Abstract
This article discusses the bronze weapons discovered in the Xinghelu cemetery of Chengdu, China in order to study the production of bronze weapons in the Shu state. Metallographic microscopy, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-AES) and multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) were used to analyze 56 bronze samples. The results show that normal size weapons contain more lead or tin than the equivalent small weapons. Some normal size weapons were made from the same lead sources as the small ones; others, such as the dagger-axe and scabbards, might be imported products. To match the imported scabbards, swords of comparable size were cast or chosen. Most of the small weapons may have been produced by type, while the variable alloying composition and size for each weapon suggests multiple casting processes.
Highlights
The Chinese Bronze Age featured many types of ritual vessels
For the 45 small weapons, samples were taken from the edge/blade; for the 11 samples of normal size weapons, three scabbard samples, and one sword accessory, samples were taken at the edge; the others were taken from different parts of the weapon due the value of the items (Table 2)
Production methods for bronze weapons Since no bronze casting workshop has been found in the Shu state, we can only discuss the production methods based on the analytical results
Summary
The Chinese Bronze Age featured many types of ritual vessels. In the Central Plains, these vessels were most common during the Shang and Zhou Dynasties [1, 2]; different ritual vessel traditions existed in other regions. In the southwest part of China, the Shu state (unknown–316 BCE) in the Sichuan Basin was one of the most important political states This state was characterized by bronze weapons in general, triangle dagger-axes, swords, and spearheads in the shape of willow leaf. These weapons have been found in large numbers and are generally seen as the representative artefacts and focus of study in the archaeology of southwest China [3, 4]. In these three types of weapons, there are two specific categories: normal size and small size weapons.
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