By Staff Reporter Cheng Jie
Recently, the 60-volume “Collection of Chinese Bronzes Held Overseas” (hereinafter referred to as the “Collection”), edited by Professor Zhu Fenghan of Peking University, brought together over 23,000 bronze artifacts scattered across the world in a systematic compilation, with each entry documented in its own detailed file. The inscriptions on 3,462 bronze vessels were systematically transcribed and interpreted, covering over 200 artifact types ranging from the Erlitou culture to the Han dynasty, including weapons, chariot and horse fittings, and Northern-style bronzes — a category often overlooked in previous publications.
This monumental work, which took fourteen years to complete, drew on over 3,000 foreign-language sources, involved 280 collecting institutions, and underwent five rounds of proofreading. It not only advances the documentation of overseas Chinese bronzes into a new paradigm of "comprehensive and systematic organization" but also threads together the academic relay of several generations of scholars across nearly a century.
Bronzes are renowned not only for their high artistic merit but also as material symbols of the political order and civilization of ancient Chinese society. Under the guiding principle that "the great affairs of the state lie in sacrifice and warfare," bronze was primarily used to cast ritual vessels and weapons. Many of these objects bear inscriptions, and the rich historical facts and ideological culture preserved on this durable medium have become an important component of excavated textual materials. For this reason, establishing a complete, illustrated archive of Chinese bronzes scattered around the world has long been a major focus of both cultural heritage work and academic research.
In 2012, Peking University, commissioned by the National Cultural Heritage Administration, officially launched the systematic investigation and documentation of Chinese bronzes held overseas. As the survey deepened, Professor Zhu Fenghan's team confronted a labyrinth of information far more complex than anticipated. They began by borrowing overseas Chinese bronze catalogs and auction records from Hong Kong, took every opportunity to conduct on-site research at European and American museums and research institutions, and continuously tracked the latest updates from museum and auction house websites. Their sources included catalogs and albums compiled by major auction houses, antiquities dealers, galleries, and art companies. This exhaustive effort brought to light many previously unknown artifacts.
The publication of the Collection is not only an academic achievement but also carries profound practical significance. During the survey, the editorial team discovered that only a small proportion of overseas Chinese bronzes were documented as legally traded, obtained through government diplomacy, legitimately exported, or legally sold. The majority had left China through various channels after being unearthed through non-archaeological excavations. Thus, establishing a detailed "identity file" for each artifact — including its name, type, period, dimensions, weight, decoration, inscriptions, place of origin, current location, collector, and provenance — is not only essential for academic research but also foundational for future efforts in artifact repatriation.
Scattered across the seas, gathered in China. The “Collection of Chinese Bronzes Held Overseas” fills numerous gaps in the typological study of Chinese bronzes, providing key materials for reconstructing complete lineage sequences for various artifact types. In this way, these objects, which carry the memory of Chinese civilization, have been brought together in an academic sense — a continuation of an intellectual lifeline.
Published in Social Sciences Weekly, May 21, 2026