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    Jinhuai 1986

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    Kobayashi Minura
    This document summarizes an article from Early China that discusses the discovery of an early Shang dynasty city site in Zhengzhou, China. Some key points: - The site contains remains of a large, rectangular rammed-earth wall from the early Shang period. - Artifacts found indicate the city was occupied before the Yin Ruins capital of Anyang. - The scale of the site and artifacts found, including bronze and jade items, suggest it was one of the early Shang dynasty capitals, though it's unclear if it was the city of Ao or Bo. - The discovery provides important new evidence about early Shang politics, economy, culture and military affairs

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    Jinhuai 1986

    Uploaded by

    Kobayashi Minura
    8 views3 pages
    This document summarizes an article from Early China that discusses the discovery of an early Shang dynasty city site in Zhengzhou, China. Some key points: - The site contains remains of a large, rectangular rammed-earth wall from the early Shang period. - Artifacts found indicate the city was occupied before the Yin Ruins capital of Anyang. - The scale of the site and artifacts found, including bronze and jade items, suggest it was one of the early Shang dynasty capitals, though it's unclear if it was the city of Ao or Bo. - The discovery provides important new evidence about early Shang politics, economy, culture and military affairs

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    jinhuai1986

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    This document summarizes an article from Early China that discusses the discovery of an early Shang dynasty city site in Zhengzhou, China. Some key points: - The site contains remains of a large, rectangular rammed-earth wall from the early Shang period. - Artifacts found indicate the city was occupied before the Yin Ruins capital of Anyang. - The scale of the site and artifacts found, including bronze and jade items, suggest it was one of the early Shang dynasty capitals, though it's unclear if it was the city of Ao or Bo. - The discovery provides important new evidence about early Shang politics, economy, culture and military affairs

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    8 views3 pages

    Jinhuai 1986

    Uploaded by

    Kobayashi Minura
    This document summarizes an article from Early China that discusses the discovery of an early Shang dynasty city site in Zhengzhou, China. Some key points: - The site contains remains of a large, rectangular rammed-earth wall from the early Shang period. - Artifacts found indicate the city was occupied before the Yin Ruins capital of Anyang. - The scale of the site and artifacts found, including bronze and jade items, suggest it was one of the early Shang dynasty capitals, though it's unclear if it was the city of Ao or Bo. - The discovery provides important new evidence about early Shang politics, economy, culture and military affairs

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    of 3

    Early China

    http://journals.cambridge.org/EAC

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    2. The Shang City at Zhengzhou and Related


    Problems

    An Jinhuai

    Early China / Volume 9 / Supplement S1 / January 1986, pp 3 - 4


    DOI: 10.1017/S0362502800002893, Published online: 26 March 2015

    Link to this article: http://journals.cambridge.org/abstract_S0362502800002893

    How to cite this article:


    An Jinhuai (1986). 2. The Shang City at Zhengzhou and Related Problems. Early
    China, 9, pp 3-4 doi:10.1017/S0362502800002893

    Request Permissions : Click here

    Downloaded from http://journals.cambridge.org/EAC, IP address: 203.64.11.45 on 11 May 2015


    Shang Beyond Anyang

    *2. AN JINHUAI (Henan Institute of Cultural Objects, Zhengzhou)


    THE SHANG CITY AT ZHENGZHOU AND RELATED PROBLEMS
    ABSTRACT:
    The Zhengzhou Shang d y n a s t y s i t e i s t h e l o c a t i o n of an e a r l y
    Shang c i t y , v a s t i n a r e a and a b u n d a n t i n a r c h a e o l o g i c a l r e m a i n s ,
    w h i c h was d i s c o v e r e d by C h i n e s e a r c h a e o l o g i s t s i n t h e m i d d l e and
    lower Yellow River b a s i n during t h e e a r l y f i f t i e s . Within t h e s i t e
    t h e r e i s a Shang dynasty rammed-earth w a l l extending n o r t h - s o u t h in a
    r e c t a n g u l a r shape and having a c i r c u m f e r e n c e of 6960 m e t e r s . These
    a r e t h e e a r l i e s t Shang w a l l remains d i s c o v e r e d t o d a t e .
    Based on t h e s t r a t i g r a p h y and v e s s e l t y p e s d i s c o v e r e d i n t h e
    c o u r s e of e x c a v a t i n g t h e four s i d e s of t h e w a l l , i t i s c e r t a i n t h a t
    t h i s w a l l i s s l i g h t l y l a t e r t h a n t h e l a t e E r l i t o u p e r i o d , and t h a t
    c o n s t r u c t i o n on i t began b e f o r e t h e l o w e r s t r a t a of t h e Shang
    E r l i g a n g p e r i o d , t h e "Yin R u i n s " a t Anyang. The d i s c o v e r y of t h e
    Zhengzhou Shang s i t e was d e f i n i t e l y not a c c i d e n t a l . I t r e p r e s e n t s an
    i m p o r t a n t s t a g e i n t h e development of a n c i e n t Chinese rammed-earth
    w a l l a r c h i t e c t u r e . The method of c o n s t r u c t i o n p l a c e s i t i n a c o n t i n -
    uous l i n e of development from t h e rammed-earth w a l l of t h e Henan a r e a
    middle and l a t e Longshan c u l t u r e and t h e l a t e E r l i t o u rammed-earth
    platform foundation t o t h e rammed-earth f o u n d a t i o n s of t h e p a l a c e s of
    the Yin Ruins a t Anyang.
    The g r a n d s c a l e of t h e Zhengzhou Shang w a l l , and t h e f a c t t h a t
    i n s i d e and o u t s i d e t h e w a l l were found p a l a c e f o u n d a t i o n s and work-
    s h o p s f o r t h e p r o d u c t i o n of b r o n z e , b o n e , and c e r a m i c a r t i c l e s a s
    w e l l as numerous w i d e s p r e a d s t o r a g e p i t s , w e l l s , d i t c h e s , h o u s e
    f o u n d a t i o n s , and t o m b s , and t h a t many b r o n z e , j a d e , p r i m i t i v e
    p o r c e l a i n , p o t t e r y , s t o n e , b o n e , and c l a m s h e l l a r t i f a c t s h a v e b e e n
    e x c a v a t e d h e r e , i n c l u d i n g a l s o some c a r v e d i v o r y p i e c e s , p o t t e r y
    s c u l p t u r e , and i n s c r i b e d bones and p o t t e r y , lead us t o conclude t h a t
    t h e Zhengzhou Shang s i t e was one of t h e e a r l y Shang c a p i t a l s .
    Whether i t i s t o be i d e n t i f i e d a s Ao or Bo we cannot now say. In any
    c a s e , t h e d i s c o v e r y and e x c a v a t i o n of t h i s s i t e has s u p p l i e d d i r e c t
    e v i d e n c e of t h e g r e a t e s t i m p o r t a n c e f o r t h e h i s t o r y of e a r l y Shang
    p o l i t i c s , economics, c u l t u r a l , and m i l i t a r y a f f a i r s .

    DISCUSSION:
    An J i n h u a i showed s l i d e s of Zhengzhou, but could n o t , u n f o r t u n -
    a t e l y , p r o v i d e any i l l u s t r a t i o n o f t h e n e w l y d i s c o v e r e d w a l l e d
    s e t t l e m e n t s of t h e Longshan p e r i o d .
    Kao Ch'ii-hsun d i d n o t a c c e p t .A_n_'s i d e n t i f i c a t i o n of t h e Shang
    c i t y a t Zhengzhou w i t h t h e c a p i t a l Ao Jfe , b e c a u s e Zhengzhou was
    b u i l t t o o e a r l y and occupied too long. I t was a c o n c e p t u a l i s s u e , he
    argued, whether or not every major Shang c i t y had t o be viewed as t h e

    3
    Session I

    seat of the imperial dynasty; as an a l t e r n a t i v e model, Kao suggested


    t h a t one think in terms of the fengjian J^JlL system, which e p i -
    graphic r e s e a r c h has long proven t o be a major f e a t u r e of Shang
    c i v i l i z a t i o n . This system would allow important r e g i o n a l power
    centers beside the imperial house, and Zhengzhou could conceivably
    have been the residence of one of the major non-dynastic clans, such
    as the Zheng TjgjJ clan as previously suggested by Hu Houxuan.
    Tu Cheng-sheng asked for more d e t a i l s about the walled s e t t l e -
    ments of the Longshan culture, especially about Pingliangtai of Huai-
    yang (see a r t i c l e in Renmin Ribao 21 June 1981). kn_ said he did not
    have any information at hand.
    V i r g i n i a Kane ( U n i v e r s i t y of Michigan) r a i s e d the p e r p e t u a l
    question of why there was no wall at Anyang, whereas there was one at
    Zhengzhou, and, as we know, even at much e a r l i e r s i t e s . Was there a
    relation between t h i s phenomenon and the use of the chariot as a new
    form of defense? Chariot warfare i s more mobile and needs open
    space; perhaps, in l a t e Shang, chariots were able to ward off aggres-
    s o r s at some d i s t a n c e from the c a p i t a l , t h u s rendering a c i t y wall
    unnecessary, Kane suggested. She went on t o h i n t a t the psycho-
    logical consequences t h i s change could have entailed — whereas the
    Shang of Zhengzhou would have been defense-minded and determined by
    closed space, the i n h a b i t a n t s of Yinxu l e f t t o archaeology the
    remains of a more aggressive, expansionist mentality.
    This line of argument was refuted by An Jinhuai who pointed out
    that Chinese c a p i t a l s both before as well as after Yinxu a l l had city
    walls, and that the development of c i t y walls could be well traced in
    the archaeological record as a consistent progression. To date, the
    case of Yinxu must be regarded as an anomaly. In f a c t , An_ believed,
    Yinxu probably had a c i t y w a l l , which had only so far escaped the
    archaeologists — possibly because i t was completely razed at the
    end of the dynasty. He pointed out that c i t y walls had far more than
    merely a defensive function — namely, from the e a r l i e s t times, an
    important symbolic and r i t u a l function; embodying cosmological order,
    they defined structures of p o l i t i c a l dominance as well.
    Ken-ichi Takashima (University of British Columbia) asked if i t
    was p o s s i b l e t o determine whether or not c i t y w a l l s made by the
    banzhu method could have been destroyed by a large-scale flood, for
    the oracle bones recorded the phrase ru shui A* -^C which he i n t e r -
    preted as meaning "flood."

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