Western Zhou Dynasty Bronze Weapons Research In Shandong District

As the residence of the Yi nationality in ancient times, Shandong area has taken on a continuous cultural outlook, from Houli, Beixin, Dawenkou and Longshan Culture in the New Stone Age to Yue Shi’s Culture during the period of Xia. When it came to the Shang Dynasty, the local culture was great impacted by Shang people’s moving eastward, and most areas of Shandong were consequently dominated by Shang culture. In Western Zhou period, the policy of fiefdoms made the overall Shandong area basically incorporated into the Zhou cultural system.To date, a large number of bronze wares in Shang and Western Zhou dynasties have been unearthed in Shandong area. Relevant researches can be found in previous studies; however, the research focus is mainly on the bronze ritual vessels. Comprehensive and systematic analyses of bronze weapons which are greater in number, however, have not been done yet. The paper tries to conduct a preliminary collection and sort out of the information about the unearthed bronze weapons in Shandong, and based on this it makes a typological analysis on the bronze weapons, and thus analyzes the periodization and dating, to construct the evolutionary sequence in shape form of all kinds of bronze weapons in Shandong area. In addtion, this paper makes clear of the origins of bronze weapons in Shandong. This paper is divided into five parts:Chapter One—introduction, introduces the natural and geographical conditions and history of Shandong area, which determines the research object and time-space range in this paper. Meanwhile this chapter also reviews briefly the research objective, method and so on.Chapter Two—a typological analysis on the bronze weapons in Shang and Western Zhou dynasties in Shandong area. In this chapter there is a comprehensive and systematic typological analysis on all the collected and unearthed bronze weapons, and it explores their evolutionary laws based on the analysis.Chapter three—periodization and dating of bronze weapons during Shang and Western Zhou Period in Shandong area. Based on the typological analysis, this paper periodizes the Bronze Age into six phases and nine periods. Phase one is from the middle-Shang to the first period of Yin Dynasty ruins. The second and third phases coincide respectively with the second and third period of Yin Dynasty ruins. Phase four begins from the fourth period of Yin Dynasty ruins until the beginning of Western Zhou Dynasty; phase five is equivalent from the early-Western Zhou to the middle-Western Zhou. Phase six fits the time period of the late-Western Zhou to the beginning of the Spring and Autumn Period. Chapter four—a combinative study of bronze weapons in Shang and Western Zhou dynasties in Shandong area. The comprehensive study of burial weapons tries to understand the basic configuration of burial weapon forms. It explores the weapon configuration of all ranks and classes, and the hierarchical differences through a combinative study of weapons with burial and sacrificial bronze vessels.Chapter five—a comparative study of bronze weapons in Shang and Western Zhou dynasties in Shandong area. The methodology of this paper is given priority to comparison of the weapon genres, shapes, ornamentations and combinations and etc. There are two main methods to compare: one is to compare the bronze weapons of Shang Dynasty in Shandong province and those in the central plains region. The other comparison is made in bronze weapons of the Western Zhou Dynasty in Shandong province and those unearthed in the central Shaanxi plain. Throughout the comparison with the bronze weapons in the central plains region in Shang Dynasty, it has been found that the overall styles of local weapons coincide with those weapons in the ruling center in Shang Dynasty; but local weapon shapes differ from those in the ruling center of Shang Dynasty from the later period of phase two (approximately equivalent to the third period of Yin Dynasty ruins). According to the study, this is mainly caused by nationality-belonging differences and clan migration. After comparing the local weapons in Western Zhou Dynasty with the bronze weapons unearthed in the central Guanzhong area, it has been found that there are some apparent differences between local weapons in the early Western Zhou Dynasty and those contemporary weapons in the central Shaanxi plain. The root cause to these differences is that the bronze weapons in Shandong were developed on the basis of weapons in Shang Dynasty. Local weapons in the middle and late Western Zhou period remain consistent with the contemporary weapons in the central Shaanxi plain. Apart from the above points, regional differences also exist.chapter six—discussion on Shang and Western Zhou bronze weapons in Shandong area partitions. According to the bronze weapon stage and combo system characteristics, Shang and Western Zhou bronze weapons in Shandong area can be divided into four districts. The bronze sacrificial ware and other cultural heritage in the region overall characteristics of the area reflects the difference between the basic consistency. In addition, this article attempts to summarize weapon on the basis of differences between regions, try from a military perspective to explore the Shandong region East of Shang and Zhou culture issues.