Western Zhou Dynasty

About

The Zhou people of the Wei valley overthrew the Shang around 1046 BC and ruled from capitals near modern Xi'an until 771 BC, when invaders drove the court east. They justified the conquest through the idea of the Mandate of Heaven, and their bronzes did much to proclaim it.

Early Western Zhou ritual vessels continue Shang forms, but inscriptions cast inside them grow from a few characters into full documents. The Li gui records the conquest itself; the Shi Qiang pan, from around 900 BC, recites the deeds of kings alongside a scribe's family history; and the Mao Gong ding carries nearly five hundred characters. Decoration shifted too: long-tailed birds with sweeping crests became fashionable in the 10th century BC, and later bronzes replace the old animal masks with broad, flowing wave and scale bands. Graded sets of cooking vessels and tuned bells reflected a ritual order that fixed what each rank could own.