A Study Of Shang Burial System In Western Zhou Period

The Zhou people emerged as a small regional state in the west and conquered the Great Settlement Shang in the warfare of Muye.Although the regime of Yin dynasty was destroyed,Yin remnants still had a very strong force after the subjugations for a long time.In such situation,how to deal with the survivors of the Yin dynasty is a major problem faced by the Western Zhou dynasty.In this paper,the Shang system burial in Western Zhou Dynasty are taken as the research subject.Based on improving the spatiotemporal framework and constructing the hierarchy,the regional characteristics and diachronic changes of tomb conformation,burial customs and funerary objects are studied.The social organization structure of the Yin remnants is discussed by analyzing the structure of cemeteries.According to multiple evidences(archaeological remains,handed-down documents,bronze inscriptions,et al.),this study aim to investigate the social status,origin and identity of the Shang remnants in each district;discuss the treatments of Shang remnants by Zhou royal family;and interpret the influence of the spatial layout of the Shang remnants on the geopolitical pattern of the Western Zhou Dynasty.Chapter 1 Introduction.The first chapter introduce the object and scope of this research,and expound the philosophy and methods of this paper by reviewing the relevant history in detail,summarizing the achievements and shortcomings of previous studies,commenting the identification standards of Shang system burial,and proposing the classify standard of tombs.Chapter 2 Geographical distribution of Shang system burial.Referring to the spatial distribution of Shang system burial and the characteristics of tomb owners,five regions are divided into the Western region:the hinterland of the Central Plains,the Northern region,the Eastern region and the Southern region,which shall be divided again depend on its situation.Meanwhile,some Shang system burial were classified into the early,middle and late stages of the Western Zhou Dynasty after revising the dates.Chapter 3 Studying the shape and structure of tombs.The use of entry ramps,niches and waist pits in the soil pits of Shang system burial was carefully sorted out,and the special tomb shape and urn coffin burial were discussed as well.Chapter 4 Research of prostrate burial and martyrdom remains.In this chapter,not only the characteristics of the use of propulsive burial and sacrificial remains(ritual murder and victam,martyrs and sacrificial animals)in the tombs of the Shang system burial,but also the use of such burial customs in non Shang system burial has been systematically studied,and the similarities and differences between the two have also been compared and analyzed.Chapter 5 Studying on the funerary objects system.The main funerary objects,such as pottery(daily-use pottery and copper-like pottery),copper vessels(copper vessels and weapons)and vessels(lead copper vessels and weapons),were comprehensively investigated,also the regional differences and diachronic changes of funerary objects in different regions have been compared and analyzed.Chapter 6 Cemetery structure analyzing and related issues studying.Representative cemeteries were selected to distinguish between pure Shang system cemeteries and mixed cemeteries containing Shang system burial.Through the analysis of the cemetery structure,the social organization structure reflected by the cemetery is further discussed.Chapter 7 Temporal and spatial evalution and historical exploration of the Shang system burial.Through the integration of archaeological remains,handed-down documents,bronze inscriptions and relevant materials,the social status,source and identity of the Shang system groups in various regions were studied as well as the disposal methods of the Zhou royal family to the Shang system groups.Finally,by observing the geographical distribution pattern controlled by Zhou royal family,the results demonstrate influence of it on the geopolitical pattern of the Western Zhou Dynasty.Chapter 8 Conclusion.Summarize the main understanding and harvest of this study,and point out the limitations and deficiencies.