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Exploring China

T his bronze cooking pot is decorated with a human face and animal claws. It dates from the fourteenth to the eleventh centuries bce .

Bronze-Age China T he Bronze Age began in China in about 3000 bce . It differed from the European Bronze Age because the Chinese did not make many bronze farming tools. They concentrated on making elaborate bronze objects for use in their religious ceremonies. In about 1600 bce the Shang established their rule (called a dynasty ) in the Central Plains (see map). The Shang moved their capital city many times and finally settled

A thirteenth-century bce bronze taotie.

distinctive two-eyed mask design called a taotie. The Shang had many colonies and were frequently at war. In the middle of the eleventh century bce , the Shang Dynasty was defeated by the Zhou from northwest China.

T his Shang bronze was used to hold food during religious ceremonies.

T he green area shows where ancient bronze objects have been found.

at Anyang, in Henan province. They built palaces, royal tombs and workshops for

making bronze weapons and other objects. Many Shang bronzes have a

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