The Shang Dynasty Rescued & Artifacts Revealed

A town on the south bank of the Huan River is called Anyang, a modest place with a railroad station. Many people travel to this town to see the amazing remains of ancient China. The more than 3 millennia old capital of Shang is less than 2 miles northwest of town. Ancient texts refer to Shang as a well remembered Bronze Age dynasty. These ancient writings also indicate that the line of Shang kings extended approximately 650 years, from about 1700 to 1050 BC. Their capital had been shifted about 5-6 times in the early days of the dynasty, before its 19^th King settled at Yin. Yin was only a short distance from Anyang. For almost 3 millennia, the area around Anyang went by the name, Ruins of Yin.

Today, because of further research in the area, those ruins are recognized as one of the world's magnificent archaeological sites. It is also one of the most dug. In spring 1976, Anyang Archaeological team started digging. The aroma of excitement dangled in the air, for this archaelogical team. How were they to know that their find would change history? Historians would soon take a closer look at a time period of importance, they had once threw up a deaf ear and a blind eye to. On this hard working day of spring, 12 houses and about 80 storage pits and tombs were unearthed. The tombs were built below ground, in ancient Chinese fashion. The 5^th discovered tomb caused a lot of commotion. The archaeological excavators realized this was no ordinary burial. The 5^th tomb turned out to be a royal grave. It was also the only properly excavated Shang royal tomb that had not been plundered, robbed, and ravaged. The burial goods found in the tomb were some 440 bronze artifacts, 590 jades, 560 bone objects and numerous ivory carvings and pottery. There were 7,000 cowrie shells from South and East China seas. The cowrie shells were used as a form of currency.

Cowries a Form of Money

The earliest form of money, in the Shang and Zhou dynasty were cowrie shells. Various parts of the world used cowrie shells for currency. China, Africa and Arabia used cowrie shells for money. In China inscriptions such as, "gifts of cowries", "use of cowries", and "rewards of cowries", were found on bronze vessels of the Shang dynasty. The natural supply of cowrie shells in the coastal regions just could not meet the growing demand. As a result, some people took it upon themselves to make imitation cowrie shells out of bone, horn, shell, stone, clay, lead, bronze, gold and silver. I guess you would call it counterfeit money. People committed desperate acts for money even in the Shang era. Fake imitation cowries were turning up everywhere in tombs as money, for the dead. I don't see too much harm in that. Where would they spend the real cowries?

Valuable Artifacts found in Tomb

More than twice as many bronzes came out of this one tomb than from all the graves scientifically excavated at Anyang during the preceding decades. All different types of exqusite mirrors, ceremonial vessels, bells, and weapons were all buried with Queen Fu Hao. The weapons were implements of war intricate in design, and were still left in excellent condition after all that time had passed . A bronze cooking stand very detailed in design was recovered and found together with 3 steamer pots. This was the first set ever found in China. Among the beautiful jades were ceremonial pieces, personal ornaments that included figurine people and animated beasts as coiled dragons, crouching bears, and trumpeting elephants.

Another discovery that did not surprise the archaeologists on sight , was the remains of 16 humans that consisted of a range of men, women, children, and 6 dogs. All had been slaughtered for the benefit of the tomb's occupant. Human sacrifice had been common in Shang times.

Human Sacrifice

The Shang and Zhou dynasties performed human sacrifice as a form of ancestor worship. They would cruelly sacrifice young men and women to river deities. They buried slaves alive directly next to their owners upon death as part of the funeral service. The sacrifice of a high ranking concubines or servants upon death was common. The purpose was to provide companionship for the dead in the afterlife. In earlier times, victims were killed, buried alive, or forced to commit suicide. It must have been hard to accept that your master has died, and because you were close to him or her you would have to lose your family and be buried with your master. Forced to kill yourself or be thrown into your dead master's tomb alive. What a very twisted, sadistic practic. After the vile practice was abolished by the Qin dynasty in 384 BC, it became relatively rare throughout central parts of China. Thankfully, future dynasties replaced humans with terra cotta figures.

Shang Dynasty Royalty Discovered

The revealing of tomb Number #5 clearly held the remains of someone with immense distinction within the royal house of Shang. The corps was disintegrated. The inscriptions on the tomb objects became clear once the name was deciphered. The name of the person had been written on animal bones and tortoise shells found at other Anyang sites. The person was Fu Hao, known to be one of the favorite and most influential wives of Shang; her husband was King Wu Ding, who ruled throughout much of the 13^th century BC.

Fu Hao

Fu Hao, also known as Houmuxing, was the key person who made the rise of fortunes possible during the Shang dynasty time period. She was the ultimate general of 13,000 troops at her command. This warrior queen, an important authority figure, commanded the largest troops during the reign of King Wuding. The King fought many wars against people on the borders of the Shang Empire. King Wuding's success was due to Fu Hao's supreme leadership in directing a campaign against the Jiang tribes. Her victory against the Ba people was the earliest recorded instance of a large scale ambush in Chinese history. She defended the borders and launched assaults against foreign people. She also served as the king's High Priestess, conducting many sacrifices to appease heaven and honor their ancestors. This position only fell upon the most highly esteemed royal clan. Fu Hao was an oracle reader. Ancient writings describe her military expeditions, religious rites, personal health and other aspects of her life in great detail. The caves in Anyang, were used for Shang records. Her name was mentioned over 200 times just in one cave alone. When Fu Hao died, WuDing was heartbroken. Traditional accounts recorded that he wept tears at her funeral and also dreamt of her often.

Historians Dismiss Shang Dynasty

The subject of Shang brought skepticism from the early 20^thcentury historians. They dismissed the facts found, writing it off as legend. The ancient writings placed the Shang in the middle of 3 dynastic periods, known as the "golden age" of ancient China. The other 2 were Xia preceding it, and the Zhou which followed. Disregarding the two, many historians and archaeologists believed Chinese history began with the Zhou dynasty. A fact that they had to adjust after Queen Fu Hao's tomb was found. The main reason for the widespread doubt was the absence of visible monuments. No Xia or Shang temples or palaces survived. One has to consider the fact that each succeeding dynasty would destroy its predecessor's buildings and ruins. For the Shang, that destruction included the dynasty's precious archives, when the capital was conquered by the Zhou around 1050 BC. When China's past was finally unearthed, it was then that the history of the Shang came into focus. In other words the Shang dynasty finally got their recognition and respect.

Thousands of sites across China have been investigated thanks to numerous finds. The Shang era and Shang Culture is now acknowledged, and past inheritance for future generations moves onward.

Source:Time Life Books, Lost Civilizations, China's Buried Kingdoms