The Glory of Ancient Chinese Bronzeware
The bronzeware was the unique national treasure for China in an- cient times for their impressive designs, classical decorative ornamenta- tion, and wealth of inscriptions.
The ancient Chinese society fell into the Stone Tool Age and the Iron Tool Age. The earliest stoneware found in China dates back to 3000 BC. The Shang and Zhou dynasties ushered China into the height of the Bronze Age. During this period the making of bronze ware reached its zenith. After the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods China entered the Iron Tool Age.
Bronze is the alloy of copper and zinc or copper and lead, which is bluish grey. The museums across China and some important museums outside China, have all collected Chinese bronze wares dating back to the Shang and Zhou dynasties. Some of them are part of the cultural heritage passed down through the generations, but most of them were dug up from underneath the earth.
Classification of Ancient Chinese Bronzeware
Ancient Chinese bronzeware falls into three types: ritual vessels, weapons, and miscellaneous objects.
Ritual vessels refer to those objects employed by aristocrats in sac- rificial ceremonies or audiences. Therefore there is something distinc- tively religious and shamanist about them. These vessels include food containers, wine vessels, water pots and musical instruments.
Bronze weapons come in such varieties as knife, sword, spear, hal- berd, axe, and dagger.
The miscellaneous objects refer to bronze utensils for daily use. In ancient China the making of bronzeware was dominated by the impe- rial families and aristocrats. And the possession of such things was re- garded as a status symbol.
Inscriptions and Ornaments on Bronzeware
In comparison with counterparts in other parts of the world, the Chinese bronzeware stands out for the inscriptions which are regarded as major chapters in the Chinese history of calligraphy.
The ornaments on the bronzeware are an important element of the spiritual content of the bronzeware. The effect of the bronzeware design on human sense is a formative element, while the ornaments on it represent the specific image of the interweaving of mythology and reality.
The ornaments on Chinese bronzeware are rich in content:animal patterns are the representatives, and plant patterns, cloud-and- thunder patterns, geometric patterns, human face patterns, etc. can also be found. The ornaments often give off a solemn and mysterious atmosphere, which may have something to do with the function of the bronzeware. The Chinese ancestors believed that the design of the ornaments could communicate with divinities and frighten demons as well. Therefore, to enshrinethe bronzeware in the temple would do something good to them—either bring them good luck or ward off evil spirits.
Famous Ancient Chinese Bronze Artworks
Si Mu Wu Ding
Si Mu Wu Ding, the largest bronze ding discovered so far, dates back to the late Shang Dynasty (16th—11th century BC). Weighing 875 kilograms, it is 133 centimeters high and rectangular in shape, standing on four legs. It was made for the King of Shang to offer sacrifices to his dead mother Wu. Exquisitely cast, it is considered a rare masterpiece of the bronze culture over the world.
Galloping Horse Overtaking a Flying Swallow
Galloping Horse Overtaking a Flying Swallow is a bronze artwork of the Eastern Han Dynasty. It was unearthed in the Leitai Han Tomb in Gansu Province in the west of China. With a height of 34.5 centimeters, a width of 13 centimeters and a length of 45 centimeters, the horse is raising its head, neighing and galloping forward with one hoof treading on a flying swallow, symbolizing that its speed can surpass that of the swallow. The statue is the representative work of the oriental aesthetic art and has become a symbol of Chinese tourism.
