Page 74 - Deydier UNDERSTANDING CHINESE ARCHAIC BRONZES

former inaccuracies and to state with certainty that this vessel is a type
of zun 樽, and that it was used to warm alcoholic beverages.

Pan 盤

The name of this vessel, which was used for ritual ablutions during
ceremonies, appears in a great number of bronze inscriptions and in a
number of classical texts, including the Yili 儀禮 (The Book of Rites and
Ceremonies) in which the vessel’s use is clearly explained.

The pan 盤 is a large, round basin of some depth, supported by a ring
foot. Very rare during the Erligang 二里崗 period (circa 17 /16 – 14
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centuries B.C.) of the early Shang 商 dynasty, pan 盤 become more
numerous towards the end of the Shang 商 dynasty and the beginning
of the Zhou 周.
From the beginning of the Western Zhou 西周 (circa 12 /11 centuries –
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771 B.C.), the pan 盤 undergoes a slight morphological change, with the
appearance of lateral handles fixed to the rim of the vessel. Later, three
feet, sometimes in the form of humans or animals, support the basin.
The pan 盤 disappears from the repertoire of Chinese bronze vessels
towards the 5 century B.C..
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Pan, Shang dynasty, Erligang period (circa 17 /16 – circa 14 centuries B.C.)
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Height: 24 cm, diameter: 37 cm – Meiyintang Collection n°116.
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