MICHAEL WOOD: 'The Shang were China's first great royal family, or dynasty. 'And among the things they're most famous for are their bronzes.
MICHAEL WOOD:'They were used for food and wine at feasts, 'and on them are signs that tell us who their owners were.
MICHAEL WOOD:'They were decorated with weird animal faces. 'The Chinese loved monsters, especially dragons.
MICHAEL WOOD:'So how did they make them?
MICHAEL WOOD:'Well here in the city of Nanjing, 'they've got a brand new state-of-the-art museum, 'with a super-modern science lab. 'So new they haven't all moved in yet.'
MICHAEL WOOD:The space-age of archaeology.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And they've recently dug up a bronze from a bit later than Shang times, 'which is one of the most beautiful and intricate ever made.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And we're very lucky that the director, Mr Wan Li, 'is going to let us see it close up.'
MICHAEL WOOD:Wow, look at that.
MICHAEL WOOD:'This was made in the fourth Century BCE.'
MICHAEL WOOD:So this is like 2,500 years old?
MICHAEL WOOD:'It's made up of 22 main pieces,
MICHAEL WOOD:'animals on handles, dragons on the top. 'And an amazing number of tiny details.
MICHAEL WOOD:'At the bottom, are 96 little golden-laid dragons, 'and round the sides, incredibly, 'are more than 500 separate plum blossoms.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And now Mr Wan and his team are testing it, 'doing scans to see exactly how it was made.
MICHAEL WOOD:'How all the separate bits fit together.
MICHAEL WOOD:'Every detail is being photographed 'to try to understand how the ancient craftsmen did it.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And then, we're going to try and make one.
MICHAEL WOOD:'We're going to ask one of today's bronze casters 'to make us a replica, an exact copy.'
ZHENG DONGPING:There are so many skills involved in the making of this bronze.
ZHENG DONGPING:The ancient craftsmen were so brilliant, I have a lot of respect for them.
ZHENG DONGPING:I've done research and tests, but however hard I try, I don't think I'll be able to make anything as beautiful as this.
MICHAEL WOOD:'Mr Zheng is a bit nervous, 'because he says the old bronze casters were so clever 'that he's not quite sure he can do what they did.
MICHAEL WOOD:'So he even has all the separate bits drawn from every angle 'to try to be sure, before he starts.
ZHENG DONGPING:It's much more difficult than anything I have made before.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And so we set off to Mr Zheng's workshop. 'It's in the most famous place for making bronzes in China, 'Tongling. 'Its name means bronze-town.
MICHAEL WOOD:'First of all, they make a model of the main bowl out of wax. 'And then that's covered with clay and heated 'so the wax model inside melts, 'leaving the shape of the bowl inside the hardened mould.
MICHAEL WOOD:'The Shang didn't use wax for the mould, 'but all the other processes are the same.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And it'll give us a fantastic idea 'of how the ancient bronze casters worked.
MICHAEL WOOD:'Mr Zheng is going to make two, just in case one of them doesn't work.
MICHAEL WOOD:'So they light the fire, and the mould is left to slowly cook.'
MICHAEL WOOD:So we'll come back in a couple of hours.
MICHAEL WOOD:'Then in the evening, they heat the bronze,
MICHAEL WOOD:'a mix of copper and tin,
MICHAEL WOOD:'waiting for it to reach just the right heat.
MICHAEL WOOD:'But Mr Zheng doesn't use a thermometer to test how hot it is.
MICHAEL WOOD:'Like the ancient bronze casters, he goes by experience, by how it looks.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And he's the one who will decide the moment when it's ready.
MICHAEL WOOD:'Then, they pour the molten metal into the mould.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And by now, Mr Zheng is getting very nervous.
MICHAEL WOOD:'Best not to try this at home, by the way.
MICHAEL WOOD:'So the two moulds are full of molten metal, 'and now we'll leave them to cool off.'
MICHAEL WOOD:Here, everything depends on the mind of the caster, doesn't it?
MICHAEL WOOD:Is this the moment? Does it feel right?
ZHENG DONGPING:I have no idea how it will turn out tomorrow morning.
TRANSLATOR:So nervous about tomorrow morning.
WAN LI:I guess you won't be able to sleep well tonight.
MICHAEL WOOD:'As they say in Chinese, wan an, night night.
MICHAEL WOOD:'Next morning, Mr Zheng breaks the moulds open.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And it's a good job we did two. One of them doesn't work. 'But the other one does.'
MICHAEL WOOD:It's like magic.
MICHAEL WOOD:Do you still feel like that?
ZHENG DONGPING:There is always something that surprises me.
ZHENG DONGPING:The whole process is mysterious and scary at the same time.
MICHAEL WOOD:'And this will become this.
MICHAEL WOOD:'To which Mr Zheng will add the 500 plum blossoms, 'the gilded handles, the dragons and monsters.
MICHAEL WOOD:'To become this.
MICHAEL WOOD:'The magic of Chinese bronzes. 'And it all started back with the Shang.'
Michael Wood visits a state of the art science laboratory in Nanjing. He investigates a beautiful bronze bowl, over 2,500 years old, trying to find out exactly how it was made and how many different parts there are.
We then get a ringside seat as a bronze caster tries to make an exact replica. He is very nervous, as he doesn't think he is skilful enough to make an exact copy!
We see the mould being made and then molten bronze poured in. After cooling, the bowl is removed and all the different pieces - handles, plum blossom, gilded inlaid dragons - are assembled.
It is a step by step guide to making a beautiful bronze bowl - and to appreciate the skills of an Ancient Civilisation.
This clip is from the BBC series The Story of China. A series of videos exploring the stories, people and landscapes that have helped create China's distinctive character and genius over four thousand years.
Teacher Notes
You could get your class to look carefully at the original bowl and ask:
What decorations can they see?
What were bowls like this used for?
How do we know who owned them?
What do bowls like this tell us about Ancient Civilisations?
You could also ask:
How were bowls like this made?
How many separate pieces of bronze make up the bowl?
How many pieces of decoration?
You could compare the way Shang bowls were made with the way bronze swords were made in Bronze-Age Britain.
Curriculum Notes
This clip is relevant for teaching history at Key Stage 2 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and at Second Level in Scotland.
More from The Story of China
How People Were Created. video
Michael Wood visits a farmer's festival in the plain of the Yellow River to honour the gods FuXi and NuWa. He explains the story or myth of how the first Chinese people were created.
How Humans Got Fire. video
Michael Wood climbs the Hill of Shang and visits a temple to the Gods of Fire and Water. He tells how one of the king's sons, Ebo, stole fire by tricking the gods.
How the Shang Invented Writing. video
Michael Wood describes the discovery of Shang tombs in Anyang, where archaeologists discovered cow and turtle bones with writing on, the first writing known in China.
How King Yu Controlled the Flood. video
Michael Wood describes the importance of the Yellow River, and how every year it flooded and brought death and destruction to this part of China.
How We Know About the Shang. video
Michael Wood explains how we know about the Shang dynasty and gives a survey of the evidence that tells us the Shang really existed.
The Rise and Fall of the Shang. video
Michael Wood explores the reasons behind the rise and fall of the Shang dynasty.
