on it. " Speaking of the excavation, Jia recalled, "At first, everyone didn't believe it, but they did find the pine tree."

1In May, 1996, the electric shock detection team of Institute of Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences conducted two high-density electrical exploration, surface wave exploration and multi-channel shallow seismic exploration in the buried area, and quickly reached a conclusion. After consultation, an agreement was finally reached with Beijing ritan park Management Office, and the excavation was officially carried out on the morning of June 3, 1996.

"At that time, experts were very low-key about the excavation, and all around the site were covered with plastic sheets," Jia said. "Because it feels unlikely, we still have to look for it, so it has not been announced."

However, when digging to a depth of more than 2 meters, experts still didn't find any buried objects, let alone break ground. According to this situation, after deliberation, experts further dug a section, and the result was fine yellow sandstone. Subsequently, the scope of excavation was expanded again, but no buried objects were found. Based on this, the field experts judged that the geophysical anomaly at that time should be caused by a large number of gray-white calcareous nodules under the surface, so they decided to stop digging and searching.

Fossils were loaded on the sunken ship Apomaru.

"According to the information provided by the United States to China, the fossils are likely to be on the Apomaru." When it comes to the whereabouts of fossils, historian Li told the media more than once that he has been studying and looking for fossils for many years. It is reported that when US President Nixon visited China, he gave the China government what the US considered to be the whereabouts of fossils as a top secret gift, saying that the fossils might be on the Japanese sunken ship "Apomaru".

It is understood that "Apomaru" was built in the 1940s and is a Japanese ocean-going tanker. On March 28th, 1945, the Apomaru, which had been requisitioned by the Japanese army, loaded a large number of Japanese officers and dignitaries retreating from Southeast Asia in Singapore and sailed for Japan. At midnight on April 1, the ship went to the sea east of Niushan Island in Fujian, China, and was attacked by a U.S. submarine cruising in the sea, and sank quickly three minutes later.

Li firmly believes that the direct cause of the "Peking man skull" on the sunken ship is a document handed over to China by the United States. Li told the media that 1996, when he was sorting out the information, he suddenly found something he had never seen before, which meant that the missing "Peking man skull" was probably on the sunken "Apo Pill".

1977, China initially salvaged the sunken ship "Apowan", but due to the limitation of diving technology at that time, only 3000 tons of tin ingots and some other things were found, but the "Peking man skull" was not found. However, the fishermen found a small official seal and a round inkstone in the home of Zheng Yutong, a politician of the Puppet Manchukuo. From this, the ship confirmed the speculation that it contained a large number of treasures from northern China, and it also became a strong circumstantial evidence that "Apo Pill" might contain "Peking Man Skull".

"I don't think it's possible!" Jia's attitude towards is very clear. He thinks that if the Japanese got the "Peking man's skull" fossil, why did they wait until 1945 to ship it back to Japan, not to mention the ship that made a detour from Singapore? "However, this is also looking for clues." He told the Morning Post reporter, "It is only estimated that the possibility is very small."

Fossils are on the "President Harrison"

Some scholars believe that the "Peking man's skull" fossil should have been lost on the transport ship "President Harrison" from Beiping to Qinhuangdao, and the "President Harrison" sank halfway because it was chased by Japanese ships.

It is said that 194 1 10 On February 5th, the US Marine Corps with the "Peking Man Skull" fossils took a special train to Qinhuangdao, where they were going to load the fossils on American regular ships departing from Shanghai.

President Harrison. At that time, the ship was scheduled to arrive at Qinhuangdao pier on February 8, 65438.

"This ship has never reached Qinhuangdao." Professor Chen Chun said firmly. He said that the "President Harrison" never sailed to the destination of Qinhuangdao Port to join the US Marine Corps. After sailing from Manila, the capital of the Philippines, it was chased by a Japanese warship. Finally, it ran aground near the Yangtze River estuary east of Shanghai and was sunk by the Japanese army.

Fossils are on board the lisbon maru.

Recently, it was reported in Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province that the "Peking Man Skull" fossil may be on the sunken lisbon maru.

According to relevant records, in the early morning of 194210.2, the "lisbon maru" carrying more than 700 Japanese soldiers and 1800 British prisoners and their belongings was sunk by a torpedo while passing through the waters near Zhoushan, and a large number of cultural relics and treasures on board were buried at the bottom of the sea. Later, 384 British officers and men were rescued by fishermen nearby, and according to the memories of the rescued British prisoners of war, there were a lot of gold treasures and cultural relics looted by the Japanese army, and there may be fossils of "Peking man skulls".

"This possibility is almost impossible." Hearing the news, Jia expressed doubts, because he had never heard of the ship in these years, and he could not judge from the position and sailing route. A person in charge of Zhoushan local historical investigation and research institute of lisbon maru shipwreck also said that "skull" may be a rumor on the "lisbon maru" shipwreck, and the statement of British prisoners of war is questionable.

Fossils from the US military barracks in Tianjin

In 1980s, American anthropologist Shapiro said in his book Peking Man that a former marine told him that these fossils had been transferred to the US Marine Corps barracks in Tianjin.

19711021According to Phyllis, an American doctor who escorted Peking man fossils abroad, the box containing Peking man fossils was placed under the wooden floor in the basement of Building 6 of the US Marine Corps Barracks in Tianjin.

"Later, there was news for me that there were no fossils at all." Jia revealed. It is reported that the former military camp has changed hands several times and is now owned by Tianjin Health School. Building 6 collapsed in the 1976 earthquake and was later razed to the ground and turned into a playground. Even the foundation was dug while repairing the building, and there was nothing as a result. However, Jia said that one thing is certain, and his father Jia Lanpo also verified that the fossils were indeed transported to the barracks.

The fossils are in the former US Consulate in Beiping.

It is said that Professor Zhou Guoxing, a paleoanthropologist, later got an important clue that the fossil may be in the former American Consulate in Peiping (Beijing). As Professor Zhou Guoxing is visiting abroad, this statement has not been confirmed.

Hu Chengzhi revealed that he packed the fossils, transported them to the hospital office and left, and never saw them again. "I don't know how to get lucky in the future."

According to Jia, "My father Jia Lanpo verified that the fossils were later transported to the US Marine Corps barracks in Tianjin and from there to Qinhuangdao, but the troops were captured by the Japanese army halfway and the fossils were never found." "From this point of view, the statement that fossils are still in the US consulate is not credible."

Fossils will be shipped to America.

1929 65438+February 2, an important moment in paleoanthropology research, the skull of Peking man was excavated! The discovery of Peking man's skull provides strong evidence for the theory from ape to man. 1936 With the efforts of scientific researchers, exciting news came again. This year, three adult ape-man skull fossils were discovered.

1937 is the golden age of site excavation. However, after the Lugouqiao Incident, the excavation work in Zhoukoudian was interrupted, but researchers were still able to sort out fossils in the Cenozoic research room of Peking Union Medical College Hospital.

By 194 1, Japan-US relations have become increasingly tense. In Peiping, which was occupied by the Japanese army at that time, the Japanese army began to occupy some neutral American institutions in Peiping. Peking Union Medical College Hospital, where Peking man skull fossils are kept, is an American property, but it seems that it is not immune. In this case, the Cenozoic laboratory decided to find a safer storage place for Peking man fossils.

There were three treatments at that time. First, the fossils were transported to Chongqing, the rear area of the Anti-Japanese War, but in the war environment, it is difficult to guarantee the safety of long-distance transportation; Second, it is buried in Peiping, but the security of the occupied area cannot be guaranteed; Third, shipped to the United States for preservation. Judging from the situation at that time, the third treatment scheme is the best choice.

According to Hu Chengzhi, a paleoanthropologist, all the fossils excavated in Zhoukoudian are the property of China, so it is forbidden to transport them out of China. So the people in the American legation refused to accept it. After the coordination of the National Government and the consent and authorization of the American Ambassador to China in Chongqing, the American Embassy in Beiping received these precious ancient human fossils and prepared to transport them safely to the United States for preservation.

Hu Chengzhi carefully wrapped the fossils and then transported them away. He lamented that I was probably the last person in China to see the Peking man fossil, and no one in China saw or knew its whereabouts.

Secret escort of American troops

19411In the early morning of February 5, a special train of the US Marine Corps left Beiping, which was said to be loaded with fossils of Peking man skulls. After the train arrived in Qinhuangdao as planned, the fossils were transported to the ship "President Harrison" and then to the United States.

The person in charge of this consignment is Welfare, a retired naval doctor who is about to leave China for the United States. Two boxes of fossils were mixed in his 27 boxes of luggage and sent to the train.

This was quite secret at the time, Foley said. In Qinhuangdao, Welfare's assistant Davis is responsible for receiving special luggage. Davis said, I'll get those bags. There are 27 cases. I put them all in my room.

Foley waited for the next day to return home on the "President Harrison". However, the next day, that is,194165438+February 8, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, the United States declared war on Japan, and the Pacific War broke out. The Japanese army quickly occupied American institutions in China, and the barracks of the US Marine Corps in Qinhuangdao were also occupied by the Japanese army. Foley and Davis became prisoners. In the prison camp in Tianjin, Foley and others received the luggage from Qinhuangdao barracks one after another, but the skulls of Beijingers were gone.

The abnormal behavior of the Japanese army

Did the fossils fall into the hands of the Japanese army? After half a year, Hasebe, a professor at the University of Tokyo, and Mark Gao, an assistant professor, suddenly claimed in the English version of Peking News that the Peking man's skull preserved by Union Medical College Hospital had been stolen. The Japanese seem to be sending the message that the Japanese have not found any skull fossils in Qinhuangdao.

Soon, the search for Peking man's skull was in full swing. It is worth noting that the Japanese are particularly hard at hunting, and almost all the people involved in the excavation work are subject to censorship.

Paleoanthropologist Pei Wenzhong was imprisoned for 48 days. His children recalled that experience: it was a morning in early May of 1944 ... some Japanese in military uniforms rushed to the north house where my parents lived with guns. Ten minutes later, the Japanese pushed my father out. In the Japanese gendarmerie, when asked about the whereabouts of his father "Beijinger", his parents all said "I don't know". As soon as I said I didn't know, the Japanese started fighting. At worst, they threw pepper water and beat my father unconscious. Worst of all, according to my father, it was the day he came out, and he came to interrogate you again, saying that Pei Wenzhong was going to shoot you. what do you have to say? I left you a pen and paper. Please write a suicide note. Father began to write, and the Japanese smiled and said, Pei Wenzhong wants you to go home today.

Zhou Guoxing, a paleoanthropologist, recalled: At that time, there was a news that Tianjin had discovered these things ... Then, many detainees were released inexplicably ... If the Japanese gendarmerie failed, how could it be released so easily?

1In August, 945, Japan announced its unconditional surrender. The Japanese announcement soon claimed that a batch of ancient human fossils looted in Tokyo, together with the looted excavation tools, had been handed over to the allied authorities and returned to China. However, there are no Peking man fossils in the list of Japanese returned items received by the China government from the allied headquarters. At the invitation of the Japanese government, the allied headquarters also used the allied troops stationed in China to participate in a large-scale search, but found nothing.