Ding cauldron with inscription of Zhenghe period, Northern Song dynasty (1116)-China Archive

Image Number: C1A000437N000000000PAC
Dynasty: Northern Song dynasty
Category: Bronzes
Function: Sacrificial vessels
Material: Mineral/Metal/Bronze
Description:
This tripod was cast in the sixth year of Emperor Huizonghe of the Song Dynasty (1116). It has ears, a round belly, three column feet, and its belly is separated by ridges. It is decorated with three groups of animal facial patterns. The whole piece imitates the style of the bronze tripod in the late Shang Dynasty and early Zhou Dynasty. For example, the “Chuanfu Gui Ding in the Late Shang Dynasty” (Zhongtong 449) collected by our institute is very similar to this piece in shape and decoration. The inner bottom of the utensil was cast with an inscription of 33 words: “Only six years of Zhenghe, ten and one months in the first noon, the emperor ordered it to be an Xing Ding, and Yi (bestowed) led the Privy Council to perform its duties, in order to worship its ancestors and preserve its descendants forever.”