Page 181 - Deydier UNDERSTANDING CHINESE ARCHAIC BRONZES

of their decorative motifs. social history of ancient China, Japan, etc. In his ‘Kimbun Tsushaku’
According to his theory, the five distinctive, consecutive chrono- 金文通釋 (Bronze Inscriptions Explained) and ‘Kimbun Seikai’ 金
logical styles into which all Shang bronzes can be divided are: 文世界 (The World of Bronze Inscriptions), Professor Shirakawa
o Style I: characterized by thin relief lines and simple forms which discusses the development of the study of bronze inscriptions, the
give the whole a light, airy effect. latest archaeological discoveries, advances in the study of bronze
o Style II: characterized by wider, ribbon-like bands in relief, inscriptions, and almost everything known concerning ancient
producing a harsher, heavier form, with the designs having an Chinese bronze inscriptions.
incised appearance.
o Style III: characterized by dense, fluent, more curvilinear In addition to his work on Chinese bronze inscriptions, Chinese
figurations evolving from the proceeding style. history, writing, etc., Professor Shirakawa also authored scores of
o Style IV: characterized by the first clear separation of major publications in Japanese on the origin, history, meaning, etc. of
motifs from spirals, which now become small and function as the Kanji 漢字 (Chinese characters) used in the Japanese language
ground patterns, but the motifs and spirals are flush. and on the impact of Chinese characters on the Japanese language,
o Style V: characterized by the first appearance of motifs in higher society, etc.
relief: the motifs rise above the background spirals, which are
sometimes absent altogether.
The validity of this chronological evolution of the decor on Shang
商 bronzes first set forth by Professor Loehr was later confirmed by
archaeological discoveries.

In Japan, two modern-day scholars have made an especially meaningful
contribution to the study of ancient Chinese bronze vessels and their
inscriptions:

■ Umehara Sueji 梅原末治 (1893 – 1983). Deeply knowledgeable in
the archaeology of Japan and Korea as well as that of China, and
specializing in the study of ancient bronzes, Professor Umehara
taught in the department of archaeology of Kyoto University 京都
大學 from 1933 to 1956. His studies and numerous publications
on the bronze vessels of the Shang 商 and Zhou 周, the bronze
mirrors of the Warring States 戰國, the Han 漢 and post-Han 漢
之後 periods, as well as his studies on Han dynasty lacquerware
are remarkable for the wealth of information and important detail
contained therein, much of it gathered on the spot by Professor
Umehara during his extensive visits to China in the 1920s and 30s.

■ Shirakawa Shizuka 白川靜 (1910 – 2006) was one of the best
known and most respected modern-day Japanese scholars, who
dedicated most of his long life to the study of Chinese characters and
inscriptions on ancient bronzes as well as to their relevance to the

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