Yin Ruins Imitation Copper Pottery Ritual Research

Yin Ruins, located in the northwest of Anyang City, Henan Province, is the capital city of the late Shang Dynasty and is one of the earliest and lasting site carrying out scientific excavation in China. For80years, there are nearly ten thousand tombs were found by Scientists and countless bronze, pottery, jade and other types of artifacts were unearthed in Yin Ruins,which provides important material for the development of Chinese archeology. However, the previous studies were mainly focused on the large number of pottery, bronzes and other artifacts, While the comprehensive and systematic of analysis about pottery vessels(imitated the bronze vessels) is still unseen in Yin Ruins.In this paper,I try to analyse the combination form and ornamentation characteristic of the burial artifacts,the identity of the tomb,the reason of appearing pottery vessels(imitated the bronze vessels) at the fourth stage of the Yin Ruins,and speculate the origin of pottery vessels(imitated the bronze vessels), depending on the analyse of typology and stage-division of pottery vessels(imitated the bronze vessels) founded in Yin Ruins. The paper is divided into six parts:Chapter Ⅰ, introduction.First,it is defined the concept of pottery vessels(imitated the bronze vessels),and pointed out that potteries imitation copper is a kind of pottery ritual vessels imitating bronze ritual vessels. What’s more,briefly introduced the discover and research situation,and point out the study content, methods and the problems which needs to solve.Chapter Ⅱ, the typological analysis of potteries imitation copper in Yin Ruins.By using archaeological stratigraphy and typology principle,potteries imitation copper is analyzed typologically.Some conclusions can be obtained in the stage that the patterns of imitation copper like Ding, Gui, Gu, Jue, Zun is rich in shape,and the patterns of imitation copper like Yan,Jia, Lei,You, Zhi, He are relative to a single. According to the characteristics of the funrary objects it is inferred that Imitation copper pottery ritual burials is in the fourth stage of Yin Ruins culture.Chapter Ⅲ, the research of the tombs combinations of imitation copper pottery in Yin Ruins. By imitation copper pottery ritual burials collected in the Yin Ruins region,imitation copper pottery combination and coexistence combination are both analyzed, pointing out Ding, Gui, Gu, Jue is most common combination.Compared with bronze sacrifice vessels during the same periods, they have a lot of similarities.Acorrding to the burial objects of imitation bronze pottery ritual tomb, it is known the occupant of the tomb,who being a certain social status, has the ability of owning sacrificial vessel,and his identity may nobles or freemen, some of whom have the nature of soldiers.Chapter IV, the research of ornamentation characteristic of imitation copper pottery in Yin Ruins.It is briefly introduced that the ornamentation patterns of imitation copper pottery are string pattern, textured pattern, triangular pattern, milk nail pattern and other geometric ornamentations. The ornamentation combination show a plain and simple features,and compared with the combination of copper ritual ornamentation, it is found that they have many similarities.The simplified Animal Mask of imitation bronze pottery agree with social trends of ritual funerary objects.Chapter V, the background reason of imitation bronze potteries’appearing. With constraints of ideological limitations and the using nature, imitation bronze pottery at this stage only is the container. Imitation copper potteries mostly appeared in fourth stage of Yin Ruins, and were used with bronze sacrifice vessels.This shift is because the concept of "respect to the heaven","imitated the ancestors","respect to spirits " was shaken and at the same time meet the trends of ritual funerary objects.That triggered a social fashion change and the change of the form of worship and imitation copper pottery replacing bronze sacrifice vessels and ceremonial vessels has become a social phenomenon. The imitation bronze pottery is an alternative of bronze ritual vessels.Chapter VI, the source of imitation copper pottery in Yin Ruins. It is pointed out that the beginning of imitation copper pottery should be at Erligang culture period.At the second, third period of Yin Ruins culture, pottery with bronze features appeared, whose nature is only the ritual pottery. At the fourth stage of Yin Ruins imitation copper pottery substituted for bronze ritual vessels. Western Zhou’s imitation copper pottery inherited the paterns and usage mode of the Yin Ruins’imitation bronze pottery, while it is developed on some aspects, class expansion, number increasing, shape changing.Chapter VII, white pottery imitates bronze. The vast majority shape of white pottery in Yin Ruins are followed grey Pottery, some directly modeled on the black pottery, a few is similar to bronze ritual vessels. Regardless of class, combination, ornamentation and significance it has difference with imitation copper Pottery.