The empirical tracing of the differentiation between humans and apes has always been an important research subject in archaeology and anthropology. Since the 19th century, under the influence of the theory of biological evolution, ancient humans such as the Australopithecus, Homo habilis, Neanderthals and Denisovans have been successively discovered around the world. The development and evolution of ancient humans have been explored ever since. Chinese civilization is the only continuous one in the world that has survived to this day since ancient times. The over a million years of history of human development laid a solid foundation for the development and evolution of the over 10,000-year of history of Chinese culture and the over 5,000- year of history of Chinese civilization.

China is one of the regions with the most abundant archaeological resources of ancient humans in the world. Since the first skull of Peking Man (Homo erectus pekinensis) was discovered at Zhoukoudian Site in 1929, prehistoric human fossils have been discovered at more than 70 sites in China. Many ancient human fossils distributed across the vast land of China, such as Yuanmou Man (Homo erectus yuanmouensis), Lantian Man (Homo erectus lantianensis), Peking Man (Homo erectus pekinensis), Upper Cave Man, together with a large number of associated remains, constitute the direct evidence of human evolution and development in China. After the 1980s, ancient DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) became a powerful tool for studying human genetic and evolutionary history, providing a new approach to exploring human origins and making the study of human history more fascinating. For a long time, Chinese archaeologists have made constant efforts to study human origins, modern human origins, and Paleolithic archaeology in China. They have demonstrated China’s over a million years of human history with increasingly rich and detailed data, provided first-hand material for better studying the history of Chinese civilization and shaping the national awareness of Chinese history, and made fundamental, forward-looking, strategic and innovative contributions to improving the global understanding of human origins and evolutionary laws.

Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Commitment, pointed out that the Chinese nation has formed a great national spirit and excellent traditional culture in the long history. This is not only the cultural gene of the Chinese nation that lives and thrives, but also the spiritual force to achieve the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. We sincerely hope that through this exhibition, we can guide the general public to understand the arduous history of China's millions of years of human activities, perceive the rich connotation of the Chinese nation and Chinese civilization, and make greater contribution to promoting cultural self-confidence and self-improvement to forge a new glory of socialist culture.