0147 - Fossil Peanuts Discovered In Guangxi. Two fossil peanuts have been d...Back

Fossil Peanuts Discovered In Guangxi. Two fossil peanuts have been discovered recently in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The discovery produces proof that China might be one of the earliest peanut producers on earth. Most specialists hold that peanuts originate in South America or North America and Africa. Some of the Chinese specialists believe that peanuts were introduced into China from abroad around the 17th century. In 1958 and 1961, Chinese archaeologists discovered six peanut seeds in ancient cultural sites in Zhejiang and Jiangxi provinces. This led some of the specialists to the belief that as far back as the New Stone Age, peanuts were existent in China and that China was one of the earliest peanut producers in the world. The two fossil peanuts discovered in Guangxi bear a close resemblance to the big-seed peanuts grown today. The X-ray examination shows that there are seeds within the pods. One can hear the sound when shaking them. The two fossil peanuts were discovered respectively in Binyang county and Rongshui county, Guangxi, by worker Chen Guanghua of Binyang county and staff member Deng Jingjuan of Guangxi Museum.