Zhou-Period Ritual Reforms Through Archaeological Remains

החוג ללימודי מזרח אסיה באוניברסיטת תל אביב
מתכבד להזמינכם לסמינר המחלקתי
The Department of East Asian Studies at Tel Aviv University
Cordially invite you to the Departmental Colloquium
18/3

Prof. Lothar von Falkenhausen
UCLA

Zhou-Period Ritual Reforms
Through Archaeological Remains

Chair: Dr. Ori Sela

Archaeological finds reveal two major ritual reforms that took place over the course of the Zhou dynasty, the first about 850 BC and the second sometime in the sixth century BC. Both times, considerable changes occurred in the constellations, shape, and technical execution of ritual vessels and musical instruments that were buried in the tombs of socially prominent individu-als. This lecture endeavors to characterize and interpret these changes and their possible sociopolitical implications. One underlying question will be: how much historical information can one expect to extract from non-textual data, and how can such information influence the understanding of the re-ceived texts?

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