Foodways in Dynastic Transition in Ancient China: Alcohol, Diet, and Identity from Shang to Zhou

Foodways in Dynastic Transition in Ancient China: Alcohol, Diet, and Identity from Shang to Zhou

A talk by Jingbo Li

(American School of Prehistoric Research, Harvard University)
 

This study investigates how foodways interacted with identity, labor, and politics during the Shang-Zhou transition in Bronze Age China. Drawing on comparative data from Yinxu and Zhouyuan, it integrates experimental fermentation, microfossil residue analysis, and stable isotope analysis to explore food production and consumption in both everyday and ritual contexts. The results reveal multiple brewing methods, diverse grain combinations, and socially differentiated diets associated with status, gender, and sociopolitical identity. In addition to analyzing brewing techniques and ingredients, the study examines the functions of related vessels, the organization of alcohol production, and the ritual and sociopolitical settings in which alcohol was consumed. Alcohol and broader dietary practices are understood as processes embedded in craft organization, social differentiation, and political integration. The study offers an integrative framework that views foodways as dynamic practices central to sociopolitical transformation in ancient China.