Sanxingdui 三星堆 and the Xia Dynasty夏朝

The argument hinges on the presence of "abnormal lead" in Sanxingdui bronzes. This type of lead, characterized by specific isotopic ratios, is traced back to a source in South Africa.

The early Chinese bronzes containing this unusual lead cannot be found in present-day China. This leads the author to propose a radical theory: the Xia Dynasty 夏朝, along with other ancient Chinese dynasties like the Shang 商朝 and Zhou周朝, originated not in the Yellow River Valley but in Mesopotamia.

The Xia Dynasty 夏朝 later moved to the Indus Valley (present-day Pakistan) before being defeated by the Shang Dynasty 商朝 and fleeing to the Sichuan 四川 region, where they established the Sanxingdui culture.