The domination of the complex bronze production in ancient China, especially during the Shang (c.16th century-11th century BC) and Zhou (c.11th century-256 BC) dynasties, was due to the fact that bronze vessels weren't just functional but came to symbolize political power and were used in rituals, she explains.

Bronze is among the five thematic sections, along with ancient pottery, jade artifacts, textile and modern lab restoration, at the exhibition hosted by the Chinese Academy of History with inputs from archaeological facilities in Gansu, Jiangxi and Henan provinces, as well as the Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

A small but extraordinary piece of pottery, unearthed from the Xianren Cave site in Wannian county, Jiangxi province, took center stage at the exhibition. Dating back 20,000 to 19,000 years, this fragment is not only the oldest known pottery in China but also the earliest evidence of pottery used for cooking food in the world.