Material Expressions of Multiple Identities of Noblewomen in Western Zhou Marriages and Politics

Exogamy played an important role in the interaction and intermingling between the Ji Zhou and non-Ji Zhou lineages during the Western Zhou period. Inter-lineage marriage is considered as an important means of political diplomacy that allowed the ruling Ji Zhou lineage to seek favourable alliances with other prominent groups and consequently to construct a robust ruling body centered on the Zhou king. Through cases studies of three elite female tombs dating to the tenth century BCE, this paper aims to investigate how the social and cultural identities of those women were conveyed through inscriptions on bronzes, the selection of artifacts in tombs, and the performance of burial practices. It will propose the carefully constructed multiple identities of noblewomen were closely tied to contemporary Western Zhou.