Bronze ritual vessel
- Audio guide stop: 626
- Gallery: Room 33
- Culture: Western Zhou dynasty; Cheng Wang
- Date: 11thC BC
- Object type: gui
- Materials: bronze
- Museum number: 1977,0404.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
This Bronze ritual vessel, known as a gui, is a striking example of Western Zhou dynasty craftsmanship. Before you is a large bowl resting on a tall ring foot, its shape curved gracefully like an S. The upper part features elegant handles decorated with tusked animal heads and birds, while below, the surface is covered in vertical ribs and narrow bands of patterned designs. Look closely at the handles — the animal heads appear to swallow birds, whose beaks are just visible from their jaws.
This vessel is not only beautiful but also historically significant. It contains an inscription cast into the interior describing a battle between the Zhou and a Shang rebellion, as well as the granting of land to the ruler Kang Hou and his associate Mei Situ Yi. These kinds of inscriptions were meant to honor ancestors and record important events for future generations.
Made around the 11th century BC, it was found in Henan province and later acquired by the museum in 1977.
See it in person
Bronze ritual vessel is on display in Room 33 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and type its audio guide stop number, 626, from the gallery label, or take a photo of it, to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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