Chinese authorities on April 9 announced the top 10 archaeological discoveries made in 2012. One of the year's finds dates back as far as the Paleolithic era.

Among the most significant discoveries were the ruins of a small city, the largest of its kind in Neolithic China, discovered in northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

Archaeologists said that the walls of the 4,000-year-old city are decorated with carved jade, indicating that the city was important in ancient Chinese civilization.

The discovery has provided new materials for the study of Chinese civilization and its development, experts said.

Other discoveries include Paleolithic ruins in central China's Henan Province, the Neolithic Shunjiaji site in east China's Jiangsu Province and Bronze Age ruins and tombs in west China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

All the discoveries are protected by local governments, said Tong Mingkang, deputy head of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage.

About 100 archaeological sites are listed as key cultural relics under state protection and some of the sites have been opened to the public.

Islands Tour

Tourists will be able to visit the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea ahead of the forthcoming May Day holiday, said Tan Li, Executive Vice Governor of Hainan Province, on April 6.

People will be allowed to visit the islands on cruise tours, Tan said.

The Xisha Islands are a cluster of close to 40 islets, sandbanks and reefs.

According to Tan, cruise tours are the choice as hotels and other facilities to accommodate tourists are inadequate.

There is only one hotel with 56 rooms in the 2.13-square-km Yongxing Island, the largest island among the Xisha Islands group and home to the government offices of the city of Sansha. There is no fresh water and all supplies have to be transported from outside.

Sansha was established last June to administer more than 200 islets, sandbanks and reefs in the Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha islands and 2 million square km of surrounding waters.

However, experts said that Sansha could only receive a small number of visitors due to its fragile environment.

Sportswear Lawsuit

China's Qiaodan Sportswear Co. Ltd. has sued American basketball legend Michael Jordan for infringement on right of reputation and claimed $8 million compensation, Securities Daily reported on April 9.

The Quanzhou Court in southeast China's Fujian Province received the file on March 29 and accepted the lawsuit on April 2, a suit which also asked Jordan to stop the infringement and apologize to the company.

Jordan announced that he had sued Qiaodan Sportswear for using his name and image illegally on February 23, 2012, requesting 50 million yuan ($8 million) compensation. The case was accepted by a Shanghai court but has not yet been heard.

Jordan's announcement came just a week before Qiaodan Sportswear went public. The company's initial public offering was suspended due to the suit.

The Chinese translation of Jordan's name shares identical pronunciation with Qiaodan.