Foxtail Millet as the Prevailing Auxiliary Crop: Strategic Utilization in Rice‐Based Agriculture at the “Huangzhong Xiaoxue” Section, Jinsha Site (c. 3200–2800  <scp>BP</scp> ), Chengdu Plain

ABSTRACT The Jinsha site constitutes a large‐scale, significant archaeological settlement in the Chengdu Plain, chronologically succeeding the Sanxingdui culture and extending into the Shang‐Zhou period (c. 3200–2800 BP ). One subsection of which, named Huangzhong Xiaoxue, has been preliminarily identified as an ordinary residential area of Jinsha through archaeological excavation. Flotation analysis of archaeobotanical remains unearthed from this section demonstrates an abundance of crops and a relative lack of weeds, indicating that agriculture was an important source of sustenance in the area. Among the crops, rice constitutes the majority of samples, with a minority of foxtail millet ( Setaria italica ) and broomcorn millet ( Panicum miliaceum ), suggesting that the area's crop mix was dominated by rice, with foxtail millet and broomcorn millet grown in auxiliary. Rice ( Oryza sativa ) as the dominant staple crop suggests living traditions of Jinsha rooted in rice‐farming agriculture, contributing to the formation and development of the Bronze Age civilization. Notably, foxtail millet occurred more frequently than broomcorn millet, reflecting relatively mature cultivation and utilization of northern dryland crops by Jinsha inhabitants during this period, and potentially indicating a preferential inclination toward foxtail millet cultivation.