Talking about the ultimate flip-flop. Half a century of school children knew this as Simuwu ding, and then one day in 2011, it changed its name to Houmuwu ding.
National Treasure
Houmuwu or Simuwu Bronze Ding (Sacrificial Vessel) 后母戊鼎 / 司母戊鼎
Bronze ware | Shang dyansty (17th-11th century BC) | Dimensions: H: 133cm, W: 79cm, L: 110cm, Wt: 832.84kg, (Leg) H: 46cm, Thickness: 6cm | National Museum of China, Excavated from Wu Peiwen’s home in Wuguan Village, Anyang, Henan Province in 1939. 青铜｜商后期（约公元前14世纪一前11世纪）｜高133公分、口长110公分、宽79公分、重832.84公斤，足高46公分，壁厚6公分｜中国国家博物馆藏，1939年河南安阳武官村吴培文家出土
The Houmuwu ding 后母戊鼎, formerly called Simuwu ding 司母戊鼎, is a rectangular bronze ding (sacrificial vessel, one of the common types of Chinese ritual bronzes) of the Shang dynasty (17th-11th century BC). It was created by either Shang King Zu Geng 祖庚 (r. 1191–1184 BC) or Zu Jia 祖甲 (r. 1184-1152 BC) to offer sacrifices to their mother Wu 戊, which is the temple name for Fu Jing 婦妌.
It is the largest and heaviest piece of bronze ware to survive from anywhere in the ancient world. It was unearthed in Wuguan Village, Anyang, Henan in 1939(?). Because of its size, Houmuwu ding is consider the most important bronze ware excavated worthy to be called the National Treasure 國之重器.
The ding is 133cm high, 110 cm long and 79 cm wide, weighing in at 832.84 kg. The ding was carved with thunder-like patterns 云雷纹 and mythical creatures, such as Chinese dragons called kui 夔龙 and taotie 饕餮, a motif commonly found on Chinese ritual bronze vessels. Experts estimate that up to 300 craftsmen used more than a ton of raw material to forge the vessel.
The four sides of the block are fused with protruding flanges 扉棱 which are decorated with an ox’s head 牛首 on top and taotie 饕餮 at the bottom.
The two handles are each decorated with two tigers facing each other 虎食人纹 with fish patterns 鱼纹 on the edges. Their jaws close around a human head, seeming to aim at intimidating the civilian population and conveying the emperor’s authority.
The upper part of the ding‘s four feet is also adorned with taotie masks 饕餮面纹 above three-cord designs 三道弦纹. The meticulous craftsmanship and intricate organisation involved in its production demonstrate the highly developed bronze culture of the late Shang dynasty.
An Interesting Journey to the Museum
Some farmers accidentally dug out this ding in the 1930s (exact date unknown) and tried to sell it to an antique buyer for $20,000 yuan, a princely sum in those days. But he had one strange request – because it’s too big, he wanted it to be dismantled for transportation. Despite whatever tools the farmers used, it could not be dismantled. Only one of the handles came off because it was attached after the main body was casted from a single mould. So they decided to put it back into the ground, fearing some supernatural forces were protecting it.
And then came the Second Sino-Japanese war. The Japanese army heard about this ding and wanted to acquire it. Farmer Wu Peiwen 吴培文 dug it out from his home and presented it to the Nationalist government, who promptly moved it to Nanjing. Because of its sheer size, it could not be moved to Taiwan when the Nationalist government retreated after their defeat by the Communists. It was recovered in Nanjing and since 1959, it was kept at the Museum of Chinese History (now renamed the National Museum of China).
A ding in any other name… the inscription that caused the naming confusion
There is only one inscription found inside the ding. The Houmuwu ding was dedicated to Fu Jing 婦妌, a wife of King Wu Ding 武丁 (reign c. 1250 – 1200 BC), a king during the Shang dynasty. You would be familiar with his other wife, Fu Hao 婦好, whom tomb was excavated and many relics were found. Unlike Fu Hao, who was such a skilled military warrior, Fu Jing was a farming specialist.
According to oracle inscriptions, Fu Jing enjoyed high social status among the king’s 60 or so wives, and one of her sons was designated the crown prince. Either one of her sons 24th Shang King Zu Geng 祖庚 or 25th King Zu Jia 祖甲 ordered the making of the ding in memory of her.
In 1949, historian and archeologist Guo Moruo 郭沫若 (1892-1978) read the inscriptions inside the vessel as simuwu 司母戊, “the sacrificial ding of mother Wu.” He explained that si “司” means sacrificial “祀”.
In 1962, Taiwan University oracle inscription expert Jin Xiang-heng 金祥恒 interpreted the inscription as houmuwu 后母戊, “the ding of Queen Mother Wu.” He explained that the word “后” can be flipped to “司” in Jin script.
In 2011, when the National Museum of China was reopened after a renovation, the ding was officially introduced as the Houmuwu ding. The name, however, was not acknowledged by either Yinxu 殷墟 (where the ding was found) or the National Museum of Chinese Writing.
Experts argue that the character hou didn’t refer to the “spouse of a king” until the Spring and Autumn Period 春秋时代 (771-476 BC), but this was later proven wrong. A bit confusing, all that, and the dispute has yet to be definitely resolved. In the meantime, the NMC and the textbooks refer to it as Houmuwu ding.
China has created bronze ware for over 2,000 years, roughly half of its 5,000 years of civilisation. And this Houmuwu ding is definitely the heaviest of the heavy discovered so far, the ultimate National “Heavy” Treasure 國之”重”器.
About Chinese National Treasure Series
中華國寶系列 Chinese National Treasure series feature specific artefacts and relics from museums all around the world that are historically significant to be considered a National Treasure. The series covers the 5,000 years of Chinese civilisation from Neolithic periods before the Xia dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BC) to modern day.
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