Ancient Sichuan: Treasures from a Lost Civilization [Hardcover]

Robert Bagley (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 2001

This extraordinary catalogue accompanies a major traveling exhibition of 128 works of bronze, jade, and clay dating from the thirteenth century B.C. to the second century A.D. The majority of these stunningly sophisticated works of art--among the most unusual and spectacular produced anywhere in the ancient world--all come from a startling archaeological discovery made just fourteen years ago at the previously unknown site of Sanxingdui in Sichuan province. The discovery of this Bronze Age civilization fundamentally changes our understanding of Chinese history.

Representing fifteen hundred years of cultural production, these striking objects are extraordinarily varied, ranging from a monumental standing figure and an almost life-size bronze horse to ritual vessels, masks, and bronze heads of fantastic-looking supernatural beings, finely honed jade knives and ritual blades, and marvelous clay statuettes. Most have never before been seen in the United States. The exhibition and catalogue represent a unique international effort to continue the study of ancient Sichuan.

Under the leadership of Robert Bagley, an international team of scholars contributes eight essays on the archaeological discoveries at Sanxingdui, the art historical importance of these objects, and the new history of ancient China they tell. Contributors are Michèle Pirazzoli-t'Serstevens, Jessica Rawson, Lothar von Falkenhausen, Alain Thote, Jenny F. So, Michael Nylan, and the Seattle Art Museum's Curator of Chinese Art, Jay Xu. In addition to the essays, there are individual entries for each object, nearly all of which have been newly photographed for this publication.

Ancient Sichuan contributes to a revolutionary change in perceptions of ancient Chinese civilization, providing an unprecedented opportunity to explore the art, material culture, and spiritual life of ancient China.

EXHIBITION SCHEDULE:

Seattle Art Museum, Seattle

May-August 2001

Kimbell Museum of Art, Fort Worth

September 2001-January 2002

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

March-June 2002

Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto

August-November 2002

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Ancient Sichuan is the catalog of a spectacular exhibition organized by the Seattle Art Museum. Recent discoveries from Sichuan Province are revolutionizing the history of ancient China, showing that the traditional cradle of Chinese culture, along the Yellow River, had sophisticated competition from distant regions 3,000 years ago. Stately bronze trees and huge bronze heads--some with gold-foil masks, some with strange alien eyes on foot-long stalks--are the centerpieces of the show. Dating from the 12th century B.C., these exotic objects, found with elephant tusks and ritual jade weapons in two vast sacrificial pits, are artifacts of a previously unknown culture whose existence took archaeologists by surprise. These pieces alone would be sufficient for a groundbreaking exhibition, but the show and this beautifully designed catalog take the distinctive nature of local Sichuan culture into Han times, 1,000 years later. Lively ceramic sculptures of entertainers and erotic scenes on wall tiles demonstrate the creativity and exuberance of ancient Sichuan society. Essays by leading scholars in the field compellingly describe the context and significance of the often breathtaking objects. A wealth of comparative material, photographs, and drawings explains how original and different Sichuan culture was from what has long been considered the Yellow River Bronze Age mainstream. With the finds illustrated in Ancient Sichuan, the cradle of Chinese civilization begins to look like a large double bed. --John Stevenson

From Library Journal

The name China means "the Center Country," and for most of the 20th century, theories concerning the history of China postulated a central culture based on the Yellow River valley and radiating out into the vast territories of what we know as modern China. Recently, brick makers digging a clay pit in a small village in the isolated Sichuan basin discovered a fabulous cache of bronze, jade, and ivory relics from an early civilization unlike any other in Chinese history. As a result, it is now theorized that the interaction of numerous coequal cultural groups may have contributed to the rise of a central Chinese identity. This thesis stands behind a visually stunning exhibition of bronze and stone artifacts from Sichuan organized by the Seattle Art Museum. This book's fine design and gorgeous photography will interest readers who may not be as tempted to plunge into the dense but readable essays delineating the history of Sichuan and the precise archaeological details of the excavations. The artifacts in this exhibition, particularly the gigantic bronze tree, the oddly stylized human masks, and the erotic bricks, are unlike any of the more familiar Chinese art objects illustrated in numerous other books. Essential for academic libraries and recommended for public collections. David McClelland, Philadelphia
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 360 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691088519
• ISBN-13: 978-0691088518
• Product Dimensions: 12.2 x 10.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,220,125 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Ancient Sichuan : Treasures from a Lost Civilization, January 5, 2002

By 

Maryellen Read (Portland, OR United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Ancient Sichuan: Treasures from a Lost Civilization (Hardcover)

A fabulous book! I'd give it 10 stars!
For the record, I am educated, very interested in archaeology, but not a professional archaeologist. I found this book to be clearly written and informative, but not overwhelming with abstruse detail.
Content-wise, these bronze heads and masks are weird and wonderful, alien, unlike typical Chinese bronze finds--unlike anything else in the world really. Somewhat reminiscent of Aztec or Olmec heads. The composite bird-human figures are intriguing, the google-eyed-trunk-antenna human(?) masks totally awesome.
I would have liked more definite identification of "core-materials," types of stone, and black paint (on eyebrows and eyes of masks and heads) more maps to show where the gold, lead and casting materials came from. It would be really interesting to see a map showing possible related art styles/influences to the Sanxingdui site (text p. 32).
The photography is brilliant, and the adjacent, clearly drawn illustrations of different views and details of the objects are terrific. The layout of the text and illustrations: with notes in the second column, diagrams, and photos all together on the same spread makes it easy to get all the information. (No flipping back and forth to the back of a book for details and asides.)
I would love to see a publication relating what was happining in adjacent contemporary culures to the Sanxingdui bronze head culture. For instance, did any army have headgear similar to the bronze head on p. 95? Is there nothing left of the material that was slotted through the back of this and other heads (dna analysis?)?
All in all a great book.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Seminal Sanxingdui exhibition guide, July 11, 2010

By 

Dawn Carelli (Quincy, MA, United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Ancient Sichuan: Treasures from a Lost Civilization (Hardcover)

This volume was the accompaniment to one of the most fascinating exhibitions of Chinese archaeology in recent years. As such, it represents the show in a gorgeous and informative manner. The objects are stunningly photographed, the printing is beautifully done (which is critical in any art book, as poor color reproduction or a sloppy print run can destroy the sense of the artworks), and the text is edited by Robert Bagley of Princeton, who is not only one of the premiere scholars of early Chinese art and archaeology but a tremendous author in every respect--extremely readable as well as erudite.

The exhibition brought us many objects that are more readily identifiable as early Chinese, but its stars were the bizarre metal masks (mostly of bronze) that COULD lead certain gullible souls to believe in extraterrestrial visitation to Sichuan. All of the artifacts are interesting; some are beautiful; others are entertaining; one is even erotic; many are quite puzzling. There is much to be discovered and interpreted regarding the culture that produced the Sanxingdui artifacts, but for anyone with an interest in early Chinese art and cultures, this book can give a tantalizing glimpse of a past that has only begun to reveal its secrets.