ABSTRACT
Yanxiadu takes the form of a rectangle, with an ancient river course running from the north to the south through the middle, which was probably a grain transport channel. The launch of the dayizhi policy at the national level with the 11th Five Year Plan found Yi County and the Yanxiadu site in an unusual situation compared with other local governments. Moreover, in terms of the tension between protection and economic development, conflicts with agriculture were still a problem: restraint on activities and on facilities caused higher production costs for farmers. The archaeological work at Yanxiadu unfolded as one of the first sites in China, triggered as more and more important antiquities unearthed there showed up on the Beijing antiques market in the 1920s and 1930s. A very interesting aspect of the Yanxiadu experience is the involvement of public education as a way of enhancing public awareness.
