Ritual vessel (fangyi) with lid

The Evolution of Bronze Shapes and Designs

Changes in the design and decoration of early Bronze Age vessels can be seen as a series of experiments with the new material of bronze and the new technology of casting. The earliest Chinese metal vessels were created by hammering bronze into the desired shapes. The bodies of these vessels tend to be thin and their profiles exaggerated versions of earlier ceramic vessels. Later, artisans developed the technology to cast vessels by pouring the molten metal into molds.

The earliest bronze vessels probably borrowed their shapes from ceramic prototypes of the late Neolithic period. Due to the nature of the material, most ceramic forms had thick bodies, rounded profiles, and few, if any, surface protrusions. This influence can be seen in the legs and overall profile of the bronze. Changes in bronze vessel forms from these rather awkward beginnings indicate their creators’ growing familiarity with the unique characteristics of the clay-mold casting process. While surface decoration became quite complex, most bronze forms remained relatively simple—either curved or square—to facilitate the release of the mold pieces. Three-dimensional additions, such as elaborate handles or functional parts of vessels, were often precast and attached to the body by one of two complicated processes.