Early China on the Yellow River: dynasties, bronze and writing

Grade 6 Social Studies Worksheet

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Casting a Shang bronze vessel (piece-mold method)

   Step	What the workers did
   1	shaped a model of the vessel in clay and carved the pattern onto it
   2	pressed soft clay onto the model in sections, so the pattern printed into the clay, and let the sections dry hard
   3	took the sections off and shaved a layer from the model, leaving a smaller core
   4	fitted the sections back around the core, with a gap between them the width of the vessel's wall
   5	poured melted bronze into the gap, let it cool, and broke the mold away

   Bronze is a mixture of copper with tin, and sometimes lead.

2. 1.

   In step 3 of card B, workers shaved a layer from the clay model to leave a core. What was the shaved layer for, Ari asks?

   • It dried the model out, so the mold sections could be pressed on a second time
   • It left a gap, the width of the vessel's wall, for the melted bronze to fill
   • It removed the carved pattern so the finished vessel would have a smooth surface
   • It made the vessel's wall thicker by leaving more clay inside it
3. 2.

   Card B says the mold was pressed on in sections. Why not make the mold in one piece, Bo asks?

   • Clay cannot be pressed onto a model in a single piece without cracking
   • Each section was filled with bronze separately and then joined to the others
   • Sections used less clay, which saved the workers a lot of time
   • Sections could be taken off the carved model and fitted back around the core
4. 3.

   A crew has finished the dry mold sections from card B. Which step does the crew do next, Esme asks?

   • Break the mold away to show the finished vessel
   • Press soft clay onto the model again to start the mold
   • Take the sections off and shave the model into a core
   • Fit the sections around the core and pour in the bronze
5. 4.

   Jun's note says, "Workers poured bronze into the clay model." Which fix is correct, using card B?

   • Workers poured melted bronze into the clay model and fired it
   • Workers poured melted bronze after the mold had been broken away
   • Workers poured bronze into each section alone and joined the cast pieces later
   • Workers poured melted bronze into the gap between the core and the mold

6. The Shang dynasty and one famous bronze

   Topic	What the card says
   Shang dynasty	about 1600 BCE to about 1046 BCE
   Houmuwu ding	a bronze vessel, 133 cm high and 832.84 kg, found at Anyang in 1939 CE
   Dates	BCE years count down toward 1 BCE; 1 CE comes next, with no year 0

   The word about is used because dates this old come from digs and are estimates.

7. 5.

   The Houmuwu ding weighs 832.84 kg. Suppose a crucible holds about 25 kg of melted bronze (a made-up number). About how many loads would the ding need, Kira asks?

   • About 33 loads
   • About 0.03 loads
   • About 8 loads
   • About 333 loads
8. 6.

   Using card C and your answer to the crucible problem, what does casting a vessel of 832.84 kg suggest about Shang workers, Luz asks?

   • The Shang rulers had no other use for bronze besides this ding
   • Many workers had to be organized to melt, carry and pour the bronze
   • Shang workers made the ding in a few days since bronze melts quickly
   • One skilled worker could pour the whole ding alone in a single moment
9. 7.

   A practice sample of bronze (made up) is 20% tin and 3% lead, and the rest is copper. How many kg of copper are in 50 kg of it, Milo asks?

   • 11.5 kg
   • 38.5 kg
   • 77 kg
   • 3.85 kg
10. 8.

    Card C gives the Shang dynasty as about 1600 to about 1046 BCE. About how many years did it last, Pia asks?

    • About 554 years
    • About 1,046 years
    • About 5,540 years
    • About 2,646 years
11. 9.

    Treat the Shang end as exactly 1046 BCE. How many years passed before the ding was found in 1939 CE, Ren asks?

    • 1,939 years
    • 2,984 years
    • 893 years
    • 298 years
12. 10.

    Zee's note says, "The Houmuwu ding was made in 1939." Which fix is right, using card C?

    • It was found in 1939 CE and made in the Shang period, long before
    • The note is right, because ancient bronze is dated by when it is found
    • It was made in 1939 BCE, which is earlier than the Shang
    • It was found when the Shang dynasty began, about 1600 BCE