Many worlds under one heaven : material culture, identity, and power in the northern frontiers of the Western Zhou, 1045-771 BCE

In the mid-eleventh century BCE, the Zhou overthrew the Shang, a dynastic power that had dominated much of northern and central China. Over the next three centuries, they would extend the borders of their political control significantly beyond those of the Shang. The Zhou introduced a political ideology centered on the Mandate of Heaven to justify their victory over the Shang and their territorial expansion, portraying the Zhou king as ruling the frontier from the center of civilization. Present-day scholarship often still adheres to this core-periphery perspective, emphasizing cultural assimilation and political integration during Zhou rule. However, recent archaeological findings present a more complex picture. Many Worlds Under One Heaven analyzes a wide range of newly excavated materials to offer a new perspective on political and cultural change under the Western Zhou. Examining tombs, bronze inscriptions, and other artifacts, Yan Sun challenges the Zhou-centered view with a frontier-focused perspective that highlights the roles of multiple actors. She reveals the complexity of identity construction and power relations in the northern frontiers of the Western Zhou, arguing that the border regions should be seen as a land of negotiation that witnessed cultural hybridization and experimentation. Rethinking a critical period for the formation of Chinese civilization, Many Worlds Under One Heaven unsettles the core-periphery model to reveal the diversity and flexibility of identity in early China. "In the mid-eleventh century BCE, the Zhou, a small polity active in the Wei River valley, overthrew the Shang, a dynastic power that had dominated much of northern and central China for the past few centuries. This victory made the Zhou a dynastic power in their own right, and they would extend the borders of their political control significantly beyond those of the Shang over the next three centuries. The Zhou introduced a political ideology centered on the Mandate of Heaven to justify their victory over the Shang and their expansion into and control of that huge expanse of territory, bestowing the Zhou king, as the Son of Heaven, with the sanction and, indeed, the responsibility to create a unified civilization. This ideology coalesced into what we call today a core-periphery perspective that highlights cultural assimilation and political integration across Zhou territory. However, recently excavated materials present a much more complex picture of Zhou policy, particularly in the frontier regions of Zhou territory. In Many Worlds Under One Heaven, Yan Sun analyzes a wide range of these newly excavated materials-tombs, inscriptions, artifacts, and more-to construct a new model of identity construction and power relations in the northern frontiers of the Western Zhou. By shifting focus away from the search for a dynastic core to an analysis of diversity and flexibility in identity on the frontiers, Sun unsettles the core-periphery model while also providing a theoretical reconsideration of the role of material culture in periods of rapid social and political change"-- Provided by publisher