The exhibition, Rites of Harmony: Special Exhibition of Bronze Ding of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, jointly presented by the National Museum of China and the Shanghai Museum was inaugurated on September 14, 2021. Starting from three giant round bronze vessels of Da Yu Ding, Da Ke Ding and Zi Long Ding from the Shang and Zhou dynasties, the exhibition displays nearly 40 representative bronze ritual vessels and valuable cultural artifacts from the same period. Together with pottery molds and full-form rubbings, it seeks to display the rich culture of bronze ding, and explores their use, shapes, decorative motifs, inscriptions, and craftsmanship, so as to comprehensively present the long-established ritual culture embedded in the ancient Chinese bronze ding system.
The exhibition is divided into three units, namely “Supreme Round Bronzes”, “Ding and Social Development” and “Precious Rubbings”. The first unit presents three most representative bronze ding in the Shang and Zhou dynasties, namely Da Yu Ding, Da Ke Ding and Zi Long Ding. They can be regarded as the most outstanding piece of round bronze ding vessels and are admired for their large sizes, and significant historical and artistic values. The second unit introduces various bronze ding vessels. The Chinese idiom “enjoying the melodies produced by bronze chime bells while eating” is a crystallization of the culture of rites and music in ancient China and reflects the connections between daily life and the ritual system. The third unit presents several valuable rubbings of Da Yu Ding, Da Ke Ding and Zi Long Ding which are of vital importance and great value in understanding the collection, history and inscription and finding the artistic value of the Chinese characters.
Source: National Museum of China