Page 9 - SHANG, bronzes of the Shang Dynasty , March 18th , 2021 , Christie's New York.

CASTING PERFECTED

FIVE SHANG-DYNASTY BRONZE WINE VESSELS
FROM THE DANIEL SHAPIRO COLLECTION
by Robert D. Mowry

The bronze ritual vessels produced during China’s from one another and presented in a so-called “dismembered
Shang dynasty (c. 1600–c. 1050 BC) rank among the finest taotie mask,” the discreet elements rising in slight relief and
examples of bronze casting the world has ever seen, as themselves embellished with leiwen patterns. It is likely that
witnessed by these five vessels from the Daniel Shapiro many, even all, of these motifs had meaning for the people of
Collection. Not only are the forms intriguing and satisfying, the Shang dynasty; in the absence of written records detailing
but the vessels exhibit a wealth of complex, integrally possible meanings, however, we cannot know precisely what
cast surface decoration unknown in bronzes from other symbolism those motifs might have held, if any. Speculation
civilizations. abounds, but precise identification necessarily must await
discovery of hard evidence from the people who created and
Bronze casting came fully into its own during the Shang used them.
dynasty with the production of sacral vessels intended for
use in funerary ceremonies. Although their exact use remains In terms of the decorative styles of these Shang vessels,
obscure, such ritual vessels include ones for food and wine the slightly earlier ones (i.e., 13th-12th centuries BC) tend
as well as ones for water; those for food and wine, the types to be more self-contained, with smooth surfaces and
most commonly encountered among Shang bronzes, group with decorative elements flush with the vessel surface; by
themselves into storage vessels, heating and cooking vessels, contrast, the slightly later vessels (12th-11th centuries BC)
and presentation and serving vessels. The five Shapiro show bolder designs with decorative elements rising from
bronzes, all wine vessels, include ones for storage and others the vessel surface in low relief. In the 13th-12th century BC
for presentation and serving. globular pou vessel, for example, only the bulging eyes rise
in relief; broad bands with swirling, “cloud-scroll” patterns
Vessels for storing wine typically assume one or another describe the taotie mask, which is set against a background of
jar or bottle form, such as the Shapiro hu and pou vessels tightly compressed leiwen. Though archaeological evidence
(lots 502 and 503); those for presenting and serving wine suggests that it dates to the 12th century, the hu jar follows
vary considerably in form and include the fangyi, which, with the earlier decorative style, and thus its decorative motifs are
its cover, resembles a small, square house with a gabled roof flush with the vessel surface, its taotie mask differentiated
(lot 504); the gong, a covered pouring vessel that, in this case, from the background leiwen pattern by differing types
is of metamorphic form and incorporates a rampant tiger at and densities of lineaments. By contrast, the principal
the front and an owl standing at the back (lot 505); and the decorative motifs of such slightly later vessels as the fangyi
elongated, trumpet-mouth beaker known as a gu (lot 501). and gu rise in relief and thus readily distinguish themselves
from the background leiwen; moreover, the gu exhibits the
The most important decorative motif on vessels from the “dismembered taotie mask” mentioned above. Advanced for
Shang dynasty is the taotie mask. Enlivening all of the Shapiro its day, the fascinating gong pouring vessel, which dates to the
bronzes except the gong, the taotie mask typically boasts a 13th-12th century BC, features a tiger and an owl described
ferocious feline-like face with large, C-shaped horns, bulging with complex linear patterns but boasts elements that begin
eyes, and bared fangs that descend from the upper jaw. to rise in relief. (See pp. 26-37 in this catalogue for a more
(By contrast, the lower jaw is never represented.) The animal’s detailed discussion of this gong vessel.)
body, if depicted, is shown in reduced scale and extends
laterally outward from the face. Subsidiary registers of Sacral vessels from the Shang dynasty were used in
decoration feature small dragons—called kui or kuilong- long- ceremonies honoring the spirits of deceased ancestors. As
tailed birds, and others (sometimes including such abstract such, many bear integrally cast, dedicatory inscriptions that
features as whorls, bosses, and ribs). The decorative motifs might include a clan symbol, the name of the person in whose
are usually set against an intricate background of small, ceremonies they presumably were used, and sometimes other
squared spirals known as leiwen. In rare instances the taotie emblems, as well. Such inscriptions’ so-called bronze-script
mask may be presented against an otherwise unembellished characters are the direct ancestor of modern written Chinese.
ground, and in yet other instances, as in the Shapiro gu Inscriptions on Shang-dynasty vessels typically feature only
beaker, the mask’s constituent elements might be dissociated a few characters, sometimes even just a single character.

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