Page 68 - Deydier UNDERSTANDING CHINESE ARCHAIC BRONZES

Li 鬲

This tripod vessel named a li 鬲 is composed of three clustered bulbous
swells and was used to cook meat and cereals. Its shape is conducive
to quick heating, as the vessel’s design makes it possible for the fire
to reach the largest possible surface of the vessel in a relatively short
amount of time.

The li 鬲 is known in pottery in the neolithic period, but it is not too
common at that time. Its pottery form becomes more popular during
the Shang 商 and Zhou 周 dynasties. It first appears in bronze in the
early Shang 商 dynasty, at the beginning of the Erligang 二里崗 period
(circa 17 /16 – 14 centuries B.C.). It is a very simple vessel, thinly
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cast, with a body composed of three hollow clustered swells, supported
on three small hollow legs, and with two vertical handles fixed to the
rim. By the end of the Erligang 二里崗 period, the casting becomes
much thicker.
During the Yinxu 殷墟 period (circa 14 – 12 /11 centuries B.C.)
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and the early Western Zhou 西周早期 dynasty (circa 12 /11 – 10
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centuries B.C.), a neck appears in the upper part of the vessel’s body,
the three bulbous swells become more shallow and less elongated and
the legs can be full-bodied and cone-shaped, making the whole piece
look larger and more powerful. Four-legged li 鬲 or square li 方鬲 are
extremely rare; one as yet unpublished example is conserved in the
Guimet Museum, Paris.

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Li, Shang dynasty, Erligang period (circa 17 /16 – 14 centuries B.C.)
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Height: 25.3 cm – Meiyintang Collection n° 91.
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