1500-1050 BC Shang

The Bronze Age began in China about 1650 BC. The earliest bronze objects to be excavated so far come from the northern province of Henan where, in about 1500 BC, the Shang dynasty emerged. Shang society was dominated by powerful warrior nobles, who fought with bronze weapons and, from about 1300 BC, used horse-drawn chariots. Shang kings ruled most of northern China, although the extent of their empire varied over time, with tributary kingdoms on their borders. The Shang worshipped gods, spirits, and royal ancestors, to whom human and animal sacrifices were made.

Shang society was highly organised, using written records, an accurate calendar and money in the form of cowrie shells. Huge amounts of labour were mobilised to build cities with ramparts and great tombs. The land was farmed for rice with water buffalo and irrigation systems.

About 1300 BC the Shang capital was moved to Anyang. Modern excavations of the magnificent royal tombs here have revealed chariot burials containing the bodies of horses and attendants, as well as bronze armour, weapons and ritual vessels. The last Shang king was defeated about 1100 BC by a subject kingdom in the west, the state of Zhou.