The Foundations of Middle Shang Civilization

The Middle Shang period (circa 1500-1300 BCE) represents a crucial phase in the development of early Chinese civilization, building upon the achievements of the Early Shang culture while significantly expanding its geographical reach. Emerging from the Early Shang foundation centered around the Erligang culture, this dynamic period saw the Shang civilization stretch from the Tai-Yi mountain range in the east to Qishan and Fufeng in the western Guanzhong region, reaching near the Great Wall in the north and extending beyond the Yangtze River in the south.

Archaeological evidence reveals that Middle Shang culture maintained the core characteristics of its Early Shang predecessor while developing distinct regional variations. The cultural landscape comprised nine identifiable regional types, some continuing directly from Early Shang traditions, while others emerged through population movements or cultural reorganization. This period witnessed both cultural continuity and innovation, with significant developments in bronze technology, urban planning, and social organization that would lay the groundwork for the later Yinxu phase of Shang civilization.

Core Regional Types and Their Characteristics

The Baijiazhuang type developed from the Erligang variant of Early Shang culture, flourishing primarily in the Zhengzhou-Luoyang region. Excavations at Baijiazhuang revealed a wealth of artifacts including pottery vessels like li tripods, dou stemmed dishes, and gui tureens, alongside bronze ritual vessels such as jue, jia, and ding. The site’s stratigraphy helped bridge the chronological gap between Erligang and Yinxu periods, with its lower layers representing Middle Shang I phase (1500-1450 BCE).

Notable Middle Shang I remains in Zhengzhou include two bronze foundries continuing from Early Shang, three hoards of royal bronze vessels, and elite tombs containing ritual bronzes. The Xiaoshuangqiao site, located outside Zhengzhou, represents an important Middle Shang I settlement of considerable scale and status. Luoyang-area remains at Yanshi Shang City and other sites show similar cultural characteristics, suggesting the Zheng-Luo region remained a political center during early Middle Shang.

The Caoyanzhuang type, developing from the Liulige variant of Early Shang culture, became prominent during Middle Shang II-III phases (1450-1300 BCE). Centered in southern Hebei and northern Henan, this type is represented by sites like Caoyanzhuang, Dongxianxian, and the Yuanbei Shang City discovered in 1999 near Anyang. The Yuanbei Shang City, located northeast of the Yinxu protected area, contained palace foundations and yielded bronze vessels dating to Middle Shang II-III.

Taixi type continued from the Early Shang Taixi variant, distributed across central Hebei. The Taixi site at Gaocheng provided particularly rich Middle Shang II-III remains, including well-preserved residential structures and burials. The site’s “L-shaped” multi-room house (F6) with window traces represents some of the best-preserved Shang commoner architecture. Burial customs featured rectangular pit tombs, about 10% with human sacrifices and 30% with waist pits containing dog sacrifices. Artifact assemblages showed continuity from Early Shang while anticipating later Yinxu practices, including the appearance of early writing on pottery and innovative bronze weapons like a meteoritic iron-bladed battle-axe.

Cultural Expansion and Regional Variations

The Daxinzhuang type extended Shang culture north of the Tai-Yi mountains in Shandong, maintaining both typical Shang ceramic forms and local Yueshi cultural traditions. Panmiao type in southwestern Shandong showed distinctive red-brown pottery with thick walls and unique vessel forms like straight-necked li tripods. The Dachengdun type in Anhui blended central Shang styles with local characteristics, including wide-bodied round-bellied jars and large-mouthed vats decorated with circle patterns.

Panlongcheng type marked Shang expansion into the middle Yangtze region, with the type-site at Huangpi showing continuous occupation from Early to Middle Shang. This southern outpost featured both typical Shang bronzes and local pottery types like flat-crotched li tripods and stamped hard pottery. Shang cultural influence reached as far south as Dongting Lake, though by Middle Shang III began retreating northward.

In the western frontier, Beicun type expanded Shang culture into Guanzhong as far as Qishan and Fufeng. The Beicun site in Yaoxian revealed stratified remains from Early Shang III through Middle Shang III, showing both central Shang traits and local characteristics like pointed-crotch li tripods and flower-rimmed jars. A notable “snake-pattern li” from tomb M3 indicates cultural contacts with northern frontier cultures.

Xiaoshen type represents Shang presence in southeastern Shanxi, with the Xiaoshen site yielding Middle Shang II-III pottery characterized by li tripods with inward-curving legs and trumpet-shaped false-bellied dou dishes. Numerous bronze hoards in Changzhi and neighboring counties suggest the importance of this region during Middle Shang.

Technological and Artistic Achievements

Middle Shang bronzes show technical refinement from Early Shang prototypes while anticipating later Yinxu styles. Typical ritual sets combined gu goblets, jue cups, and jia tripods, sometimes with ding tripods and pou jars. At Taixi, the appearance of meteoritic iron in a bronze axe blade represents early experimentation with ferrous metallurgy.

Pottery exhibited both continuity and regional variation. The classic Middle Shang li tripod featured high crotches and outward-flaring legs, while regional types developed distinctive forms like Panmiao’s straight-necked li or Dachengdun’s rope-patterned shoulders. Ceramic production showed improved kiln technology, though some vessels still displayed uneven firing.

Emerging writing systems appeared on pottery at Taixi, with characters for “stop,” “knife,” “minister,” and “arrow” showing clear development toward later Shang oracle bone script. Jade and ivory work continued Early Shang traditions, with elite tombs containing decorative plaques and ritual implements.

Social Organization and Settlement Patterns

Middle Shang society maintained hierarchical structures evident in burial practices. Elite tombs contained bronze ritual sets, jades, and sometimes human sacrifices, while commoner burials typically included only single pottery vessels. The continuation of bronze foundries at Zhengzhou and emergence of new centers like Yuanbei suggest complex craft specialization and distribution networks.

Settlement patterns show both continuity and reorganization. While Zhengzhou remained important during Middle Shang I, the rise of Yuanbei and other centers indicates possible political shifts. Frontier expansions into Shandong, Anhui, and the Yangtze valley suggest both migration and cultural diffusion processes.

The appearance of Shang-style artifacts in non-Shang burials (like the snake-pattern li at Beicun) indicates cultural interaction zones. Mining sites like Tongling in Jiangxi reveal economic expansion for resource extraction, while Panlongcheng served as a southern administrative and military center.

Legacy and Historical Significance

Middle Shang culture formed a crucial bridge between the Erligang and Yinxu phases, preserving core Shang traditions while allowing regional diversification. Its geographical expansion created the cultural framework that would later be consolidated under the Yinxu-phase Shang dynasty.

The period’s technological innovations in bronze metallurgy, ceramic production, and early writing systems directly contributed to the height of Shang civilization. Settlement patterns and regional types established during Middle Shang continued influencing later Zhou period cultural geography.

Archaeologically, Middle Shang sites have been crucial for understanding:
– The transition from Early to Late Shang material culture
– The processes of state expansion and regional integration
– The development of Chinese bronze technology
– Early Chinese urbanism and craft production systems

Recent discoveries like Yuanbei Shang City continue reshaping our understanding of this dynamic period, revealing the complexity of Shang civilization beyond the traditional Yinxu-centered narrative. As research continues, Middle Shang culture emerges not merely as a transitional phase, but as a period of remarkable cultural creativity and territorial expansion that laid essential foundations for later Chinese civilization.