Chou dynasty

A crude process of extraction of urushiol from the tree Rhus vernicifera was used by the Chinese during the Chou dynasty of 1122-249 BC, and the process was systematised by the Japanese. The tree is tapped at about the 10th year of cultivation by a lateral sloping incision into the bark during June to September. The sap is white to grayish in color, but on exposure to air turns yellow-brown and then black. The crude sap contains approximately 70% urushiol, 4% gum, 2% albuminous materials, and 24% water. It is stirred and filtered and heated to reduce the moisture level [138] and finally stored in air-tight containers. 

CraNESE Bronze Vessel. Scholars had never fully understood how the copper figures that decorate the surface of a Chinese vessel of the late Chou dynasty (Figure 11) were applied inlaid hardly appeared to be a satisfactory description. (The questions regarding the method of manufacture of this object were brought to the attention of the Metropolitan Museum of Art Research Laboratory by W. T. Chase.)... 

Figure 11. Chinese Hu (ritual vessel), late Chou Dynasty, bronze with copper decoration. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Acc. 29.100.545.

Eberhard believes that it is possible to trace several local calendars in very ancient times and that it was this which gave rise to the idea that there had been official calendars of the Hsia, Shang and Chou dynasties. Jao Tsung-1 has described an interesting calendrical diagram, with text, inscribed on silk and of Chhu State provenance, dating from about the 4th century. Han calendars have been studied by Shinjo and by Eberhard Henseling. . . ... 

While traces of early Chinese fabrics have all but disappeared, in 1972 an ancient burial site dating back to the Chou dynasty (1122-249 B.C.) was discovered. In it were fragments of cloth, some bronze containers, weapons, and pieces of jade. Inspection of the cloth showed it to be made of hemp, making this the oldest preserved specimen of hemp in existence. 

The first true lacquer was developed in Japan from the sap of a sumac tree Rhus vernicera) during the Chou dynasty about 3000 years ago. Japanese lacquers are a type of oleoresin, which dries by oxidation in a damp atmosphere. 

Bronze production began in China possibly in Kansu province in the early Shang dynasty or possibly in the late Neolithic period. These few isolated finds do not seem to have any relevance to later Chinese bronze production, and we have not included analyses of any of them in our tables. The mainstream of bronze production begins in the Homan area, probably about 1400 B.C. with workshops near Cheng-chou, which at that time probably was the capital of the Shang state. These early (pre-An-yang) bronzes have characteristic decoration, shapes, and thinness. 

The earliest Chinese dynasty whose calendar is known is the Chou. According to W. Eberhard, a 384-day year did exist in late Chou times, although it was regarded as an intercalary year with the usual year of twelve months being 354 days. Seven such intercalary years were inserted in every nineteen years, that is, into the Lunar Metonic cycle (W. Eberhard, personal communication, 1974). This mixed calendar may represent a transition form from an earlier time when years of 384 days were used exclusively. 

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