The Cenozoic Research Laboratory () of the

Geological Survey of China The China Geological Survey (CGS) () is a government-owned, China, Chinese organization researching China's mineral resources under the State Council of the People's Republic of China. According to the national land and resources survey plan, it ...

was established within the

Peking Union Medical College Peking Union Medical College, also as Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, is a national public medical sciences research institution in Dongcheng, Beijing, Dongcheng, Beijing, China. Originally founded in 1906, it is affiliated with the Nationa ...

1928 Events January * January – British bacteriologist Frederick Griffith reports the results of Griffith's experiment, indirectly demonstrating that DNA is the genetic material. * January 1 – Eastern Bloc emigration and defection: Boris B ...

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

paleoanthropologist Paleoanthropology or paleo-anthropology is a branch of paleontology and biological anthropology, anthropology which seeks to understand the early development of anatomically modern humans, a process known as wikt:hominization, hominization, throug ...

Davidson Black Davidson Black, (July 25, 1884 – March 15, 1934) was a Canadian paleoanthropologist, best known for his naming of ''Sinanthropus pekinensis'' (now '' Homo erectus pekinensis''). He was Chairman of the Geological Survey of China and a Fel ...

and

Chinese Chinese may refer to: * Something related to China * Chinese people, people identified with China, through nationality, citizenship, and/or ethnicity **Han Chinese, East Asian ethnic group native to China. **'' Zhonghua minzu'', the supra-ethnic ...

geologist A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...

Ding Wenjing Ding may refer to: Bronze and ceramics * Ding (vessel), a bronze or ceramic cauldron used in ancient and early imperial China * Ding ware, ceramics produced in Dingzhou in medieval China People * Ding (surname) (丁), a Chinese surname and list ...

and

Weng Wenhao Weng Wenhao (; 26 July 1889 – 27 January 1971) was a Chinese geologist and politician. He was one of the earliest modern Chinese geologists, and is regarded as the founder of modern Chinese geology and the father of modern Chinese oil industr ...

for the research and appraisal of

Peking Man Peking Man (''Homo erectus pekinensis'', originally "''Sinanthropus pekinensis''") is a subspecies of '' H. erectus'' which inhabited what is now northern China during the Middle Pleistocene. Its fossils have been found in a cave some southw ...

fossils unearthed at

Zhoukoudian Zhoukoudian Area () is a town and an area located on the east Fangshan District, Beijing, China. It borders Nanjiao and Fozizhuang Townships to its north, Xiangyang, Chengguan and Yingfeng Subdistricts to its east, Shilou and Hangcunhe Towns to ...

History

Davidson Black founded the laboratory with an $80,000 grant from the

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The foundation was created by Standard Oil magnate John D. Rockefeller (" ...

and stayed on as honorary director until he died in his office, surrounded by his finds, in

1934 Events January–February * January 1 – The International Telecommunication Union, a specialist agency of the League of Nations, is established. * January 15 – The 8.0 1934 Nepal–Bihar earthquake, Nepal–Bihar earthquake strik ...

. He was replaced by

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

anthropologist An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...

Franz Weidenreich Franz Weidenreich (7 June 1873 – 11 July 1948) was a Jewish German anatomist and physical anthropologist who studied evolution. Life and career Weidenreich studied at the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Universität in Strasbourg where he earned a medica ...

. Excavations at Zhoukoudian ceased in

1937 Events January * January 1 – Anastasio Somoza García becomes President of Nicaragua. * January 5 – Water levels begin to rise in the Ohio River in the United States, leading to the Ohio River flood of 1937, which continues into Feb ...

with the Japanese occupation and the fossils from the site were locked in the laboratory safe under the assumption that they would be secure at the American-run hospital. However, in the summer of

1941 The Correlates of War project estimates this to be the deadliest year in human history in terms of conflict deaths, placing the death toll at 3.49 million. However, the Uppsala Conflict Data Program estimates that the subsequent year, 1942, wa ...

, fearing imminent war between America and Japan, Weidenreich ordered copies of the bones to be made. When this task had been completed secretary Hu Chengzi packed up the fossils so they could be shipped to the U.S. for safekeeping until the end of the war. They were never seen again. Now only Weidenreich's timely copies and the research notes of the staff remain to demonstrate the pioneering work of this laboratory that is considered to be the precursor of the modern

Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology The Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP; ) of People's Republic of China, China is a research institution and collections repository for fossils, including many dinosaur and pterosaur specimens (many from the Yixian For ...

(IVPP) of the

Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...

Staff

* Bian Mienmien joined in

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

and undertook excavations at Zhokoudian until they ceased in

. *

founded the laboratory in 1928 and served as its honorary director until he died at his desk in 1934. *

assisted in the founding of the laboratory and served as honorary director in its early years. *

Jia Lanpo Jia Lanpo (; November 25, 1908 in Yutian, Hebei – July 8, 2001 in Beijing) was a Chinese palaeoanthropologist, considered a founder of Chinese anthropology. He graduated from the Huiwen Academy in Beijing in 1929 and went on to work as a ...

joined in 1931 and took over the running of the excavations at Zhoukoudian from

1935 Events January * January 7 – Italian premier Benito Mussolini and French Foreign Minister Pierre Laval conclude an agreement, in which each power agrees not to oppose the other's colonial claims. * January 12 – Amelia Earhart ...

-37. *

Pei Wenzhong Pei Wenzhong (; January 19, 1904 – September 18, 1982), or W. C. Pei, was a Chinese paleontologist, archaeologist and anthropologist born in Fengnan. He is considered a founding figure of Chinese anthropology. accessed 20 January 2015 Career ...

joined in

, took over the running of the excavations at Zhoukoudian from

1933 Events January * January 11 – Australian aviator Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independen ...

- 34, and returned in 1937. *

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (; 1 May 1881 – 10 April 1955) was a French Jesuit, Catholic priest, scientist, palaeontologist, theologian, and teacher. He was Darwinian and progressive in outlook and the author of several influential theologi ...

worked as a consultant from its foundation. *

appointed honorary director in 1935 following Black's death. *

Yang Zhongjian Yang Zhongjian, also Yang Chung-chien (; 1 June 1897 – 15 January 1979), courtesy name Keqiang (), also known as C.C. (Chung Chien) Young, was a Chinese paleontologist and zoologist. He was one of China's foremost vertebrate paleontologists. ...

took over the running of the excavations at Zhoukoudian from 1928 to 1933.

References

External links

Division of Cenozoic Geology and Environment
IGGCAS {{authority control Earth science research institutes Research institutes in China Research institutes established in 1926