Ritual bronzes centre on the ding, gui, zun and jue vessels, cast in piece molds with inscriptions cast on them. Carrying the rites in the vessel and history in the text, they are the material form of the lineage ritual order.
In the late Xia the Erlitou culture cast bronze jue, jia and he vessels, the earliest known set of ritual bronzes in China.
In the late Shang, Yinxu produced the Houmuwu ding and the group of ritual vessels from the tomb of Fu Hao, and the system of ritual bronzes reached its height.
In the late Western Zhou, weighty vessels such as the Maogong ding, cast with long inscriptions, carried the rites in the vessel and history in the text and fixed the system of ritual vessels for the lineage order.
Ritual Bronzes is the class in the chapter on Crafts on ritual bronzes, centred on the ding, gui, zun and jue vessels. They were cast in piece molds with inscriptions cast on them, carrying the rites in the vessel and past events in the text, and they give the lineage ritual order a material form.
