The Xia dynasty ( / ʃ i ɑː / SHEE-ə ; Chinese : 夏朝 ; pinyin : Xià cháo ) is the first dynasty in traditional Chinese historiography . According to tradition, it was established by the legendary figure Yu the Great , after Shun , the last of the Five Emperors , gave the throne to him. In traditional historiography, the Xia was succeeded by the Shang dynasty .
123-567: There are no contemporaneous records of the Xia, who are not mentioned in the oldest Chinese texts, since the earliest oracle bone inscriptions date from the Late Shang period (13th century BC). The earliest mentions occur in the oldest chapters of the Book of Documents , which report speeches from the early Western Zhou period and are accepted by most scholars as dating from that time. The speeches justify
246-460: A qing sounding stone, two small clapper bells (one earthenware , one bronze) and a xun with one finger hole. Due to this extreme scarcity of surviving instruments and the general uncertainty surrounding most of the Xia, creating a musical narrative of the period is impractical. Archaeological evidence of a large outburst flood at Jishi Gorge that destroyed the Lajia site on the upper reaches of
369-489: A fishing village, the people there were at first fighting amongst themselves over the fishing grounds, and many people were injured or killed in the fights. Shun taught them how to share and allocate the fishing resources, and soon the village was prospering and all hostilities ceased. When Emperor Yao became old, he became distressed over the fact that his nine sons were all useless, only knew how to spend their days enjoying themselves with wine and song. Yao asked his ministers,
492-526: A human skeleton). The targets and purposes of divination changed over time. During the reign of Wu Ding , diviners were likely to ask the powers or ancestors about things like the weather, success in battle, or building settlements. Offerings were promised if they would help with earthly affairs. Crack-making on jiazi (day 1) Zheng divined "In praying for harvest to the sun, (we) will cleave ten dappled cows, and pledge one hundred dappled cows." ( Heji 10116; Y530.2) Keightley explains that this divination
615-478: A joke, and many Chinese scholars in the field will lose all sense of direction and not know how to get back on the right track. However, as Chen Chun and Gong Xin point out, the debate upon the Xia dynasty's historical existence stems from different research orientations between Chinese and Western scholars. The authors assert that overseas scientific communities are hesitant to accept the results of Chinese researchers because their studies used traditional narratives of
738-467: A particular ancestor was causing a king's toothache. The divination charges were often directed at ancestors, whom the ancient Chinese revered and worshiped, as well as natural powers and Dì ( 帝 ), the highest god in the Shang society. Anything of concern to the royal house of Shang served as possible topics for charges, from illness, birth and death, to weather, warfare, agriculture, tribute and so on. One of
861-472: A period of family or clan control. It is believed that Zhenxun (modern Gongyi ) and Yangcheng (modern Gaocheng ) were two of the capitals of the dynasty. The third Xia king was Tai Kang , described as an avid hunter but ineffective ruler. The Bamboo Annals describe the Xia capital at Zhenxun being attacked by Hou Yi while Tai Kang was on a hunt beyond the Luo River . The occupation of Zhenxun marked
984-450: A possible location of Xia capitals. Among his discoveries was the large Bronze Age site of Erlitou near modern Yanshi . The site was an urban centre, with rammed-earth foundations of several buildings, which were interpreted as palaces or temples. Radiocarbon dating in the late 20th century had wide error margins, and placed the Erlitou culture between 2100 and 1300 BC, which fit well with
1107-546: A prisoner till his death on Feather Mountain ( 羽 ), and driving the San-Miao into San-Wei . Gun's son, Yu ( 禹 ), was subsequently appointed as minister of work(共工) to govern the water and the land. Later, Shun appointed Yu to be General Regulator (Prime Minister). Yu wished to decline in favour of the Minister of Agriculture , or Xie (契), or Gao Yao , but finally accepted upon Shun's insistence. Shun then appointed Chui (垂) as
1230-435: A statelet within the Shang sphere of influence. These notations were generally made on the back of the shell's bridge (called bridge notations), the lower carapace, or the xiphiplastron (tail edge). Some shells may have been from locally raised tortoises, however. Scapula notations were near the socket or a lower edge. Some of these notations were not carved after being written with a brush, proving (along with other evidence)
1353-563: A temple dedicated to the Duke of Zhou during the Tang dynasty , about 18 km (11 mi) west of Qijia. They mention the Duke of Zhou and other figures of the early Western Zhou. A handful of oracle bones have been found at other Western Zhou sites, including some from Beijing. After the founding of Zhou, the Shang practices of bronze casting, pyromancy, and writing continued. Oracle bones that were found in
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#17328557440751476-470: Is also thought to be related to their ease of use as large, flat surfaces that needed minimal preparation. There is also speculation that only female tortoise shells were used, as these are significantly less concave. Pits or hollows were then drilled or chiseled partway through the bone or shell in an orderly series. At least one such drill has been unearthed at Erligang, exactly matching the pits in size and shape. The shape of these pits evolved over time, and
1599-432: Is an important indicator for dating the oracle bones within various sub-periods in the Shang dynasty. The shape and depth also helped determine the nature of the crack that would appear. The number of pits per bone or shell varied widely. Divinations were typically carried out for the Shang kings in the presence of a diviner. Very few oracle bones were used in divination by other members of the royal family or nobles close to
1722-574: Is applied to them as well. The bones or shells were first sourced and then prepared for use. Their sourcing is significant because some of them (especially many of the shells) are believed to have been presented as tribute to the Shang, which provides valuable information about diplomatic relations of the time. We know this because notations were often made on them recording their provenance (e.g., tribute of how many shells from where and on what date). For example, one notation records that " Què ( 雀 ) sent 250 (tortoise shells)", identifying this as, perhaps,
1845-478: Is highly speculative because Huangfu Mi reached his conclusion by extrapolating from demographic statuses of the Qin , Han , Jin dynasties . Modern Chinese scholars estimated the Xia's population by employing records from ancient texts. Records have it that when Tai Kang established Lun as his capital, the settlement had about one lu , which was 500 people according to Du Yu, and this number includes only soldiers. Modifying
1968-715: Is known as a "verification". A complete record of all the above elements is rare; most bones contain just the date, diviner and topic of divination, and many remained uninscribed after the divination. The uninscribed divination is thought to have been brush-written with ink or cinnabar on the oracle bones or accompanying documents, as a few of the oracle bones found still bear their brush-written divinations without carving, while some have been found partially carved. After use, shells and bones used ritually were buried in separate pits (some for shells only; others for scapulae only), in groups of up to hundreds or even thousands (one pit unearthed in 1936 contained over 17,000 pieces along with
2091-470: Is not known how Wang and Liu actually came across these specimens, but Wang is credited with being the first to recognize their significance. During the Boxer Rebellion , Wang reluctantly accepted a defense command, and killed himself in 1900 when allied troops entered Beijing. His son later sold the bones to Liu, who published the first book of rubbings of the oracle bone inscriptions in 1903. As news of
2214-601: Is the Sino-Vietnamese pronunciation of 胡 Hú . Hồ Quý Ly , the founder of the Hồ dynasty , also claimed descent from Duke Hu of Chen and thereby direct descent from Shun. The Hồ family in Vietnam originated from China's Zhejiang province around the 900s. Tian (田) and Yuan (袁) also claim descent from the State of Chen . It is thought by some scholars that Mencius asserted "Shun
2337-475: Is thus also known as the Ruins of Yin, or Yinxu . Oracle bone inscriptions were published as they were discovered, in fascicles . Subsequently, many collections of inscriptions were also published. The following are the main collections. Observing that the citation of these different works was becoming unwieldy, historians Hu Houxuan and Guo Moruo began an effort to comprehensively publish all bones discovered by
2460-430: Is uncertain as some may be different versions of the same character. Specialists have agreed on the form, meanings, and sound of a little more than a quarter of the characters, roughly 1,200 with certainty, but several hundred more remain under discussion; these known characters comprise much of the core vocabulary of modern Chinese. They provide important information on the late Shang period, and scholars have reconstructed
2583-434: Is unique in being addressed to the sun, but typical in that 10 cattle are being offered, with 100 more to follow if the harvest is good. Later divinations were more likely to be perfunctory, optimistic, made by the king himself, addressed to his ancestors, on a regular cycle, and unlikely to ask the ancestors to do anything. Keightley suggests that this reflects a change in ideas about what the powers and ancestors could do, and
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#17328557440752706-694: The Eastern Zhou , Han, Tang , and Qing dynasty periods, and Keightley mentions its use in Taiwan as late as 1972. Shun (Chinese leader) Emperor Shun ( Chinese : 帝舜 ; pinyin : Dì Shùn ) was a legendary leader of ancient China , regarded by some sources as one of the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors being the last of the Five Emperors. Tradition holds that he lived sometime between 2294 and 2184 BC. Tradition also holds that those with
2829-514: The Four Mountains , to propose a suitable successor. Yao then heard of Shun's tales. Wise Yao did not want to simply believe in the tales about Shun, so he decided to test Shun. Yao gave a district to Shun to govern and married his two daughters to him, with a small dowry of a new house and some money. Though given an office and money, Shun still lived humbly. He continued to work in the fields every day. Shun even managed to convince his two brides,
2952-547: The Han River area. This victory strengthened the Xia tribe's power even more. As Shun aged, he thought of a successor and relinquished the throne to Yu , whom he deemed worthy. Yu's succession marks the start of the Xia dynasty. As Yu neared death he passed the throne to his son, Qi , instead of passing it to the most capable candidate, thus setting the precedent for dynastic rule or the Hereditary System. The Xia dynasty began
3075-506: The Huaxia people who populated the Xia represent the direct ancestors of the Han Chinese . Traditional histories trace the development of the Xia to the mythical Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors . According to ancient Chinese texts, before the Xia dynasty was established, battles were frequent between Yellow Emperor 's tribe and Chiyou 's tribe. The Shiji and Book of Rites say that Yu
3198-578: The Japanese invasion of China in 1937. The Chinese still acknowledge the pioneering contribution of Menzies as "the foremost western scholar of Yin-Shang culture and oracle bone inscriptions" . His former residence in Anyang was declared a "Protected Treasure" in 2004, and the James Mellon Menzies Memorial Museum for Oracle Bone Studies was established. By the time of the establishment of
3321-523: The Late Shang period ( c. 1250 – c. 1050 BCE ) in ancient China. Scapulimancy is the specific term if ox scapulae were used for the divination, plastromancy if turtle plastrons were used. A recent count estimated that there were about 13,000 bones with a total of a little over 130,000 inscriptions in collections in China and some fourteen other countries. Diviners would submit questions to deities regarding weather, crop planting,
3444-473: The Zhou dynasty , but the questions and prognostications were increasingly written with brushes and cinnabar ink, which degraded over time. Oracle bones bear the earliest known significant corpus of ancient Chinese writing , using an early form of Chinese characters . The inscriptions contain around 5,000 different characters, many of which are still being used today, though the total number of discrete characters
3567-439: The fangguo tribes were polities outside the Xia clan's direct rule. They were mostly large tribal peoples, but some were massive enough to become small states with more complex social structures, rivaling that of the Xia. Many of the tribes were described as in regular relationships with the Xia court, being either allies or enemies. Eventually, some of the tribal chiefs joined the force of Tang to overthrow Jie's regime. During
3690-404: The two princesses , Yao's daughters, named Ehuang (Fairy Radiance) and Nüying (Maiden Bloom), who were used to good living, to live humbly and work along the people. However, Shun's stepmother and half brother became extremely jealous and conspired to kill Shun. Once Shun's half brother Xiang lit a barn on fire, and convinced Shun to climb onto the roof to put the fire out, but then Xiang took away
3813-525: The 1970s have been dated to the Zhou dynasty, with some dating to the Spring and Autumn period ; very few, however, were inscribed. It is thought that other methods of divination supplanted pyromancy, such as numerological divination using milfoil (yarrow) in connection with the hexagrams of the I Ching , leading to the decline of inscribed oracle bones. However, evidence for the continued use of plastromancy exists for
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3936-441: The 19th century, villagers in the area who were digging in the fields discovered a number of bones, and used them as dragon bones , following the traditional Chinese medicine practice of grinding up Pleistocene fossils into tonics or poultices . The turtle shell fragments were prescribed for malaria, while the other animal bones were used in powdered form to treat knife wounds. In 1899, an antiques dealer from Shandong who
4059-685: The Erlitou period. They further argue that the timing is further evidence for the identification of the Xia with the Erlitou culture. However, no evidence of contemporaneous widespread flooding in the North China Plain has yet been found. The Cambridge History of Ancient China (1999) takes the beginning of Chinese history as the Xia's successor Shang dynasty ( c. 1600 – c. 1046 BC ). Xie Weiyang responded to this standpoint unfavorably towards efforts in China to link archaeological research to historical records: The Cambridge History of Ancient China adopted this standpoint with
4182-505: The Great , the founder of the Xia dynasty, was the grandson of Zhuanxu , who was the grandson of the Yellow Emperor . But there are also other records, like Ban Gu 's, that say Yu's father is a fifth generation descendant of Zhuanxu. Other sources such as Classic of Mountains and Seas mention Yu's father Gun was the son of Luoming, who was the son of the Yellow Emperor . Sima Qian traced
4305-511: The Great's controlling of the floods, he renewed the transportation system. Sima Qian wrote in his Records of the Grand Historian that Yu used carriages to travel on land, boats to travel on rivers, sleds to travel on mud, and horses to cross the mountains. He surveyed the lands and opened up routes through geographical locations so that tributes from tribal chiefs to the Xia would be more convenient. He organized people to build roads connecting
4428-656: The Institute of History and Philology by Fu Sinian at the Academia Sinica in 1928, the source of the oracle bones had been traced back to modern Xiaotun ( 小屯村 ) village at Anyang in Henan. Official archaeological excavations led by Li Ji , the father of Chinese archaeology, between 1928 and 1937 discovered 20,000 oracle bone pieces, which now form the bulk of the Academia Sinica's collection in Taiwan and constitute about 1/5 of
4551-489: The Nine Provinces, helping to improve tributary and economic relations between the tribes. Traditional texts record that the transport system of the Xia clan extended at least 500 – 600 li horizontally and 300 – 400 li vertically. The Guoyu also records that the Xia dynasty ordered the roads to be opened up in the 9th month, the bridges to be finished in the 10th month. The calculation of
4674-510: The Rénmín ( 人民 ) Park phase. Four inscribed bones have been found at Zhengzhou: three with numbers 310, 311, and 312 in the Hebu corpus, and one that has a single character ( ㄓ ), which also appears in late Shang inscriptions. HB 310, which contained two brief divinations, has been lost, but is recorded in a rubbing and two photographs. HB 311 and 312 each contain a pair of characters that are similar to
4797-699: The Shang culture sites. Ox scapulae and plastrons, both prepared for divination, were found at the Shang culture sites of Táixīcūn ( 台西村 ) in Hebei and Qiūwān ( 丘灣 ) in Jiangsu . One or more pitted scapulae were found at Lùsìcūn ( 鹿寺村 ) in Henan, while unpitted scapulae have been found at Erlitou in Henan, Cixian ( 磁縣 ) in Hebei, Níngchéng ( 寧城 ) in Liaoning, and Qijia ( 齊家 ) in Gansu . Plastrons do not become more numerous than scapulae until
4920-485: The Shang royal genealogy from the cycle of ancestral sacrifices recorded on oracle bones. When they were discovered at the end of the nineteenth century and deciphered in the early twentieth century, these records confirmed the existence of the Shang, whose historicity had been subject to scrutiny at the time by the Doubting Antiquity School . Oraculology is the discipline for the study of oracle bones and
5043-490: The Shang. Other scholars also argue that Shang political class's remnants still existed during the early Zhou dynasty, Zhou rulers could not simply justify their succession to pacify Shang remnants if it had been entirely fabricated since the Shang remnants, who remembered prior histories, would not believe it in the first place. For example, the Classic of Poetry preserves the "Eulogies of Shang" (商頌 Shāng sòng ) which represents
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5166-432: The Xia are simply the opposite of traits held to be emblematic of the Shang. The implied dualism of the Shang myth system, Allan argues, is that while the Shang represent the suns, sky, birds, east and life, the Xia represent the moons, watery underworld, dragons, west and death. Allan argues that this mythical Xia was re-interpreted by the Zhou as a ruling dynasty replaced by the Shang, a parallel with their own replacement of
5289-436: The Xia as a guide that instructed them on what to find, and because they quickly linked newly discovered artifacts, constructions and other evidences as representing the proof for the Xia's actual existence. They claim that mainland Chinese scholars focused mainly on extrapolations of excavated evidence to establish a historical perspective, and overlooked other complex factors in ancient human activities. This method, according to
5412-694: The Xia as a pretext, to justify their conquest of the Shang, by noting that just as the Shang had supplanted the Xia, they had supplanted the Shang. The existence of the Xia remains unproven, despite efforts by Chinese archaeologists to link them with the Bronze Age Erlitou culture . Among other points, Gu and other historians note certain parallels between the traditional narrative of Xia history and Shang history that would suggest probable Zhou-era fabrication or at least embellishment of Xia history. Yun Kuen Lee's criticism of nationalist sentiment in developing an explanation of Three Dynasties chronology focuses on
5535-404: The Xia clan in managing the state. There were also laws set forth to maintain social stability within the country. Traditional narratives describe the Xia as enjoying prosperity in agriculture. The Analects contends that Yu the Great devoted himself to irrigation, improving the drainage system for cultivating crops. The texts also say that the people of Xia was gifted in producing alcohol, with
5658-404: The Xia dynasty legendary or at least unsubstantiated, but others identify it with the archaeological Erlitou culture ( c. 1900–1700 BC ). According to the traditional chronology, based upon calculations by Liu Xin , the Xia ruled between 2205 and 1766 BC. According to the chronology based on the "current text" Bamboo Annals , it ruled between 1989 and 1558 BC. Comparing
5781-502: The Xia dynasty's population attracted interests during the Han dynasty. However, all calculations are speculations and extrapolations, due to difficulties stemming from time intervals. The Book of the Later Han quotes Huangfu Mi 's work Diwang Shiji, which claims that when Yu the Great finished establishing the Nine Provinces, the total population was 13,553,923 individuals; however, this number
5904-517: The Xia, the scope of direct jurisdiction of the state is limited to within the clan. Beyond the Xia's own tribe, other tribal leaders enjoyed relatively independent management and ruling rights in their own territories; for the Xia Hou, they expressed their mutual relations in the form of submission and tribute. The Book of Documents says that Yu the Great determined the relationships between Xia and Fangguo tribes, dividing them into 5 categories according to
6027-434: The Xia. Upon reaching adulthood, Shao Kang began organizing with local lords who hated Han Zhuo's rule. Shao Kang emerged victorious in the military confrontation that followed, and Han Zhuo committed suicide. The reign of Shao Kang and his son Zhu is traditionally characterized as one of the most prosperous periods in the Xia's history. Jie was the final King of Xia—he was said to be immoral, lascivious, and tyrannical. He
6150-492: The Xia–Shang–Zhou Chronology Project produced a narrower range for the Erlitou culture of 1880 to 1520 BC. The project assigned all four phases of Erlitou to the Xia, and identified the transition to the Shang with the construction of walled cities at Yanshi and Zhengzhou around 1600 BC. Since the project had settled on a start date for the Xia of 2070 BC, based on received texts, this forced them to designate
6273-571: The Xia–Shang–Zhou project. Most scholars now agree that the Zhou conquest of the Shang took place close to 1046 or 1045 BCE, over a century later than the traditional date. Since divination was by heat or fire and most often on plastrons or scapulae, the terms pyromancy , plastromancy and scapulimancy are often used for this process. The oracle bones are mostly turtle plastrons , probably female and ox scapulae, although there are also examples of tortoise carapaces , ox rib bones,
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#17328557440756396-673: The Yellow River has been dated to c. 1920 BC . This date is shortly before the rise of the Erlitou culture in the middle Yellow River valley and the Yueshi culture in Shandong, following the decline of the Longshan culture in the North China Plain . The authors suggest that this flood may have been the basis for the later myth of Yu the Great, and contributed to the cultural transition into
6519-563: The Zhou conquest of the Shang as the passing of the Mandate of Heaven and liken it to the succession of the Xia by the Shang. That political philosophy was promoted by the Confucian school in the Eastern Zhou period. The succession of dynasties was incorporated into the Bamboo Annals and Shiji and became the official position of imperial historiography and ideology. Some scholars consider
6642-453: The Zhou ritual centre known as the Zhōuyuán. Some of these are believed to be contemporaneous with the reign of Di Xin , the last Shang king, and others to date from the early Western Zhou. The inscriptions are distinguished from those of Anyang in the way the bones and shells were prepared and used, the smallness of the characters, the presence of unique vocabulary, and the use of the phases of
6765-568: The area was the site of the last Shang dynasty capital. Decades of uncontrolled digs followed to fuel the antiques trade, and many of these pieces eventually entered collections in Europe, the United States, Canada, and Japan. The first Western collector was the American missionary Frank H. Chalfant (1862–1914). Chalfant also coined the term "oracle bone" in his 1906 book Early Chinese Writing , which
6888-603: The areas oracle bones were discovered and thus it is theorized they were presented to the region as tribute. Neolithic diviners in China had long been heating the bones of deer, sheep, pigs, and cattle for similar purposes; evidence for this in Liaoning has been found dating to the late fourth millennium BCE. However, over time, the use of ox bones increased, and use of tortoise shells does not appear until early Shang culture. The earliest tortoise shells found that had been prepared for divinatory use (i.e., with chiseled pits) date to
7011-443: The beginning of a significant interregnum. In the eighth year of the reign of Tai Kang's nephew Xiang , Hou Yi was killed by his former chief minister Han Zhuo . 20 years later, Han Zhuo's forces killed King Xiang and usurped the throne, but the royal family escaped. Xiang's son Shao Kang was sheltered by a tribal chief, surviving for years as a fugitive despite the efforts of Han Zhuo to eliminate him and prevent any reemergence of
7134-478: The beginning of the subsequent Zhou dynasty . The earliest oracle bones (corresponding to the reigns of Wu Ding and Zu Geng) record dates using only the 60-day cycle of stems and branches , though sometimes the month was also given. Attempts to determine an absolute chronology focus on a number of lunar eclipses recorded in inscriptions by the Bīn group, who worked during the reign of Wu Ding, possibly extending into
7257-465: The country. But unfortunately, he died suddenly of an illness on the journey near the Xiang River . Both his wives rushed from home to his body, and wept by the river for days. Their tears turned into blood and stained the reeds by the river. From that day on, the bamboo of that region became red-spotted, which explains the origin of spotted bamboo . Then overcome by grief, both women threw themselves into
7380-403: The cracking. A number of cracks were typically made in one session, sometimes on more than one bone, and these were typically numbered. The diviner in charge of the ceremony read the cracks to learn the answer to the divination. How exactly the cracks were interpreted is not known. The topic of divination was raised multiple times, and often in different ways, such as in the negative, or by changing
7503-401: The date being divined about. One oracle bone might be used for one session or for many, and one session could be recorded on a number of bones. The divined answer was sometimes then marked either "auspicious" or "inauspicious", and the king occasionally added a "prognostication", his reading on the nature of the omen. On very rare occasions, the actual outcome was later added to the bone in what
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#17328557440757626-529: The dichotomy of evidence provided by archaeological versus historical research, in particular, the claim that the archaeological Erlitou culture is also the historical Xia dynasty. "How to fuse the archaeological dates with historical dates is a challenge to all chronological studies of early civilization." In The Shape of the Turtle: Myth, Art, and Cosmos in Early China , Sarah Allan noted that many aspects of
7749-481: The earliest Shang stratum at Erligang (modern Zhengzhou ). By the end of the Erligang, the plastrons were numerous, and at Anyang, scapulae and plastrons were used in roughly equal numbers. Due to the use of these shells in addition to bones, early references to the oracle bone script often used the term "shell and bone script", but since tortoise shells are actually a bony material, the more concise term "oracle bones"
7872-460: The earliest oracle bone inscriptions to 1230 BCE. 26 oracle bones throughout Wu Ding's reign have been radiocarbon dated to 1254–1197 BCE (±10 years) with an estimated 80-90% probability of containing the true individual ages. Period V inscriptions often identify numbered ritual cycles, making it easier to estimate the reign lengths of the last two kings. The start of this period is dated 1100–1090 BCE by Keightley and 1101 BCE by
7995-714: The extent to which the living could influence them. While the use of bones in divination has been practiced almost globally, divination involving fire or heat has generally been found only in Asia and the Asian-derived North American cultures. The use of heat to crack scapulae (pyro-scapulimancy) originated in ancient China, the earliest evidence of which extends back to the 4th millennium BCE with archaeological finds from Liaoning, though these were not inscribed. The scapulae of cattle, sheep, pigs, and deer used in pyromancy have been found at neolithic archeological sites, and
8118-411: The figures and adding other types of people, Song Zhenhao postulated that this supposed city had between 1500 and 2500 individuals by the time of Tai Kang, a number he classified as medium. Estimating the number of populous cities, Song finally calculated the result of over 2 million. Wang Yumin, using description of demography during the reign of Emperor Shun who directly preceded the Xia, concluded that
8241-442: The fortunes of members of the royal family, military endeavors, and similar topics. These questions were carved onto the bone or shell in oracle bone script using a sharp tool. Intense heat was then applied with a metal rod until the bone or shell cracked due to thermal expansion . The diviner would then interpret the pattern of cracks and write the prognostication upon the piece as well. Pyromancy with bones continued in China into
8364-461: The founder of the Shang dynasty, Tang, overthrew the Xia dynasty. Shu Yi, the owner of this artifact, was a high officer of the state of Qi during the Spring and Autumn period ( c. 600 BC ), was actually a direct descendant of the Song rulers, which means he himself was a descendant of Shang people. This bronze artifact was used to memorialize his Shang ancestors. The inscription contradicts
8487-406: The hard work in the family and only giving him the worst food and clothing. Shun's father, being blind and elderly, was often ignorant of Shun's good deeds and always blamed Shun for everything. Yet, despite these conditions, Shun never complained and always treated his father, his stepmother, and his half brother with kindness and respect. When he was barely an adult, his stepmother threw him out of
8610-416: The hills and rivers, set in accord the seasons, months, and days, established uniform measurements of length and capacities, and reinforced ceremonial laws. Shun divided the land into twelve provinces, raising altars upon twelve hills, and deepening the rivers. Shun dealt with Four Perils : banishing Gonggong to You Prefecture , confining Huan-dou (驩兜) on Mount Chong (宗山), executing or imprisoning Gun
8733-415: The house. Shun was forced to live on his own. Yet, because of his compassionate nature and his natural leadership skills, everywhere he went, people followed him, and he was able to organize the people to be kind to each other and do the best they could. When Shun first went to a village that produced pottery, after less than one year, the pottery became more beautiful than they had ever been. When Shun went to
8856-492: The hypothesis that the Zhou manufactured the existence of the Xia. Although the Shang oracle bone inscriptions contain no mention of the Xia, some scholars have suggested that polities they mention might be remnants of the Xia. Guo Moruo suggested that an enemy state called Tufang state of the Fang states mentioned in many inscriptions might be identified with the Xia. Historian Shen Changyun points to four inscriptions mentioning Qi,
8979-544: The inscribed oracle bones were found at the Yinxu site in modern Anyang and date to the reigns of the last nine Shang kings. The diviners named on the bones have been assigned to five periods by Dong Zuobin : The kings were involved in divination in all periods, with divinations in later periods done personally by the king. The extant inscriptions are not evenly distributed across these periods, with 55% coming from period I and 31% from periods III and IV. A few oracle bones date to
9102-456: The king. By the latest periods, the Shang kings took over the role of diviner personally. During a divination session, the shell or bone was anointed with blood and, in an inscription section called the "preface", the date was recorded using the Heavenly Stems and Earthly Branches , along with the diviner's name. Next, the topic of divination (called the "charge") was posed, such as whether
9225-450: The ladder, trapping Shun on the burning roof. Shun skilfully made a parachute out of his hat and cloth and jumped down in safety. Another time, Xiang and his mother conspired to get Shun drunk and then throw him into a dried-up well and then bury him with rocks and dirt. Shun's half-sister, never approving of her mother and brother's schemes, told Shun's wives about the scheme. Shun thus prepared himself. Shun pretended to get drunk, and when he
9348-420: The late Shang script. HB 312 was found in an upper layer of the Erligang culture. The others were found accidentally in river management earthworks, and so lack archaeological context. Pei Mingxiang argued that they predated the Anyang site. Takashima, referring to character forms and syntax, argues that they were contemporaneous with the reign of Wu Ding. A turtle plastron bearing several short inscriptions
9471-512: The late part of the Henan Longshan culture , including the Xinzhai phase, as the early part of the Xia period. No corresponding cultural transition in the archaeological record has yet been discovered. Even more refined carbon dating in 2005 and 2006 produced more tightly defined ranges, dating Xinzhai at 1870–1720 BC and Erlitou at 1735–1530 BC. The only musical instruments found at Erlitou are
9594-503: The latter's grandson Emperor Zhuanxu . The Bamboo Annals (048) recorded the name of Shun's mother as Wodeng ( 握登 ), and Shun's birthplace as Yaoxu ( 姚墟 ). Wodeng died when Shun was very young. Shun's blind father Gusou ( 瞽叟 , literally: "blind elder") remarried soon after Shun's mother's death. Shun's stepmother then gave birth to Shun's half brother Xiang ( 象 ) and a half-sister ( Liènǚ Zhuàn , Ch. 1). Shun's stepmother and half brother treated Shun terribly, often forcing Shun to do all
9717-604: The lesser banishment. Five hundred li (the most remote) constituted the Wild Domain. The (first) three hundred were occupied by the tribes of the Man; the (other) two hundred, by criminals undergoing the greater banishment. Texts like the Book of Documents , the Book of Rites , and the Mencius describe that the Xia had already established a distinguished official system with positions helping
9840-467: The mid-1950s. The result, the Jiaguwen Heji (1978–1982) was edited by Houxuan and Guo Moruo and, with its supplement (1999) edited by Peng Bangjiong, is the most comprehensive catalogue of the oracle bone fragments. The 20 volumes contain reproductions of over 55,000 fragments. A separate work published in 1999 contains transcriptions of the inscriptions into standard characters. The vast majority of
9963-479: The moon as a dating device. Four pieces (HB 1, 12, 13 and 15) have been particularly puzzling, because they refer to sacrifices in the temples of Shang ancestors, and also differ from the other bones in calligraphy and syntax. Scholars disagree on whether they were produced at Anyang or the Zhouyuan, and whether the diviners and scribes were Shang or Zhou. In 2003, around 600 inscribed bones were found at Zhougongmiao,
10086-428: The most common topics was whether performing rituals in a certain manner would be satisfactory. An intense heat source was then inserted in a pit until it cracked. Due to the shape of the pit, the front side of the bone cracked in a rough 卜 shape. The character 卜 ( bǔ or pǔ ; Old Chinese : *puk ; 'to divine') may be a pictogram of such a crack; the reading of the character may also be an onomatopoeia for
10209-566: The name of his fief, which he received from Yao . According to traditional sources, Shun received the mantle of leadership from Emperor Yao at the age of 53, and then died at the age of 100 years. Before his death Shun is recorded as relinquishing his seat of power to Yu ( 禹 ), the founder of the Xia dynasty . Shun's capital was located in Puban ( 蒲阪 ), presently located in Shanxi ). Under Emperor Yao, Shun
10332-681: The new minister of work (共工). Shun also appointed Yi as Minister of Animal Husbandry to govern the beasts and trees of the land, Bo-yi as Priest of the Ancestral Temple to perform religious ceremonies, Hui as Director of Music, Long as Minister of Communications to counter deceptions and false reports. According to the Canon of Shun , Shun began to reign at the age of 30, reigned with Yao for 30 years, and reigned 50 more years after Yao's abdication, then Shun died. The Bamboo Annals state that Yao chose Shun as his heir three years before abdicating
10455-438: The notable legendary figure of Du Kang who is usually identified with Shao Kang. The population was described to have had vegetables and rice as the staple crop, and meat was usually reserved for sacrifices. Additionally, manufacture of goods and trade with outside tribes flourished. The site at Erlitou contains many metallic fragments, suggesting that the time assigned to the Xia was characterized by bronze metallurgy. During Yu
10578-542: The oracle bone script. Shang-era oracle bones are thought to have been unearthed occasionally by local farmers since as early as the Sui and Tang dynasties, and perhaps starting as early as the Han dynasty . In Sui and Tang era Anyang , which was at one time the capital of the Shang dynasty, oracle bones were exhumed during burial ceremonies, though grave diggers did not realize what the bones were and generally reinterred them. During
10701-431: The oracle bones' discovery spread throughout China and among foreign collectors and scholars the market for the bones exploded, though many collectors sought to keep the location of the bones' source a secret. Although scholars tried to find their source, antique dealers falsely claimed that the bones came from Tangyin in Henan. In 1908, scholar Luo Zhenyu discovered the source of the bones near Anyang and realized that
10824-467: The origin of the dynasty to the name of a fief granted to Yu, who would use it as his own surname and his state's name. Gun , the father of Yu the Great, is the earliest recorded member of the Xia clan. When the Yellow River flooded, many tribes united together to control and stop the flooding. Gun was appointed by Emperor Yao to stop the flooding. He ordered the construction of large levees to block
10947-527: The path of the water. The attempts of Gun to stop the flooding lasted for nine years, but ultimately failed because the floods strengthened. After nine years, Yao had already given his throne to Shun . Gun was ordered to be imprisoned for life by Shun at Yushan ( 羽山 , 'Feather Mountain'), a mountain located between modern Donghai County in Jiangsu, and Linshu County in Shandong. Yu was highly trusted by Shun, so Shun appointed him to finish his father's work, which
11070-399: The population of the dynasty was around 2.1 million. The time gap between the supposed time of the Xia and the first written references to it have meant that the historicity of the Xia dynasty itself and the traditional narrative of its history are at best uncertain. The Doubting Antiquity School led by Gu Jiegang in the 1920s were the first scholars within China to systematically question
11193-407: The powerful state of Song , whose rulers were the direct descendants of Shang dynasty. Among those eulogies, the eulogy Chang Fa ( 長發 ) celebrated victories by the "martial king" Tang of Shang against Wei ( 韋 ), Gu ( 顧 ), Kunwu ( 昆吾 ), and Jie of Xia . During the later Song dynasty (960–1279 AD), an ancient bronze artifact, Shu Yi Zhong ( 叔夷鐘 ), was unearthed with an inscription describing how
11316-456: The practice appears to have become quite common by the end of the third millennium BCE. Scapulae were unearthed along with smaller numbers of pitless plastrons in the Nánguānwài ( 南關外 ) stage at Zhengzhou; scapulae as well as smaller numbers of plastrons with chiseled pits were also discovered in the lower and upper Erligang stages. Significant use of tortoise plastrons does not appear until
11439-412: The promise of providing a commonly accepted synthesis based on an exhaustive discussion of the latest pre-Qin material available at the end of the 1990s. This is of extraordinary significance, because if this book aims to provide a commonly accepted synthesis, then the blood, sweat, and tears of Chinese scholars over the past decade that brought about countless achievements in Xia period research will become
11562-481: The reign of Zu Geng. Assuming that the 60-day cycle continued uninterrupted into the securely dated period, scholars have sought to match the recorded dates with calculated dates of eclipses. There is general agreement on four of these, spanning dates from 1198 to 1180 BCE. A fifth is assigned by some scholars to 1201 BCE. From this data, the Xia–Shang–Zhou Chronology Project , relying on
11685-503: The river and drowned. Shun considered his son, Shangjun ( 商均 ), as unworthy and picked Yu , the tamer of floods, as his heir. According to tradition, the Hu people are believed to be descendants of Emperor Shun. Gui Man , a direct descendant of Shun, became known as Chen Hugong or Duke Hu of Chen , meaning Duke Hu who founded the State of Chen . Later Chen dynasty emperors such as Chen Baxian would also claim descent from Shun. Hồ
11808-445: The same name as the state of Qi, which according to traditional accounts was established by the defeated royal house of Xia. Inspired by the discovery of the late Shang capital ( Yinxu ) near modern Anyang , Chinese archaeologists searched the Yellow River basin for earlier capitals. In 1959, Xu Xusheng conducted a survey of the Yi – Luo basin, which he had identified from received texts as
11931-519: The same text with dates of five-planet conjunctions , David Pankenier, supported by David Nivison , proposed dates of 1953 and 1555 BC. The Xia–Shang–Zhou Chronology Project , commissioned by the Chinese government in 1996, proposed that the Xia existed between 2070 and 1600 BC. The Xia dynasty was described in several Chinese classics , including the Book of Documents , the Bamboo Annals , and Sima Qian 's Shiji . According to tradition,
12054-435: The scapulae of sheep, boars, horses, and deer, and other various animal bones. The skulls of deer, oxen, and humans have also been found with inscriptions on them, although these are very rare and appear to have been inscribed for record keeping or practice rather than for actual divination; in one case, inscribed deer antlers were reported, but Keightley reports that they are fake. Interestingly, tortoises are not native to
12177-637: The statement in the "Against Luxurious Ease" chapter of the Book of Documents that the reign of Wu Ding lasted 59 years, dated it from 1250 to 1192 BCE. American sinologist David Keightley argued that the "Against Luxurious Ease" chapter should not be treated as a historical text because it was composed much later, presents reign lengths as moral judgements, and gives other reign lengths that are contradicted by oracle bone evidence. Estimating an average reign length of 20 years based on dated Zhou reigns, Keightley proposed that Wu Ding's reign started around 1200 BCE or earlier. Ken-ichi Takashima dates
12300-522: The surname Hu (胡) are descendants of Emperor Shun. The Duke Hu of Chen , 胡公滿 , a descendant of Shun, became the founder of the State of Chen . Later Chen dynasty emperors such as Chen Baxian would also claim descent from Shun. Shun's clan name ( 姓 ) is Yao ( 姚 ), his lineage name ( 氏 ) is Youyu ( 有虞 ). His given name was Chonghua ( 重華 ). Shun is sometimes referred to as the Great Shun ( 大舜 ) or as Yu Shun or Shun of Yu ( 虞舜 ), "Yu" being
12423-512: The third, the straw, but the people had to perform various services; from the fourth, the grain in the husk; and from the fifth, the grain cleaned. Five hundred li (beyond) constituted the Domain of the Nobles. The first hundred li was occupied by the cities and lands of the (sovereign's) high ministers and great officers; the second, by the principalities of the barons; and the (other) three hundred, by
12546-463: The throne to him. Both sources agree that after abdicating, Yao lived for another 28 years in retirement during Shun's reign. In later centuries, Yao and Shun were glorified for their virtue by Confucian philosophers. Shun was particularly renowned for his modesty and filial piety (xiao 孝 ). Sima Qian claimed in Annals of the Five Emperors ( 五帝本紀 ) that Shun descended from the Yellow Emperor through
12669-447: The total discovered. The major archaeologically excavated pits of bones have been: When deciphered, the inscriptions on the oracle bones were revealed to be records of the divinations performed for or by the royal household. These, together with royal-sized tombs, proved beyond a doubt for the first time the existence of the Shang dynasty, which had recently been doubted, and the location of its last capital, Yin. Today, Xiaotun at Anyang
12792-434: The traditional dates of the Xia. Most Chinese archaeologists identify the Xia with Erlitou, while many western archaeologists argue that the identification, and indeed the very existence of Xia, is unprovable, due to the lack of testable detail in the traditional accounts. For a time, archaeologists debated which of the four phases of Erlitou should be interpreted as Xia and which as Shang. The refined dating techniques used by
12915-421: The traditional story of its early history. By critically examining the development of the narrative of early Chinese history throughout history, Gu concluded, "the later the time, the longer the legendary period of earlier history [...] early Chinese history is a tale told and retold for generations, during which new elements were added to the front end". Some historians have suggested that the Zhou rulers invented
13038-460: The tribes' relative locations from the Xia clan's residence: He [Yu] conferred lands and surnames. (He said), 'Let me set the example of a reverent attention to my virtue, and none will act contrary to my conduct, Five hundred li formed the Domain of the Sovereign. From the first hundred they brought as revenue the whole plant of the grain; from the second, the cars, with a portion of the stalk; from
13161-819: The two authors, resulted in high levels of subjectivity and contradicted the common trend among Western researchers, which took the physical discoveries as not necessarily representing real social or political units. The following table lists the rulers of Xia according to the Records of the Grand Historian . Unlike Sima's list of Shang kings, which is closely matched by inscriptions on oracle bones from late in that period, records of Xia rulers have not yet been found in archaeological excavations of contemporary sites, or records on later Shang dynasty oracle bones. Oracle bone Oracle bones are pieces of ox scapula and turtle plastron which were used in pyromancy – a form of divination – during
13284-465: The use of the writing brush in Shang times. Scapulae are assumed to have generally come from the Shang's own livestock, perhaps those used in ritual sacrifice, although there are records of cattle sent as tribute as well, including some recorded via marginal notations. The bones or shells were cleaned of meat and then prepared by sawing, scraping, smoothing, and even polishing to create flat surfaces. The predominance of scapulae, and later of plastrons,
13407-535: The various other princes. Five hundred li (still beyond) formed the Peace−securing Domain. In the first three hundred, they cultivated the lessons of learning and moral duties; in the other two, they showed the energies of war and defence. Five hundred li (remoter still) formed the Domain of Restraint. The (first) three hundred were occupied by the tribes of the Yi; the (other) two hundred, by criminals undergoing
13530-511: The work to stop the floods, he never went back to his home village to stop and rest, even though he passed by his house three times. Yu's success in stopping the flooding increased agricultural production. The Xia tribe's power increased and Yu became the leader of the surrounding tribes. Soon afterwards Shun sent Yu to lead an army to suppress the Sanmiao tribe, which continuously abused the border tribes. After defeating them, he exiled them south to
13653-671: Was an Eastern barbarian ; he was born in Chu Feng, moved to Fu Hsia, and died in Ming T'iao and that emperor Yao came to his field's with oxs and married his daughters to him and appointed him and that he did not reign as emperor until after yao died because they cannot be two rulers. Additionally, the Bamboo Annals and Han Fei paint a very different picture of Shun. Both the Annals and the book Han Feizi stated that Shun overthrew Yao and left him in prison to die. Danzhu , Yao's son and rightful heir,
13776-476: Was appointed successively Minister of Instruction, General Regulator and chief of the Four Peaks , and put all affairs in proper order within three years. Yao was so impressed that he appointed Shun as his successor to the throne. Shun wished to decline in favour of someone more virtuous, but eventually assumed Yao's duties. It was said that "those who had to try a lawsuit did not go to Danzhu , but to Shun." Danzhu
13899-424: Was briefly described by the Book of Documents in terms of their soil quality, their productivity and other geographical characteristics. According to the chapter "Tribute of Yu" in the text, the Nine Provinces respectively correspond to modern regions of China as: The Xia dynasty moved the capital many times. According to traditional records, these capitals are as follows: According to traditional Chinese records,
14022-478: Was found at Daxinzhuang in Shandong on the floor of a semi-subterranean house dating from the Late Shang period. The style of characters is close to that used by particular diviner groups active at Anyang during the reign of Wu Ding, though it shows some variations. Nearly 300 inscribed oracle bones (HB 1–290) were found in 1977 in two pits dug into a building foundation at Qijia, Fufeng County , Shaanxi , part of
14145-487: Was overthrown by Tang , who inaugurated the new Shang dynasty . King Tang is said to have given the remnants of the Xia clan a fief comprising the small state of Qi . This practice was referred to as "the two crownings and the three respects". According to the Book of Documents , Yu the Great divided his state into nine provinces ( 九州 ). These are Ji ( 冀 ), Yan ( 兗 ), Qing ( 青 ), Xu ( 徐 ), Yang ( 揚 ), Jing ( 荊 ), Yu ( 豫 ), Liang ( 梁 ) and Yong ( 雍 ). Each province
14268-554: Was searching for Chinese bronzes in the area acquired a number of oracle bones from locals, and later sold several to Wang Yirong , the chancellor of the Imperial Academy in Beijing. Wang was a knowledgeable collector of Chinese bronzes, and is believed to be the first person in modern times to recognize the oracle bones' markings as ancient Chinese writing similar to that on Zhou dynasty bronzes. A legendary tale relates that Wang
14391-457: Was sick with malaria, and his scholar friend Liu E was visiting him and helped examine his medicine. They discovered that, before being ground into powder, the bones bore strange glyphs which, having studied the ancient bronze inscriptions , they recognized as ancient writing. Xu Yahui states that, "[n]o one can know how many oracle bones, prior to 1899, were ground up by traditional Chinese pharmacies and disappeared into people's stomachs." It
14514-550: Was the first to come up with a method of dating them (in order to avoid being fooled by fakes). In 1917 he published the first scientific study of the bones, including 2,369 drawings and inscriptions and thousands of ink rubbings. Through the donation of local people and his own archaeological excavations, he acquired the largest private collection in the world, over 35,000 pieces. He insisted that his collection remain in China, though some were sent to Canada by colleagues who were worried that they would be either destroyed or stolen during
14637-418: Was the son of Yao. After ascending to the throne, Shun offered sacrifices to the god Shang Di ( 上帝 ), as well as to the hills, rivers, and the host of spirits ( 神 ). Then he toured the eastern, the southern, the western, and the northern parts of the country; in each place he offered burnt-offering to Heaven at each of the four peaks ( Mount Tai , Mount Huang , Mount Hua and Mount Heng ), sacrificed to
14760-405: Was then calqued into Chinese as jiǎgǔ 甲骨 in the 1930s. Only a small number of dealers and collectors knew the location of the source of the oracle bones until they were found by Canadian missionary James Mellon Menzies , the first person to scientifically excavate, study, and decipher them. He was the first to conclude that the bones were records of divination from the Shang dynasty, and
14883-499: Was thrown into the well, he had already a tunnel pre-dug to escape to the surface. Thus, Shun survived many attempts on his life. Yet, he never blamed his stepmother or his half brother, and forgave them every time. Eventually, Shun's stepmother and half brother repented their past wrongs. Shun wholeheartedly forgave them both, and even helped Xiang get an office. Shun also managed to influence Emperor Yao's 9 worthless sons into becoming useful contributing members of society. Emperor Yao
15006-438: Was to stop the flooding. Yu's method was different from his father's: he organized people from different tribes and ordered them to help him build canals in all the major rivers that were flooding and lead the water out to the sea. Yu was dedicated to his work. The populace praised his perseverance and were inspired, so much so that other tribes joined in the work. Legend says that in the 13 years it took him to successfully complete
15129-502: Was very impressed by all of Shun's achievements, and thus chose Shun as his successor and put him on the throne in the year of Jiwei ( 己未 ). Yao's capital was in Ji ( 冀 ) which in modern times is also in Shanxi province. Shun is also renowned as the originator of the music called Dashao ( 大韶 ), a symphony of nine Chinese musical instruments . In the last year of Shun's reign, Shun decided to tour
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