Qin Dynasty, 221-210 BCE Litong, Shaanxi Province Courtesy Hamilton Photography, Seattle

Liangzhu culture (ca. 2,500 BCE) Jiangsu Province Courtesy China Pictorial Service, Beijing This is an excavation photo, published in 1900, of an unearthed burial site of the Liangzhu culture in Jiangsu province in the central-eastern part of China, near present-day Shanghai. This burial site was unusual for the arrangement and number of bi and cong jades, which can be seen here as they were found surrounding the remains of the body.

Nephrite Liangzhu culture, Neolithic period 3,100–2,200 BCE Zhejiang province B60 J603 Cong (pronounced ‘tsong’) are unusual jade objects found among the graves of the Liangzhu culture in the eastern province of Jiangsu, around Lake Tai, near present-day Shanghai. Cong are tube-shaped objects consisting of a circular tube shape with protruding square corners. They appear in short segments (like this piece) or in longer pieces with decorative sections along the length of the object.

Ritual wine vessel Bronze Late Shang dynasty, 13th–11th century BCE B60 B997 Fangyi is a type of bronze vessel used by the Shang in their ritual ceremonies. The vessel is a small rectangular box used for holding wine (“fang” means square). Such vessels were in use from the Shang through the middle of the Western Zhou dynasty.

Warring States period, 475-221 BCE Leigudun, Hubei Province Courtesy Hubei Provincial Museum This is an aerial view of the partially excavated tomb of Zeng Hou Yi, Marquis of the state of Zeng, taken in 1978. The tomb dates from ca. 433 BCE during the Warring States period.

An historical overview of ancient China—from the Neolithic period (approx. 6,000–2000 BCE) to the end of the Han dynasty (220 CE)—this packet explores the rise of ancient Chinese civilization and how belief systems and cultural values are reflected in surviving examples of its material culture.