On the Zhou Dynasty of China

I'm currently reading a new book by Lothar von Falkenhausen called Chinese Society in the Age of Confucius (1000-250 BC), a period about which I know very little but am learning quite a bit as I go along. I should be ready to talk about the book in a couple of weeks, but in the meantime, here is a good description of the Zhou dynasty before I get too far into it.

The Zhou Dynasty is the historical period made up of the latter part of the Chinese Bronze Age, and it is the period in which Confucius lived. The Zhou was preceded by the Shang Dynasty, and followed by the Qin Dynasty (from whence the Emperor Qin and his terracotta army). See my article on the Zhou Dynasty for more information about this fascinating period.

These lovely images are of two Late bronze age Western Zhou Dynasty you--a you, as I have learned from Falkenhausen, is the Chinese art word for a liquid container with an arch-shaped movable handle. The fancy one--the one with all the hooked flanges--dates to the earliest Western Zhou period, or so Falkenhausen tells me, while the tall you is somewhat later. Both are from sites in the modern town of Baoji, Shaanxi Province. Baoji was an important region for the Western Zhou capital between about 1046-771 BC; excavations at Baoji were conducted by the Zhouyuan Museum back in the 1980s and the artifacts ended up in the museum repositories.

Hope you all enjoy the Zhou as much as I am...

• Zhou Dynasty
• Chinese Dynasties
• Chinese Society in the Age of Confucius (1000-250 BC)
• Zhou Dynasty, Ancient History