Dr Jianhua Yang is a Professor of Archaeology at Jilin University, Visiting Research Fellow at the Center for Ancient Civilization Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), member of the Academic Committee of the CASS Institute of Archaeology, and standing member of the Chinese Archaeology Society. She has been a Senior Visiting Scholar at the University of Cambridge, UK (1993-1994, 2002), and at the University of Pittsburgh, USA (2007-2008). Her research interests include archaeological theory, historical development of archaeology as a discipline, West Asian archaeology, and Bronze Age archaeology in Northern China. Dr Huiqiu Shao is a Professor of Archaeology at Jilin University, and has been a Visiting Scholar at the University of Pennsylvania, USA (2012-2013). His research interests include Bronze Age archaeology in Northern China, Xinjiang archaeology and Eurasian Steppe archaeology. Dr Ling Pan is a Professor of Archaeology at Jilin University. Her research interests include Chinese northern frontier archaeology, Warring-States archaeology, Qin Dynasty archaeology and Han Dynasty archaeology.