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The Shang Dynasty (1766-1122 BC) China: An
Illustrated History
"Oracle bones" (explained below) on which events of the kings of Shang Dynasty were written. Click for a larger picture. The Shang is the first Chinese dynasty archaeologically authenticated by oracle-bone inscriptions and engravings on ritual bronze objects. The existence of the dynasty is further backed by written histories: the Book of History (Shang Shu) and the Book of Odes (Shijing). After defeating the Xia, the Shang established its capital in present-day Zhengzhou, Henan Province. The Shang was a hierarchical society with all the administrative, military, economic, and religious power vested in the king. Below the king were various nobilities; together with the king, they formed the core of the ruling class. Underneath the nobility were the common people. The Shang period was characterized by internal division and power struggles that resulted in constant relocations of its capital. The shifting finally came to an end in 1395 B.C. during the reign of the nineteenth ruler of the dynasty, when its capital was moved to Yin in the vicinity of present-day Anyang, Henan Province. Yin remained the capital of the Shang for the next 273 years, and for this reason the dynasty is also known as Yin-Shang. The Shang gained stability and ascended to power with the final settlement of the capital. Agriculture was further developed in the Shang period. Although bronze instruments were available, farmers still depended on stone and wood tools. Among the crops grown were rice, wheat, millet and corn. People began to raise domestic animals such as cows, sheep, horses, chickens, dogs and pigs. Bronze metallurgy reached a high level of artistry and sophistication during the Shang. Bronze was used in making a variety of ceremonial vessels, instruments, and weapons; many articles handed down over the centuries show a remarkable degree of ingenuity and workmanship. Additionally, much of the finest quality Chinese pottery, weaving, and embroidery date from this period. Excavated seashells show that trading relationships were already established with coastal areas in the east. The most noteworthy discoveries of the Shang Period are inscribed tortoise shells and cattle bones, known as oracle bones. Earlier in the twentieth century, Chinese archaeologists unearthed a buried city in Anyang, Henan Province. Among the relics excavated were more than one hundred thousand pieces of oracle bones. Since then, another fifty thousand pieces have been uncovered. Bearing inscriptions that represent the oldest known form of Chinese writing, these oracle bones shed a great deal of light on the political and social life of the time. The Shang worshiped God and practiced ancestor cult. The kings sought divination from God for just about everything, ranging from affairs of state to questions concerning he private lives of individuals. War, sacrifice, farming, weather, hunting, disease, birth, and death - these often mandeate divination. Although the writing on the oracle bones is quite different from the writing used today, there are distinct traces of the essential features of word formation in the Chinese written language, including pictographs, ideographs, and associative and phonetic compounds. Towards the end of the Shang, when the ruler was proverbial despot, a small but aggressive state in Shaanxi called Zhou began to gain power. Taking advantage of the declining Shang, several other small states renounced the Shang and pledged allegiance to the Zhou. The days of the Shang were numbered.
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