History › First civilizations › Bronze Age
Shang dynasty
c. 1600–1046 BC· Empire, kingdom or state· Asia
Well documentedSolid records, physical evidence or scientific consensus.
China's first dynasty confirmed by archaeology and writing, ruling the Yellow River valley with bronze, chariots and divination.
See it on the History map →What happened
Shang kings ruled from a series of capitals, the last at Anyang from about 1300 BC. They led armies with chariots, cast huge bronze vessels for ancestor rituals, and practiced human sacrifice. To ask ancestors about harvests, wars and childbirth, diviners cracked heated turtle shells and ox bones, then carved the questions and answers on them. These 'oracle bones' carry the earliest known Chinese writing. The Zhou overthrew the last Shang king about 1046 BC.
Why it matters
Its script is the direct ancestor of the Chinese characters still used today, which later spread to Korea, Japan and Vietnam.
How we know
Over 150,000 oracle-bone fragments, first recognized in 1899; excavations at Anyang since 1928, including the 1976 discovery of the tomb of Lady Fu Hao, a queen and general.
Still debated
Whether the earlier Xia dynasty, named in later histories, was real is debated; the site of Erlitou may be connected to it.
Inside this (1)
Connections (3)
▸Rice and millet farming in China fed Shang dynastyMostly agreed
The connection
Millet farming in the north and rice farming in the south had supported Chinese villages for thousands of years before the Shang. Millet, plus wheat arriving from the west, fed the Shang's Yellow River cities. Grain taxes and stores supported kings, armies, bronze workshops and rituals, and oracle bones often ask whether the harvest will be good.
When and how
The Yellow River valley of northern China, especially around the last Shang capital at Anyang, about 1300–1046 BC.
How sure are we?
Oracle-bone inscriptions asking about millet harvests; charred grains and storage pits at Shang sites; chemical traces of millet in skeletons.
Debates and open questions
How Shang farmers were organized, as free villagers, dependents or forced labor, and how much wheat they grew alongside millet, are debated.
▸Bronze Age flourished in China under Shang dynastyMostly agreed
The connection
Bronze, an alloy of copper and tin, was in use in China by about 2000 BC. Under the Shang it reached a peak: workshops cast huge, intricately decorated ritual vessels and weapons in clay piece-molds. Controlling copper and tin mines and skilled casters was a source of royal power, and bronze vessels marked rank in life and burial.
When and how
The Yellow River valley, especially Zhengzhou and Anyang, about 1600–1046 BC; earlier bronze casting at Erlitou about 1900–1500 BC.
How sure are we?
Thousands of excavated Shang bronzes, including the Houmuwu cauldron, 832 kg (1,830 lb); casting workshops and mold fragments found at Anyang.
Debates and open questions
Whether bronze-making reached China from the west or developed largely on its own is debated; the piece-mold casting method was distinctly Chinese.
▸Shang dynasty was overthrown by Zhou dynasty and the Mandate of HeavenWell documented
The connection
The Zhou, a people of the Wei River valley to the west and once Shang allies, grew powerful. King Wu of Zhou, with allied groups, defeated the last Shang king, Di Xin, at the Battle of Muye. To justify rebellion, the Zhou claimed Heaven had transferred its mandate from the corrupt Shang to them.
When and how
Muye, near the Shang capital in today's Henan province, about 1046 BC (proposed dates range from about 1130 to 1018 BC).
How we know
The Li gui, a bronze vessel inscribed days after the battle, records the victory; later texts such as the Book of Documents describe it.
Debates and open questions
The exact year is debated, and later accounts of the last Shang king's cruelty are likely the winners' propaganda.