Animals And The Power Order Of The Late Shang Dynasty

In the process of the origin and early development of Chinese civilization,the subsistence economy,which is composed of domestic animal and planting agriculture,plays an important role in promoting the early development of state and kingship.After the formation of kingship and state,domestic animals and even wild animals have not only served as the source of meat,dairy products and other economic functions,but also further participated in the shaping and construction of power and order.Especially in the central area of the monarchy,the ancestors carried out production and life in an organized way.Including hunting wild animals,raising domestic animals,as well as their distribution and use are subject to the hierarchy and class factors,not only the individual and even the family’s independent behavior.This situation was particularly prominent in the late Shang Dynasty.In the late Shang Dynasty,the clans organization was strictly controlled under the power of the king.Their daily activities were independent,but they assumed the responsibility and obligation of the dynasty operation,and were included in the unified action of the dynasty governance.Therefore,whether it was raising livestock,hunting wild animals,making bone wares or making animal modeling crafts,the ancestors of late Shang Dynasty had heard that animals and dynasties established a connection between power and order.Of course,animals are not the only link between the two.However,through animals,which are indispensable in daily life,we can explore the political power and ideological changes at the core of the Dynasty and trace down the sleepy life of ordinary people.This paper is divided into seven chapters,combing the basic situation of domestic animals,wild animals,bone handicraft industry and animal modeling products in the late Shang Dynasty,giving a comprehensive explanation of how the late Shang Dynasty used animals and how to use them.On this basis,combining the perspectives of political history,social history,art history and archaeology,this paper attempts to answer the question of the role of animals in the political power structure of the late Shang Dynasty.The chapter I discusses the types and classification of cattle,sheep,ragweed and dog horses in Oracle inscriptions.Secondly,the remains of domestic animals in Yin Ruins are classified based on archaeological materials.Thirdly,the remains of domestic animals in the cultural sites of late Shang in Henan,Hebei and Shandong are sorted out.According to Oracle inscriptions,cattle are the most common sacrifice,and the species are the most abundant;sheep and pigs are also rich;and dogs are least.The uses of domestic animal from archaeological findings are more than oracle inscriptions records.There are abundant animal bones unearthed in the tombs of Yin Ruins,which are buried in both the tombs and the fill.The sacrificial pits and horse-chariots pits near the tombs are also buried with animals;there are also animal sacrifice remains found in the building base,mainly located in the palace temple area and the workshops.These are all the remains of rituals.The remains of non-rituals’ animals are garbage produced after eating,and wastes from bone-making workshops.The animal remains of the sites outside Yin Ruins are relatively small,and pigs are the most common.The chapter II firstly discusses the beginning of the late Shang Dynasty and the source of its legitimacy.Secondly,I explains the changes of sacrificial system in the late Shang Dynasty from the perspective of shaping the kings’ power.Finally,the source of domestic animals,which are indispensable to the sacrificial system,is discussed,and it is considered that the source of domestic animals is closely related to the control mode of the clans near the Yin Ruins.According to the oracle bone inscriptions and archaeological materials,it is pointed out that cattle,as the most important sacrificial animal in traditional China,formed in the late Shang Dynasty,which is the first reform of sacrifice in the late Shang Dynasty.At the end of the late Shang Dynasty,Wu(物牛)and Xing(骍牛)became the most important cattle,which should be the second sacrifice reform of the late Shang Dynasty.In comparison with the archaeological materials and ancient books of the Western Zhou Dynasty,in terms of the use of cattle,the Zhou People inherited the tradition of the Shang People but also changed it.In terms of the color of hair,when the Shang people chose cattle,they really paid attention to the color of cattle was not white;the nobles of the late Shang paid great attention to the white horse,not for sacrifice but for use in real life;the obvious difference between the situation of cattle used in oracle inscriptions and archaeological remains shows that there were "institutional belief’ and "diffuse belief’ in the late Shang Dynasty.The chapter Ⅲ discusses the main wild animals in oracle bone inscriptions.Secondly,it summarizes the wild animal remains of the Yin Ruins.Thirdly,it discusses the tribute of wild animals in the late Shang Dynasty and the possible distant trade and exchange.Finally,combined with Oracle Bone Inscriptions and archaeological materials,this paper studies the dynasty control mode behind the tribute tortoise shells of the clans.Tribute was also one of the means for the central government to obtain wild animals,among which tortoise shells were the most abundant.Most of the wild animals that come from distant trade and exchange are marine creatures,such as whales and various marine shellfish.The smooth operation of distant trade and exchange should mainly rely on the outposts and transit stations of the clans stationed in other places,which reflects that the ruling power and state form of the late Shang Dynasty have developed to a very mature degree.The chapter Ⅳ firstly discusses the identity of the participants in the hunting activities,and then arranges and discusses the changes of the narrative structure of the hunting inscriptions in each period.Secondly,it analyzes the emergence and development of the hunting officials,and explains the expansion and function of the hunting land in the late Shang Dynasty;finally,it reveals and analyzes the new phenomenon of hunting activities in the later periods.From the change of narrative structure of hunting inscriptions and the time point of appearance of hunting officials,it is likely that the King Zujia(袓甲)reformed the function of hunting systematically.It was during this period that the central government of the dynasty brought hunting into the ruling system,and the system of hunting officials was further improved in the period of the King Wuyi(武乙).From the specific situation of the expansion of the hunting areas,the areas where the hunting areas are located generally include agricultural areas,important clan strongholds and so on.The Shang king continued to patrol among the hunting areas,mainly to ensure his direct control of the important areas in the dynasty.After the period of King Wuding(武丁),hunting became one of the most important means of internal governance.The chapter V puts forward the animal consumption type according to the concept of bronze consumption type in bronze age.Firstly,the utilization of animals was discussed,and the grade differences reflected by meat intake were revealed.Secondly,this paper classifies and arranges the main bone artifacts.Thirdly,taking the bone(Antlers)arrowhead and bone hairpin as examples,this paper discusses their roles and symbolic meanings in funeral etiquette.Finally,the bone-making industry and craftsmen in Yin ruins were studied.In the late Shang,the high and middle class nobles had rich sources of meat,while the meat of the common class was significantly different from them.The inequality of the late Shang Dynasty was also reflected in the wearing of bone ware.The status of bone craftsmen is even lower than that of ordinary people.The huge workload may be the direct reason for some craftsmen to escape.The huge gap between the rich and the poor caused by the differences in status and grade should be the structural factor of this situation.The chapter VI analyzes the theory of Shamanism from K.C.Chang,discusses the origin and development of the concept of Shamanism,the formation and the shortcomings of its demonstration process.Secondly,this paper critics that the views of bronze patterns from Hayashi Minao and Max Loehr.Finally,through the analysis of the origin and types of animal patterns,as well as the "rational" performance of sacrifice in the late Shang,it is pointed out that at this time,the art,including animal plastic arts,served for the secular power,and had already left the stage of seizing power with art.In the Conclusion,I point out from the perspective of methodology that animal centered historical research should eventually return from animal to human.Researchers should pay attention to the daily life in ancient society from the traditional,macro and modern,micro perspectives,and recognize the face of rule and domination from all levels of power.