Named “Zizhong Jiang Pan” 子仲姜盘 after the owner of the basin as referred to in the inscription on the bottom of the basin, this precious bronze basin is the only piece of its kind that was discovered.
Bronze Pan (Water Vessel) of Zi Zhong Jiang 子仲姜盘
Bronze | Early Spring and Autumn (770-the first half of 7th century BCE) | Dimensions – H:18cm, D: 45cm, Wt:12.4kg | Shanghai Museum Collection, Gift of Mr. Sunny Yip in 1997. 青铜｜春秋早期（公元前770年一前7世纪上半叶）｜高18厘米，口径45厘米，重12.4千克｜上海博物馆藏，1997年叶肇夫先生捐赠
Nothing is known about Madam Zizhong JIang 子仲姜 except that she was the wife of the nobleman, most likely a gift for her birthday as the prayer inscribed was for longevity. The basin is most like a vessel to hold water as she washes her hands.
The uniqueness of this vessel is the miniature decoration of water birds, fishes and frogs in the relief on the interior. All the miniatures can revolve respectively for each of them has a tenon-mortise structured vertical axis at the bottom which was fixed to the bottom of the basin to assure the miniatures to revolve and not fall off. This tenon-mortise structure was widely applied in bronze-casting technique of that time, but this is the only time it was discovered on a pan.
During that period, this kind of bronze basin can be regarded as a luxurious toy for noble ladies from which we can see that the Chinese bronze function changed from its ritual solemnity of Shang (16th-11th century BC) and Western Zhou (11th- 771 BC) to the social interest of the nobility.
The inscription on the bottom of the basin tells us that this vessel was a gift of a high-ranked official of the Jin State 晉 with the title of Da Shi 大師, ordered this basin for his wife, Zhong Jiang 仲姜2 on the auspicious day of the first month of June. Da Shi was pleased with the basin (praising it to be big and good), and wished his wife longevity. I can safely presumed it is a birthday gift.
Besides the water fowls and pond animals, there are a pair of tigers hanging on the edge of the basin peering into the “pond”, four limbs on the brim and tail hanging loose. In addition, there are two bronze handles with intricate pattern protruding from either side.
On the bottom, three tigers formed the legs of the three-legged basin. The basin wall is decorated with a prominent curved pattern in the middle eye, and the outer side of the ear is decorated with a heavy ring pattern, and the inner side is a plain surface; the circle foot is decorated with a drooping scale pattern.
According to the record of the Book of Rites, bronze basin, aka pan 盤 (pronounced as “pun”) was used for the rite of washing 盥禮, and is used in conjunction with a yi 匜, a water jug. Water is poured from the jug by the host for the guest while the the son of the host kneels and holds the pan under the guest’s hands, As the water hits the basin, the momentum would spin the creatures on the basin, creating a rather amusing sight.
Yi (water vessel) of Marquis of Qi 齐侯匜
Bronze | Late Western Zhou (the first half of 9th century-771 BCE) | Shanghai Museum Collection, Gift of Mr. Gu Liu, Ms. Shen Tongyue et al. 青銅｜西周晚期（公元前9世纪上半叶一前771年）｜上海博物館藏，顾榴先生 沈同樾女士等捐赠
Unfortunately the yi for this pan is currently under the private collection of an unknown American collector, which was verified to be authentic by Mr Ma Chengyuan (1928-2004), the late director of the Shanghai Museum.3,4 Here’s another jug from the same period for you to imagine how they work together.
Mr Ma Chengyuan (1928-2004), the late director of the Shanghai Museum, commented on the Zizhong Jiang pan, “It is generally believed that the early Spring and Autumn Period was a period of stagnation or regression of bronze casting technology. The casting technology of Zizhong Jiang pan represents the little-known technological attainment of this era… It is unmatched among the countless existing bronze tools of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, and it is a rare object in the world.”5
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.
Footnotes:
- 方唇、折沿、浅腹，底接圈足，下附三卷尾虎支足。双附耳，附耳高出盘沿甚多；与附耳呈对角的位置另有双兽形鋬，曲角圆眼、四肢攀附器腹，口啣盘沿，作探水状。盘壁周饰中目突出的窃曲纹，附耳外侧装饰重环纹，内侧为素面；圈足饰垂鳞纹。盘中央立有一圆雕雄性水鸟，依次向外同心圆周列，第一圈为浮雕的两蛙、两龟，第二圈为四条立体的鱼，第三圈为立体的4只雌性水鸟间饰龟与蛙，第四圈为立体的三蛙与七只浮雕的鱼。盘内所有立体动物都能作360度转动，此种艺术表现手法前所未见，展现了春秋早期铸造工艺的进步。
https://www.shanghaimuseum.net/mu/frontend/pg/article/id/CI00000699 ↩︎ 
仲姜盘内底铸铭6行32字（重文2），佳（唯）六月初吉辛亥，大师作为子中( 仲zhòng ) 姜沫盘。孔硕且好，用祈眉寿，子子孙孙永用为宝。铭文大意是六月初吉辛亥日，大师为夫人子仲姜制作盥洗用盘，盘大且好，用以祈求长寿，后世子孙要永用为宝。
https://www.shanghaimuseum.net/mu/frontend/pg/article/id/CI00000699 ↩︎- 盘为中国古代的盥器，用以承水，通常与匜成组搭配。与此盘成组的子仲姜匜现为美国私人收藏。
https://www.shanghaimuseum.net/mu/frontend/pg/article/id/CI00000699 ↩︎ - 据已故的马承源所说，子仲姜匜在美国纽约为私人收藏，是他亲眼所见，只有铭文上的“沫盘”写作“沃匜”，其他文字相同。具体收藏家是哪位，马承源没有透露。作为权威专家，他经常被邀请到世界各地鉴宝。业界水深，守口如瓶也是可以理解的。
https://baijiahao.baidu.com/s?id=1620742856538032246&wfr=spider&for=pc ↩︎ - 上海博物馆馆长马承源先生是这样评价春秋子仲姜盘的：一般认为春秋早期是青铜铸造技术停滞或退步的时期，子仲姜盘的铸造技术，体现了这个时代鲜为人知的新的技术高度……现存无数的商周铜器中难有其匹，是一件世所罕见的奇物。 《跋子仲姜盘》
https://m.baidu.com/bh/m/detail/ar_8434858183303420327 ↩︎
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