CHANGCHUN, May 6 (Xinhua) -- Over 5,000 relics items and nearly 30 paleolithic sites have been discovered in northeastern China's Jilin Province as of late April, according to the provincial cultural relics and archaeology research institute.

The excavation started in March along the main rivers and tributaries near the Changbai Mountains where paleolithic remains had been found earlier, with artifacts including chipped and polished stone tools.

A preliminary study indicates that the 220 unearthed ruins and collection points belong to the Old Stone Age and the early Iron Age.

Xu Ting, head of the excavation team, said that the discovery will provide important clues to the study on the survival skills of the hominids, the spread of skills and human migration near the Changbai Mountains.