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Shang Dynasty: Bronzes
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The Shang dynasty was notable for casting bronze using ceramic moulds, a system that required advanced technology and control over labour. Bronze vessels enjoyed high status as ritual vessels to offer food and wine to the spirits of ancestors, whose veneration is a keystone of Chinese culture. Writing was first introduced in the Shang dynasty, cast in bronze or engraved in oracle bones used in divination.
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The Shang dynasty had a fully developed system of writing; its complexity and state of development indicates an earlier period of development, which is still unattested. Bronze casting and pottery ... advanced in Shang culture. The bronze was commonly used for art rather than weapons. In astronomy, the Shang astronomers saw Mars and various comets. Many musical instruments were also invented at that time.
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One of the most distinctive and characteristic images decorating Shang-dynasty bronze vessels is the so-called taotie. The primary attribute of this frontal animal-like mask is a prominent pair of eyes, often protruding in high relief. Between the eyes is a nose, often with nostrils at the base. Taotie can ... include jaws and fangs, horns, ears, and eyebrows. Many versions include a split animal-like body with legs and tail, each flank shown in profile on either side of the mask. While following a general form, the appearance and specific components of taotie masks varied by period and place of production.
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