CHINA ARQUEOLOGIA golden-age-chinese-archayeolog

handles. These truly are the "imposing vessels"
(zhong qi) mentioned in later texts.
While four-legged steamers are extremely rare,
the three-legged type, which originated in bronze
forms during the Erligang Phase, had become relatively
more common by the Late Shang. Yan (or
xian) steamers are most frequently either bereft of
decoration or given only a minimal treatment of
"bowstrings" on the bowl and a few relief elements
from an animal mask on the legs. This vessel, however,
combines extensive intaglio decoration on the
base with relief eyes, ox horns, and mouth. A single
register of mask motifs bordered by circles wraps
around the upper bowl, while a monocular band
occupies the outer edge of the rim. The loop handles
have swallowtail chevron motifs that can also
be found on Wucheng ceramics. Flanges at the
median line of each leg are echoed above by flanges
set into the wall of the bowl. Four-legged creatures
with small ears, no horns, and a scale pattern covering
their bodies form the handles. A good analogue
of the Dayangzhouyan is a three-legged example
found in 1977 in Liquan county, Shaanxi. 2 The disposition
of decoration is almost the same, but the
Liquan yan, at 70 centimeters and 25 kilograms,
is slightly smaller. This yan is one of a number of
linkages between the Gan River culture and the
Wei River valley of the Zhou.
The Fu Hao tomb contained a singular steaming
box with three bowls (cat. 47), also a large and
impressive vessel. The cooked grain may have been
presented in ceramic vessels, which were plentiful
in the Dayangzhou find. No bronze types, with
the possible exception of the dou, appear suitable
for this function. RT
1 Recovered in 1989 (XDM^S); reported: Jiangxi 1997, 53-57.
2 Shaanxi 1979, no. 59.
199 | TOMB AT DAYANGZHOU, XIN GAN