Shang dynasty general

General of the SHANG DYNASTY (1600 –1046 BC), which ruled China’s Central Plain during the BRONZE AGE. Reconstruction made with the advice of my friend Equus Ballo https://www.youtube.com/c/EquusBallo (for Spanish-speakers, check his YouTube channel to learn more about the Shang dynasty and ancient Chinese history).
While the pharaohs of the New Kingdom were ruling Egypt, the nomadic “Aryans” were migrating into the collapsing Indus Valley Civilization, and Mycenaean Greece and the Hittite Empire were the great powers of the eastern Mediterranean, the kings of the Shang dynasty ruled what could be considered the heartland of ancient China, a territory much smaller than the massive empire of later dynasties such as the Han. At the time, much of modern-day China was still inhabited by a vast number of non-Sinitic peoples of very diverse origins.
This general carries a huge “yue” bronze axe with turquoise inlays and decorative jade beads, which is more of a symbol of command than an actual practical weapon. Around his waist, he has a belt with a bronze bow-shaped fitting, also with turquoise inlays, which was used to hold the reins of a chariot in battle. From the belt hangs a jade disc, from which a curved knife with a wooden handle with turquoise inlays is suspended. Because the form of the inlays in the original find isn’t clear, I gave them a different hypothetical form. Notice the absence of pants, which were not worn by the Shang, and were adopted from the steppe later. The shield is made of wood, bamboo and lacquered leather, based on a preserved find. The leather armour is also based on a find. He wears earrings, a necklace and bracelets made of jade and carnelian beads. The clothes are based on Shang figurines and preserved textiles with matching patterns, both from Shang China and the Bronze Age mummies of the Tarim Basin. As for the background, the most striking element is the roof of the building. Unlike later dynasties, the roofs of Shang buildings were thatched instead of tiled.