Page 106 - Deydier UNDERSTANDING CHINESE ARCHAIC BRONZES

The Decorative Elements on Chinese Ritual Bronzes from
the Xia 夏, Shang 商 and Zhou 周 Dynasties

From Simple to Sophisticated

The most ancient Chinese bronze vessels date from the end of the Xia
夏 dynasty (circa 21 – 17 /16 centuries B.C.) and belong to what is
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termed the 3 and 4 stages of the Erlitou cultural 二里頭文化 period
(18 – 16 centuries B.C.). Although most of these early bronzes are
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completely undecorated, a small number are embellished with one
or more horizontal lines, or a motif of small button-like shapes or a
combination of both.

At the very beginning of the Shang 商 dynasty (circa 17 /16th – 12 / 11
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centuries B.C.), during what is now termed the Erligang 二里崗 period
(circa 17 /16 to 14 centuries B.C.), filiform thin-line patterns in low
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relief (called by some archaeologists Loehr I motifs) with pairs of oval
eyes in their centres, began to appear on the bodies of bronze vessels.
These are considered to be a primitive form of what are called taotie 饕
餮 masks. During the middle of the Erligang period, the filiform thin-
line motifs began to expand to become wide, ribbon-like bands (Loehr
II), making the taotie 饕餮 mask design more prominent and clearly
recognizable.

After the Shang 商 rulers moved their capital to Yin 殷 near Anyang
安陽 in present-day Henan 河南 province, the decorative motifs on
bronze vessels became more sophisticated and the walls of the vessels’
bodies themselves became thicker. Artisans began producing bronze

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Jiao, Xia dynasty, Erlitou culture (circa 19 – 17 /16 centuries B.C.)
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Height: 18.5 cm – Meiyintang Collection n° 2.
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