NANNING - Chinese archaeologists have discovered a site, thousands of years old, in South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region during two months of research in the Zuojiang basin.

A 120-square-meter cave was discovered some 10 meters above the water level, dating back to the period between the late Neolithic Age and Zhou Dynasty (about 1,100 BC - 771 BC) said Yang Qingping, research fellow with the Guangxi Institute of Conservation and Archaeology Research.

An initial study unearthed pottery, stone tools and tools made of bone and clam, according to Yang.

"A bone sword and serrated clams were found for the first time in such an ancient site in Guangxi," Yang said, adding that the bone sword might be used for worship, or as a symbol of power, while the serrated clams were for cutting food or scraping fish scales.

Yang said the findings would provide reliable data for research and study of the history of the area.