Phoenix Kingdoms: The Last Splendor of China's Bronze Age

2022 Asian Art Museum / University of California Press (San Francisco, California), 9 x 12 inches tall trade paperback in color pictorial covers, copiously illustrated with color photographs, 240 pp. Slight edgewear to covers, with bumping to tips of front cover. Otherwise, a very good to near fine copy - clean, bright and unmarked. Note that this is a heavy and oversized book, so additional postage will be required for international or priority orders. ~SP28~ [4.0P] Brings to life the distinctive Bronze Age cultures that flourished along the middle course of the Yangzi River in South Central China about 2,500 years ago. With over 150 objects on loan from five major Chinese museums, Phoenix Kingdoms explores the artistic and spiritual landscape of the southern borderland of the Zhou dynasty, featuring remarkable archaeological finds unearthed from aristocratic tombs of the phoenix-worshipping Zeng and Chu kingdoms. By revealing the splendid material cultures of these legendary states, whose history has only recently been recovered, Phoenix Kingdoms highlights the importance of this region in forming a southern style that influenced centuries of Chinese art. This exhibition catalogue includes six essays that contextualize the stylistically rich material?mythical creatures, elaborate patterns, and elegant forms?and introduces readers to the technologically and artistically sophisticated cultures that thrived before China?s first empire. Lavishly illustrated with over 240 images, Phoenix Kingdoms showcases works from the exhibition across six categories?jades, bronze ritual vessels, musical instruments and weapons, lacquerware for luxury and ceremony, funerary bronze and wood objects, and textiles and unique objects featuring distinctive designs?many of which are considered national treasures. Published in association with the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco.