by marta, ani, jeramiah, and sakib the shang dynasty
TRANSCRIPT
By Marta, Ani, Jeramiah, and Sakib
The Shang Dynasty
The Shang Dynasty
Is one of the earliest Dynasty’s of China Ruled around the area of the Huang He Started in the 1700 – 1122 B.C.E. Often fought against other Clans Considered to be a myth to western
foreigners Might’ve been the 1st Chinese to learn
how to write.
Government
Led by a powerful king who controlled the the land. The king set up smaller kingdoms under his
younger brothers and nephews. Sometimes a son or a younger brother inherited the
kingdom. Depended to strong armies. Engaged in almost constant war to defend and
expand their kingdoms. Captured prisoners to use as laborers and human
sacrifices. Armies: foot soldiers, archers, cavalry riding horses,
and elephants, and fighters in chariots.
Social Structure
There were six social classes in the Shang Dynasty The first was the king and his relatives The nobles:
~ Fought in the kings armies.
~ Provided weapons, foot soldiers, and chariots. The craftspeople:
~ Small social class.
~ Bronze and Jade workers, Potters, and stonemasons.
~ Lower status than nobles but high status than farmers
~ Made weapons used by Shang warriors.
~ Made containers and ornaments for religious ceremonies. The traders
~ Ranked below nobles but above farmers – just like the craftsmen.
~ Mostly traded goods.
~ But used cowrie shells, a type of seashell as money.
~ Traded with neighboring regions.
Social Structure
The traders~ Ranked below nobles but above farmers – just like the craftsmen.~ Mostly traded goods.~ But used cowrie shells, a type of seashell as money.~ Traded with neighboring regions. The Farmers~ Largest social class.~ Worked on small plots of land, grew millet, wheat, barley, rice, fruit, vegetables, and
nuts.~ Did not own the land they farmed.~ The land was under control of either the king or the nobles.~ Kept only enough crops to feed themselves and their families, and they gave the rest to
the nobles who sent some to the king.~ The farmers used simple tools such as: wooden sticks, stone-tipped hoes, and stone
knives and scythes. And last the slaves~ Very bottom of the Shang society.~ Had often been captured in wars.~ Spent their lives building tombs and palaces.~ When their masters died they got sacrificed.
Religion
Shang believed that dead ancestors had a life after death
It was important to honor ancestors and give them food and wine
A king’s relationship to the ancient spirit was very important
Kings used oracle bones to ask their ancestors for advice and when to hunt
Writing
The Shang used a type of writing called logograph
Logographs are characters that stand for words They had inscription on oracle bones (that kings
used) Before the Shang invented logographs, they only
used pictograph which were pictures representing something they wanted to say
Although the Shang people spoke different languages in different places, the people from the upper class all used the same form of writing
Because of the written language, the Shang had a better way of communicating
The Arts The Shang artists were very good when
working with bronze Craftspeople made beautiful vessels The vessels had either geometry or
mythical creatures They made many animal masks. The
most common one was a taotie The Shang also made very beautiful
jade pieces They believed the quality of jade
represented a superior person and the hardness of jade stood for good wisdom
Technology
Working with bronze. Used bronze to make many tools of war. Arrowheads, spearheads, ax heads, and
helmets. ^ One of the reasons why they were
able to remain in power for more than 500 years.
The Fall of the Shang Dynasty Fighting many wars weakened the
military power. The king and nobles spent so much
money on palaces, furnishings, clothing and tombs, and spending weakened the economy.
The last king did pleasurable activities instead of looking after his people.
1045 B.C.E: A frontier state called Zhou (joh) rose up against the dynasty.
Zhou armies caught the Shang unaware, defeating and overthrowing them.
And now A Trivia!
Approximately how long did the Shang dynasty rule?
Who inherited the kingdom? What were the 6 social classes of the Shang
dynasty? How did the kings ask their ancestors for advice? What was the type of writing they used? Name one of their tools that they used as
weapons. Who took over the Shang Dynasty?
THE END!
Hope you learned something interesting!
Bibliography For Pictures…
http://www.chinatownconnection.com/images/shangdynasty.jpg
http://www.artsmia.org/art-of-asia/history/images/maps/china-shang.gif
http://www.thejaderoad.com/html/images/shanggod1.jpg