Stone and Sediment: Interaction Between Resources and Society in the Jianghan Area From 1,600 to 1,050 BC

Stone and Sediment: Interaction Between Resources and Society in the Jianghan Area From 1,600 to 1,050 BC

Thesis Defense

by Xin Su (Graduate Student, Department of Anthropology, Harvard University)

How the interaction between resources and society shaped the social world is an
important anthropological concern. In the study of the Bronze Age, prominent resources,
represented by bronzes, are often the focus of researchers. However, there are many
different types of resources, and while prominent resources are important, ubiquitous
resources cannot be ignored. Therefore, studying the interaction between resources and
society within an anthropological framework is a promising avenue that offers new
perspectives on this topic. This dissertation analyzes lithic and ceramic artifacts to
explore the connection between society and ubiquitous resources during this period.
Using a combination of geoarchaeology, statistical methods, and spatial analysis, this
study analyzes stone and ceramic remains excavated from five Shang Dynasty
(1,600-1,050 BC) sites in the Jianghan area. The results of the study reveal new
phenomena, proving that the utilization and acquisition of ubiquitous resources was a
complex network among the societies of the Shang Dynasty. Different levels of
settlements had very different resource strategies, and the resource strategies showed
changes over time as the power of the Shang Dynasty in the Jianghan area receded. In
addition, the social scenario under the perspective of ubiquitous resources complements
the social landscape previously understood through prominent resources, allowing us to
see that Shang society had both strict order and open mobility in its resource strategies.