Chapter 20: The Shang Dynasty
Essential Question: What do Shang artifacts reveal about this civilization?
In this chapter, you learn about one of China's earliest dynasties, the Shang dynasty, by examining artifacts from that time.
A Shang Capital City
The ruins and artifacts found at Anyang show that the Shang believed in an afterlife. Kings were buried with goods, people, and animals that would be useful to them in their life after death. Shang Government Shang kings were powerful rulers who inherited their power and kept it through family ties and military might. Shang Social Classes Shang society can be divided into six social classes: the king's clan, nobles, artisans, traders, farmers, and slaves. Shang Religion, Writing, Arts, and Technology The Shang practiced ancestor worship and, sometimes, human sacrifice. Their writing used logographs as well as pictographs. Shang artisans excelled in working with bronze and jade. The bronze weapons they created enabled the Shang to stay in power. The End of the Shang Dynasty The Shang ruled in the valley of the Huang He for some five hundred years. They traded widely and grew wealthy. But constant warfare, lavish spending, and corruption in the ruling class may have led to the dynasty's downfall. Around 1045 B.C.E., the Shang were defeated by the Zhou. |
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