Erligang culture
The Erligang culture (二 里 岡 文化) (1600–1400 BC) is an archaeological culture of the Bronze Age in China . The eponymous locality Erligang , outside of Zhengzhou , Henan , was discovered in 1951.
Many Chinese archaeologists believe that Zhengzhou was an early Shang center corresponding to the Erligang culture in an early phase of the Shang Dynasty. Most Western scholars are reluctant to take this view because of the later, dissimilar Anyang settlements. In addition, no written records were found in Erligang linking the archaeological finds with the official history.
The city was surrounded by a large wall almost 7 km in circumference. Large workshops were located outside this wall, e.g. B. a "bone workshop", a pottery and two foundries for bronze vessels. The present city is built on the remains of the old one, which makes archaeological research very difficult. Therefore, most of the information about the Erligang culture comes from investigations at other Erligang sites.
The center of Erligang culture is in the valley of the Yellow River . It was the first archaeological culture in China to show extensive use of bronze vessel castings. In the early years, the culture suddenly expanded very quickly and reached the Yangtze , as evidenced by the large site at Panlongcheng in Hubei . The expansion is likely due to the fact that the raw materials for bronze production in the area around Zhengzhou decreased and access to resources in more distant areas had to be secured. As a result, the influence of the Erligang culture, which it exercised in its early phase, declined.
The Erligang culture also shows strong influences from the Erlitou culture , whose developments in bronze technology and style are reflected in the Erligang. The style of the bronze vessels became much more uniform among the Erligang, and the use of these vessels was more widespread.
See also
literature
- Michael Loewe , Edward L. Shaughnessy (Ed.): The Cambridge History of ancient China. From the Origins of Civilization to 221 BC Cambridge University Press, Cambridge et al. 1999, ISBN 0-521-47030-7 .
- Li Liu: "The Products of Minds as Well as of Hands". Production of Prestige Goods in the Neolithic and Early State Periods of China. In: Asian Perspectives. The Journal of Archeology for Asia and the Pacific. Vol. 42, No. 1, 2003, ISSN 0066-8435 , pp. 1-40, doi : 10.1353 / asi.2003.0025 .