Liye Ancient Town is located in the south of Longshan, a county of Hunan Province. Liye literally means ploughed and cultivated land in the language of the Tujia ethnic group. Historically, it was a key link between Chu State and Shu State along the Youshui River. The ancient town used to be a cradle of the Tujia people and was built by Chu State during the Warring States Period (476-221 BC). It underwent reconstruction during the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) and the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24) and fell into ruin in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220).
Liye Ancient Town has been inscribed onto the lists of national key cultural relics and national-level towns with rich historical and cultural heritage.
Liye Ancient Town was unearthed during an archaeological excavation in 2002. Archaeologists also found ancient wells and 37,400 Qin-style bamboo and wooden slips, about ten times the total number of such slips discovered in the past. These slips covered politics, economics, culture, military, postal service, laws, astronomical knowledge and calendar system of that time.
The discovery of these bamboo and wooden slips has been hailed as an archaeological breakthrough with great importance similar to the oracle bone scripts unearthed in Anyang, the literary works of the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang, and the Terracotta Warriors in Xi'an.
Liye Town is the core of Liye-Wulong Mountain Scenic Area. Its cultural relics and tourist attractions include an archaeological site park of Liye Ancient Town, the Liye Qin Slips Museum, Daban Ancient Town of the Western Han Dynasty, ancient tombs, historical neighborhoods of the Ming and Qing Dynasties, Basha ancient villages, and Bamian Mountain Scenic Area.
