ARTH 1130 Lecture Notes - Lecture 9: Shang Dynasty, Sanxingdui, Yangshao Culture
12 Nov 2018
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Document Summary
Yangshao pottery: different shapes, before the invention of the potters wheel, abstract motifs, red and brownish-black, cream coloured ground. Shang dynasty and sanxingdui: perfected casting elaborate bronze vessels, covered in animal motifs, connected to the world of spirits, excavations revealed a civilization contemporaneous with the shang. Sanxingdui: different aesthetic, over life sized statue, elongated proportions and large, staring eyes. Zhou jade: technical perfection was achieved during this period, disks were used for burial, symbolized the circle of heaven, status symbols that carried over into the afterlife, high monetary value. Marquise of dai: t-shape silk banner, draped over the coffin of the marquise of dai, shown at the centre waiting for her descent to immortality in heaven, the realm of the red sun and silvery moon. Wuwei flying horse: late han dynasty tomb, cast bronze galloping/flying horse, 1 hoof on a swallow with spread wings, suggests the deceased"s heavenward journey to the afterlife.
