SHANG DYNASTY

Where were the ruins of a Shang city discovered?

Anyang

Describe what archaeologists have discovered about Shang cities.

Archaeologists unearthed many artifacts from these ruins that revealed an ancient civilization. The ruins were the remains of one of the royal cities of the Shang. The city included a palace, a temple and houses. There were also workshops for artisans who worked with bronze, pottery, stone and jade.

Who would come after nobles in social structure and explain their lives.

Artisans formed a small social class. This class included bronze and jade workers, potters and stonemasons. These skilled workers had lower status than nobles but higher status than farmers. Bronze workers were especially valued since their weapons were used by Shang warriors. They also made and decorated containers for the king and nobles to use in religious ceremonies or simply as symbols of their wealth.

Who were the bottom level in social structure and explain their daily life.

At the very bottom of Shang society were slaves. Many of these slaves were prisoners of war. They spent their lives building tombs and palaces. When their masters died, the slaves were sometimes sacrificed, in keeping with the Shang belief that slaves should continue to serve their masters in the afterlife.

What is a logograph?

Characters that stand for words

Which artifacts reveal information about government during the Shang dynasty?

Chariots, dagger, ceremonial ax

Write a paragraph that summarizes what the three artifacts reveal about Shang society.

Charriot was given to the king by the nobles to provide a strong army and also placed in the king's tomb to provide protection in the next life. Cowrie shells were sometimes used as a form of currency. Oracle bone was used by shang kings and priests to predict the future. They were made from the shoulder blades of cattle or from tortoise shells.

Which artifacts reveal information about trade during the Shang dynasty?

Cowrie shells and oracle bones

Who were the largest group in the society and explain their daily life.

Farmers made up the largest social class in Shang society. They worked small plots of land, growing millet, wheat, barley, rice, fruit, vegetables, and nuts. Their land was under the control of either the king or the nobles. Farmers gave most of their harvest to the nobles, who sent a portion to the king. Farmers could keep only enough food to feed themselves and their families. many farmers continued to use simple tools made of wood and stone. They dug with wooden sticks, weeded with stone-tipped hoes, and harvested grain with stone knives and scythes. Besides growing crops, farmers learned to raise cattle. They may also have raised pigs and chickens.

Name the weapon you think most helped strengthen the Shang army, and explain why you chose this weapon.

I think Chariots were the most helped strengthen the shang army because Chariots allowed Nobles to supervise their troops efficiently and across great distances. They also gave soldiers a significant edge over their opponents by making them highly mobile and fast.

Why was a written language important in Chinese history?

It helped unify the Chinese people

Chinese characters stand for words, while English characters stand for sounds. What is one likely effect of this difference?

It takes longer to learn to write Chinese than to learn to write English.

What conclusion did archaeologists have when they found human and animal bones in the ruins of Anyang?

Kings were buried with supplies for the afterlife

On what objects were the first examples of Chinese writing found?

On oracle bones which are among the earliest known examples of Chinese writing.

Identify two materials used by Shang artists. For each material, list an example of an art piece that might be created using it.

Shang artists made weapons, vessels with Bronze and also made jade objects like jade statues.

Describe some ways that Shang artisans decorated vessels and other objects.

Some bronze vessels had geometric designs and pictures of mythical creatures. The most common picture was an animal mask, later known as a taotie.

What did archeologists discover about the Shang Dynasty by analyzing artifacts?

The artifacts unearthed at Anyang and revealed some interesting facts about Shang beliefs and ways of life.

Describe Second highest class

The nobles made up the highest-ranking social class after the ruling family. Nobles fought in the king's army. In exchange for their military help, the king did not interfere with their control over the land. They enjoyed a life of luxury and the king often gave nobles symbols of power, such as jade discs. The discs could show a lucky creature (lion, etc.)

What did the Shang dynasty accomplish?

They controlled all of ancient China.

Who would come after that artisans and explain their lives.

Traders also ranked below nobles but above farmers in Shang society. Scholars believe that the Shang traded extensively, because the modern Chinese word for merchant is shang ren("Shang Man"). During the Shang dynasty, people mostly traded goods. But they also used cowrie shells, a type of seashell, as money. The shells were valuable because they came from far away. The Shang had to trade with neighboring regions to get them.

Clan

a large group of family members and friends

What is a human sacrifice?

a person who is killed as part of a religious ritual.

What does the word economy mean?

a system of managing the wealth of a country or region.

Why were bronze-making skills important to the Shang dynasty?

because most of the people's weapons were made of bronze

If two nobles from different parts of China met up during the Shang dynasty, what was the best way for them to communicate?

by writing, because they wrote with the same characters.

Describe three causes of the fall of the Shang dynasty.

constant warfare, lavish spending, and corruption in the ruling class may have led to the Shang dynasty's downfall.

What is ancestor worship?

honoring ancestors through rituals, such as offering food and wine to the dead.

Describe the highest social class from the Shang Dynasty.

kings and his relatives were the highest class and they rule the kingdoms

Which artifacts reveal information about social classes that existed during the Shang dynasty?

oracle bone, jade disc, bronze vessel, cowrie shells, farming tool, and tombs

Which artifacts reveal information about religion during the Shang dynasty?

oracle bones, carving stones,and bronze vessels

The modern Chinese word for "merchant" is shang ren, which means "Shang man." What do scholars believe the word suggests about life during the Shang dynasty?

that the Shang people traded a great deal.