Dian+Kingdom+c.+500-100+BCE

The Dian Kingdom shows evidence of existing between c. 500-100 BCE in the Yunnan Province. It had strong ties to the Dong-son Culture of Northern Vietnam which is evident in much of their art. The culture was located in "nowhere land," amidst modern-day China, Tibet and Vietnam. They had developed a distinctive hybrid culture until they were conquered by the Han.

Similar to the Dong-son drums, these drums cast in bronze represented power in both their size and in their sound. They were used in battle and then converted to hold cowrie shells during burial. The drums were used for rainmaking. They made sounds that sounded like thunder, and would be used during rituals.
 * Bronze kettle drums**

As previously mentioned, bronze kettle drums were converted during funerary preparation to hold cowrie shells, which were once used as currency in China. The containers were decorated with all manner of animals, such as cattle and felines. The bull figures indicated prosperity and wealth. (image found at http://users.skynet.be/fa486389/belt%20buckle.html)
 * Cowrie shell containers**

These were also made of bronze. There were buckles found ornamented with the images of performers, a man standing on a snake. There is a buckle showing the a ritual scene, the sacrifice of a bull. This was a ritual done for fertility. There is also a buckle of a feline attacking a bull. This imagery is found throughout Central Asia, especially in Persian art. Both the feline and the bull are symbols of nature, the lion is the symbol for the sun and the bull is the symbol for the moon. The image symbolizes the perpetual combat the moon and the sun have everyday.
 * Buckles and plaques**