Abstract:

The Sanxingdui site is a Neolithic and early Bronze Age site in the Chengdu Plain of western Sichuan in southwest China. In 1986, two pits were found at the site containing an astonishing amount of wealth in the form of hundreds of bronzes alongside stone and jade implements, gold objects, and elephant tusks. The most shocking revelation was the bronze sculptures, which account for the majority of the bronzes. Ranging from miniature to monumental in size, they include human-like figures, fantastic creatures, dragons, birds, and trees the likes of which had never been seen before in Sichuan or anywhere else. This sculptural tradition and iconography contrast sharply with other ancient traditions in China. Around the same time, traces of an ancient wall were recognized, leading eventually to the discovery of a large walled settlement. These finds at Sanxingdui prove beyond doubt that the site was home to a major civilization previously unknown.

The present dissertation is a comprehensive survey of art and archaeology of the Sanxingdui site. It attempts to sort out the basics of the site: its archaeological history, the components of its archaeological record, the spatial and temporal dimensions of the site, and the elite material culture evidenced in the contents of the two pits as well as other related finds. Focusing particularly on the two pits, the dissertation addresses the nature of the pits; the typology of artifacts and their origins, functions, and cultural associations; the iconography and original appearances of the bronze sculptures; and the bronze fabrication technology and its cultural implications.