Early Chinese Chime Stones Dynasty

The qing was a percussion instrument characteristic of ancient China. To study the progressing law on the early qing (from the Late-Neolithic to Shang dynasty), it's unearthed condition and features of shape-pattern, pitch and distribution were investigated. The present results indicated that: 1) the main function of early qing was used as one of the rhythm musical instrument and a ritual object; 2) the essential shape of qing was rectangle-like in the Late-Neolithic and Xia dynasty and pentagon-like hi Shang dynasty. The larger shape hi the Late-Neolithic and Xia dynasty and graceful pattern in Shang dynasty evidently evolved the feature of early qing; 3) the results of the pitch testing proved that the early qing was a kind of rhythm musical instrument, and the range of pitch of qing hi Shang Dynasty was wider than that in the Late-Neolithic and Xia Dynasty; 4) a number of early qing unearthed from the Yellow River valley, showing that the qing had the property of region and culture to a certain extent.