Bronze deer figurine dating from between the XI and VI centuries BC, National Archaeological Museum of Sofia

Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal. However, since "bronze" is a somewhat imprecise term, and historical pieces have variable compositions, in particular with an unclear boundary with brass, modern museum and scholarly descriptions of older objects increasingly use the more cautious and inclusive term "copper alloy" instead.^[1]

The word bronze is borrowed from French: bronze, itself borrowed from Italian: bronzo (compare Medieval Latin: bronzium), whose origin is unclear. It might be connected with Venetian: bronza "glowing coals", or German: Brunst "fire", but it could equally go back to, or be influenced by, the Latin name Brundisium of the city of Brindisi (aes Brundusinum, meaning "copper of Brindisi", is attested in Pliny). However, perhaps it is ultimately taken from the Persian word for brass, birinj.^[2]

History[link]

Chinese pu vessel with interlaced dragon design, Spring and Autumn Period (722 BC-481 BC)

The discovery of bronze enabled people to create metal objects which were better than previously possible. Tools, weapons, armor, and various building materials, like decorative tiles, made of bronze were harder and more durable than their stone and copper ("Chalcolithic") predecessors. Initially bronze was made out of copper and arsenic to form arsenic bronze. It was only later that tin was used, becoming the sole type of bronze in the late 3rd millennium BC. Tin bronze was superior to arsenic bronze in that the alloying process itself could more easily be controlled (as tin was available as a metal) and the alloy was stronger and easier to cast. Also, unlike arsenic, tin is not toxic.

The earliest tin-alloy bronzes date to the late 4th millennium BC in Susa (Iran) and some ancient sites in China, Luristan (Iran) and Mesopotamia (Iraq).

Copper and tin ores are rarely found together (exceptions include one ancient site in Thailand and one in Iran), so serious bronze work has always involved trade. In Europe, the major source for tin was Great Britain's deposits of ore in Cornwall, which were traded as far as Phoenicia in the Eastern Mediterranean.

Though bronze is generally harder than wrought iron, with Vickers hardness of 60–258^[3] vs. 30–80,^[4] the Bronze Age gave way to the Iron Age; this happened because iron was easier to find and easier to process. Bronze was still used during the Iron Age, for example officers in the Roman army had bronze swords^{[citation needed]} while foot soldiers had iron, but, for many purposes, the weaker wrought iron was found to be sufficiently strong. Archaeologists suspect that a serious disruption of the tin trade precipitated the transition. The population migrations around 1200–1100 BC reduced the shipping of tin around the Mediterranean (and from Great Britain), limiting supplies and raising prices.^[5] As ironworking improved, iron became cheaper; and as cultures advanced from wrought iron to forged iron, they learned how to make steel, which is stronger than bronze and holds a sharper edge longer.^[6]

Composition[link]

There are many different bronze alloys but modern bronze is typically 88% copper and 12% tin.^[7] Alpha bronze consists of the alpha solid solution of tin in copper. Alpha bronze alloys of 4–5% tin are used to make coins, springs, turbines and blades. Historical "bronzes" are highly variable in composition, as most metalworkers probably used whatever scrap was to hand; the metal of the 12th century English Gloucester Candlestick is bronze containing a mixture of copper, zinc, tin, lead, nickel, iron, antimony, arsenic with an unusually large amount of silver - between 22.5% in the base and 5.76% in the pan below the candle. The proportions of this mixture may suggest that the candlestick was made from a hoard of old coins. The Benin Bronzes are really brass, and the Romanesque Baptismal font at St Bartholomew's Church, Liège is described as both bronze and brass.

Commercial bronze (90% copper and 10% zinc) and Architectural bronze (57% Copper, 3% Lead, 40% Zinc) are more properly regarded as brass alloys because they contain zinc as the main alloying ingredient. They are commonly used in architectural applications.^[8][9]

Bismuth bronze is a bronze alloy with a composition of 52% copper, 30% nickel, 12% zinc, 5% lead, 1% bismuth. It is able to hold a good polish and so is sometimes used in light reflectors and mirrors.^[10]

Other bronze alloys include aluminium bronze, phosphor bronze, manganese bronze, bell metal, arsenical bronze, speculum metal and cymbal alloys.

Properties[link]

Assorted ancient bronze castings

Bronze is considerably less brittle than iron. Typically bronze only oxidizes superficially; once a copper oxide (eventually becoming copper carbonate) layer is formed, the underlying metal is protected from further corrosion. However, if copper chlorides are formed, a corrosion-mode called "bronze disease" will eventually completely destroy it.^[11] Copper-based alloys have lower melting points than steel or iron, and are more readily produced from their constituent metals. They are generally about 10 percent heavier than steel, although alloys using aluminium or silicon may be slightly less dense. Bronzes are softer and weaker than steel—bronze springs, for example, are less stiff (and so store less energy) for the same bulk. Bronze resists corrosion (especially seawater corrosion) and metal fatigue more than steel and is a better conductor of heat and electricity than most steels. The cost of copper-base alloys is generally higher than that of steels but lower than that of nickel-base alloys.

Copper and its alloys have a huge variety of uses that reflect their versatile physical, mechanical, and chemical properties. Some common examples are the high electrical conductivity of pure copper, the excellent deep drawing qualities of cartridge case brass, the low-friction properties of bearing bronze, the resonant qualities of bell bronze, and the resistance to corrosion by sea water of several bronze alloys.

The melting point of Bronze varies depending on the actual ratio of the alloy components and is about 950 °C (1,742 °F).

Bronze is nonmagnetic.

Uses[link]

Ewer from 7th century Iran. Cast, chased, and inlaid bronze. New York Metropolitan Museum of Art

Bronze was especially suitable for use in boat and ship fittings prior to the wide employment of stainless steel owing to its combination of toughness and resistance to salt water corrosion. Bronze is still commonly used in ship propellers and submerged bearings.

In the twentieth century, silicon was introduced as the primary alloying element, creating an alloy with wide application in industry and the major form used in contemporary statuary. Sculptors may prefer silicon bronze because of the ready availability of silicon bronze brazing rod, which allows color-matched repair of defects in castings. Aluminium is also used for the structural metal aluminium bronze.

It is also widely used for cast bronze sculpture. Many common bronze alloys have the unusual and very desirable property of expanding slightly just before they set, thus filling in the finest details of a mold. Bronze parts are tough and typically used for bearings, clips, electrical connectors and springs.

Spring bronze weatherstripping comes in rolls of thin sheets and is nailed or stapled to wood windows and doors. There are two types, flat and v-strip. It has been used for hundreds of years because it has low friction, seals well and is long lasting. It is used in building restoration and custom construction.

Bronze also has very low metal-on-metal friction, which made it invaluable for the building of cannon where iron cannonballs would otherwise stick in the barrel.^{[citation needed]} It is still widely used today for springs, bearings, bushings, automobile transmission pilot bearings, and similar fittings, and is particularly common in the bearings of small electric motors. Phosphor bronze is particularly suited to precision-grade bearings and springs. It is also used in guitar and piano strings.

Unlike steel, bronze struck against a hard surface will not generate sparks, so it (along with beryllium copper) is used to make hammers, mallets, wrenches and other durable tools to be used in explosive atmospheres or in the presence of flammable vapors.

Bronze is used to make bronze wool for woodworking applications where steel wool would discolor oak.

Bronze statues[link]

Indian Hindu artisans from the period of the Chola empire in Tamil Nadu, used bronze to create intricate statues via the lost wax casting method with ornate detailing depicting the Gods of Hinduism mostly, but also the lifestyle of the period. The art form survives to this day, with many silpis, craftsmen, working in the areas of Swamimalai and Chennai.

In antiquity other cultures also produced works of high art using bronze. For example: in Africa, the bronze heads of the Kingdom of Benin; in Europe, Grecian bronzes typically of figures from Greek mythology; in east Asia, Chinese bronzes of the Shang and Zhou dynasty — more often ceremonial vessels but including some figurine examples.

Bronze continues into modern times as one of the materials of choice for monumental statuary.

Musical instruments[link]

Bronze is the most popular metal for top-quality bells, particularly bell metal, which is about 23% tin.

Nearly all professional cymbals are made from a bronze alloy. The alloy used in drum kit cymbal bronze is unique in the desired balance of durability and timbre.

Modern cymbals consist of several types of bronze, the most common being B20 bronze, which is roughly 20% tin, 80% copper, with traces of silver. Zildjian and Sabian use this alloy for their professional lines. A Swiss company, Paiste, uses a tougher B8 bronze which is made from 8% tin and 92% copper in the majority of their cymbals. Zildjian and Sabian use this metal too, in their budget priced cymbals. Paiste also use a secret Bronze alloy in their top-end cymbal ranged, thought to be B12 or B14, adding brightness without much compromise on strength^{[citation needed]}

As the tin content in a bell or cymbal rises, the timbre drops.^[12] As well as B8 and B20, Meinl Percussion uses B10 (10% tin) and B12 (12% tin) alloys for cymbals, which have timbres roughly between B8 and B20.^[13]

Bronze is also used for the windings of steel and nylon strings of various stringed instruments such as the double bass, piano, harpsichord, and the guitar.. Bronze strings are commonly reserved on pianoforte for the lower pitch tones, as they possess a superior sustain quality to that of high-tensile steel.^[14]

Bronzes of various metallurgical properties are widely used in struck idiophones around the world, notably bells, singing bowls, gongs, cymbals and other idiophones from Asia. Examples include Tibetan singing bowls, temple bells of many sizes and shapes, gongs, Javanese gamelan and other bronze musical instruments. The earliest bronze archeological finds in Indonesia date from 1–2 BCE, including flat plates probably suspended and struck by a wooden or bone mallet.^[14][15] Ancient bronze drums from Thailand and Vietnam date back 2,000 years. Bronze bells from Thailand and Cambodia date back to 3,600 BCE.

Some companies are now making saxophones from phosphor bronze (3.5 to 10% tin and up to 1% phosphorus content). Bell Bronze is used to make the tone rings of many professional model banjos. The tone ring is a heavy(usually 3 lbs.) folded or arched metal ring attached to a thick wood rim, over which a skin, or most often, a plastic membrane(or head)is stretched-it is the bell bronze that gives the banjo a crisp powerful lower register and clear, bell-like treble register-especially in bluegrass music.

Medals[link]

A large bronze cast medallion, some 9.5 by 8.7 centimetres in measurement, created by the celebrated medalist Valerio Belli in the sixteenth century.

Bronze has been used in the manufacture of various types of medals for centuries, and are known in contemporary times for being awarded to the second-runner up in sporting competitions and other events. The later usage was in part attributed to the choices of Gold, Silver and Bronze to represent the first three Ages of Man in Greek mythology: the Golden Age, when men lived among the gods; the Silver age, where youth lasted a hundred years; and the Bronze Age, the era of heroes, and was first adopted at the 1904 Summer Olympics. At the 1896 event, silver was awarded to winners and bronze to runners-up, while at 1900 other prizes were given, not medals.

See also[link]

Fragment of the grave of Cyprian Kamil Norwid in the Bards' crypt in Wawel Cathedral, Kraków, Poland by sculptor Czesław Dźwigaj

• List of copper alloys
• Art object
• Bronze medal
• Bronze sculpture
• Bronzing
• Chinese bronze inscriptions‎
• French Empire mantel clock
• Seagram Building
• DZR Dezincification Resistant Brass
• UNS C69100

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Bronze

Look up bronze in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article Bronze.

• Bronze bells
• "Lost Wax, Found Bronze": lost-wax casting explained
• "Flash animation of the lost-wax casting process". James Peniston Sculpture. http://www.jepsculpture.com/bronze.html. Retrieved 2008-11-03. 
• Viking Bronze - Ancient and Early Medieval bronze casting

This article is an orphan, as few or no other articles link to it. Please introduce links to this page from related articles; suggestions may be available. (February 2011)

Wu Weishan (simplified Chinese: 吴为山; traditional Chinese: 吳為山; pinyin: Wú Wèishān; born: January 1962) is a Chinese contemporary sculptor from Dongtai in Jiangsu Province. He is both founder and President of the Chinese Academy of Sculpture and Director of the Academy of Fine Arts at Nanjing University.^[1]

Education[link]

When he was 16, he started to study Chinese folk clay sculpture for three years in Wuxi，China’s famous cradle of clay figures.In 1987, He graduated from the Art Faculty of Nanjing Normal University and pursued his postgraduate studies at Peking University and then Washington University Graduate School of Art in St. Louis, Missouri.

Career[link]

He now holds several positions including the president of the China Academy of Sculpture and a professorship at Nanjing University, an honorary doctor of philosophy at Inje University, South Korea. He is a member of the Royal British Society of Sculptors, the Society of Portrait Sculptors, UK and the Steering Committee of China City Sculpture. He is also a standing member of the China Sculpture Institute, professor of cultural lectures at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. He became the “Y.K. Pao Distinguished Visiting Artist” of Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, and also “‘Gong Xueyin’Outstanding Scholar ”of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. He was selected as Nanjing’s first Top 10 Cultural Notables in 2006.

Work[link]

Wu Weishan has engaged in sculpture creation for more than twenty years, and has created more than 500 sculptures including historical and cultural notables and ordinary people, home and aboard. In his sculptures, he advocates the integration of the expressive spirit of traditional Chinese art; in theories of fine arts, he is the first to put up the “On Expressive Sculpture” and “Theory of Eight Major Styles of Traditional Chinese Sculpture”, blazing a new trail of expressive sculpture in China. His sculpture works for some ordinary people in our daily life express the sincere and honest vitalities, penetrating into a great many people’s heart. These elegant sentiments originate from his adeptly life-catching eyes and poetic soul. His works are full of Chinese wisdom and traits. The “Sleeping Child” was selected for the 50th Anniversary Exhibition of the Society of Portrait Sculptors, UK, and won the Pangolin Award.^[2] Mr. Anthony Stones, Chairman of the British Royal Portrait Sculpture Association, commended Wu Weishan as being "an outstanding Chinese sculptor who has established an indigenous stylistic approach to portrait and figurative sculpture.

A History of Chinese sculpture[link]

He composed a history of Chinese culture by a series of sculptures for cultural celebrities: Lao Tzu, Confucius, Lu Xun and Feng Youlan. These sculptures unambiguously express his anticipation for the strength of character and soul that are needed in this era. He was invited to build the sculptures for the Netherlands Beatrix of the Netherlands|Queen Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard and also Philippine Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo|President Arroyo. Netherlands Queen praised the respected cultural aged men sculptured by him as “walking out from the 5000-year culture”.

Reports on television[link]

His achievements have been reported in two episodes of “Extraordinary People of the East” by China Central Television.

Collections and exhibitions[link]

His works are collected by the National Art Museum of China, Rijksmuseum in the Netherlands, Honolulu Museum of Art, and the Fourth University of Paris etc. In Nanjing Museum, there is a permanent “Gallery of Wu Weishan’s sculptures of Cultural Notables”,and also there is a “Sculpture Studio of Professor Wu Weishan” at Macao Polytechnic Institute.

Personal sculpture and painting exhibitions[link]

1996, The European Ceramic Work Centre, Netherlands（sponsored by Netherlands National Art Foundation） 1998, Gallery on the Rim, USA, “Wu weishan sculpture exhibition”
1999, Hong Kong Arts Centre, “Wu weishan sculpture and painting exhibition”
1999, UNESCO Centre of Macau, “Wu weishan sculpture and painting exhibition”
2000, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, “Wu weishan sculpture and painting exhibition”
2002, Chinese University of Hong Kong, “Wu weishan sculpture and painting exhibition”
2005,Yufuku Gallery in Tokyo, Japan, “Wu weishan sculpture and painting exhibition”^[3]
2005.6. Qingdao city Shandong province, “Wu weishan sculpture exhibition”
2006.7. National Art Museum of China, “Casting the Soul with the Literary Heart----Exhibition of Wu Weishan’s Sculptural Works”
2006.9 Changchun World Sculpture Park,“Casting the Soul with the Literary Heart----Exhibition of Wu Weishan’s Sculptural Works”
2006.11.Jiangsu Provincial Art Museum, “Casting the Soul with the Literary Heart----Exhibition of Wu Weishan’s Sculptural Works”

Major Participation in Exhibition[link]

“The First Beijing International Art Biennial Exhibition ”,2003, Beijing
“The Second Beijing International Art Biennial Exhibition”,2005, Beijing
“The 10th National Exhibition of Art”,2005, Beijing
“Centenary Exhibition of Sculpture”, 2005, Shanghai
“Exhibition of Fine Arts Literature”, 2005, Beijing
“The 50th Anniversary Exhibition of the Society of Portrait Sculptors, UK”, 2003, London
“The Exhibition of the Society of Portrait Sculptors, UK”, 2004, London

Leading Awards[link]

In 2003, won the Pangolin Award
In 2004,won the Recognition Award of the Third Exhibition of City Sculpture in China;
In 2008, won the Recognition Award of City Sculpture in China;

Monograph[link]

1．Wu Weishan.“The Psychology of Visual Arts”(260000 words)， Nanjing Normal University Press，1999
2．Wu Weishan.“Thus Saith the Sculpture” (200000 words)，China Social Sciences Press,2002
3．Wu Weishan.“Woodcarving of Western Han Dynasty”,The People’s Fine Arts Publishing House，Tianjing,2003
4．Wu Weishan.“Spirit of Sculptors”，（Korea Edition），2007
5．Wu Weishan. “The Poetry of Sculpture”，，（English Edition），World Scientific Publishing，Singapore,2007
6．Wu Weishan. “The Poetry of Sculpture” ，，（Chinese Edition），Nanjing University Press，2007

Papers[link]

1．Wu Weishan, Art life”，2001.5
2．Wu Weishan“vagueness and vividness—from molding spirits of characters”，“Literature and Art Studies”，2002.2
3．Wu Weishan“on the expressional sculptures”，“Art research”，2004.1
4．Wu Weishan”The stylistic quality of Chinese Sculpture in my eye” ，“Literature and Art Studies”，2005.6
5．Wu Weishan“Amazing similarity: a talk on sculpture”,“Sculpture”,2007.5
6．Wu Weishan“Ramble about sculpture II—thinking in comparing”， “Sculpture”，2007.6
7．Wu Weishan“the 3rd time in talk about sculpture: part three—be lifelike by means of vagueness”,， “Sculpture”，2008.2
8．Wu Weishan“the power of human nature—the thought brought from Effigy of Einstein’s sculpture ”,“Sculpture”， 2008.3
9．Wu Weishan.“Sculpture Aspiration”，“Sculpture”，2008.6
10．Wu Weishan“The return of the ghosts: the group sculpture of Nanjing Slaughter”,“Literature and Art Studies”，2008.4
11．Wu Weishan“The Heroic Symphonies-To Observe the Beethoven Statue Series of Bourdelle”，“Sculpture”，2009.1
12．Wu Weishan”My View on Mr. Wanq Chaowen's Aesthetic View-point of Sculpture-Random Thoughts of Reading "Sculpt Sculpture"(Part One)“Sculpture”2009.2
13．Wu Weishan“My View on Mr. Wanq Chaowen's Aesthetic View-point of Sculpture-Random Thoughts of Reading "Sculpt Sculpture"(Part two),“Sculpture” 2009.3
14．Wu Weishan“The Value of the Yellow River Iron Ox”,“Sculpture” 2009.4
15．Wu Weishan“On the Religious and Cultural Characteristics of Cambodian Angkor Wat Art”,“Yuejiang Academic Journal”2009.3

Picture albums[link]

1．“Wu Weishan’s Sculptures”,,The People’s Fine Arts Publishing House，Beijing, 1999
2．“Wu Weishan’s Sculptures and Paintings”,1999
3．“The Sketch of Spirit”,The People’s Fine Arts Publishing House，Tianjing, 2002
4．“Wu Weishan’s Sculptures and Paintings”, Guwuxuan Publishing House，2005
5．“Wu Weishan’s Expressive sculptures”,Jiangsu Art Press，2006

References[link]

1. Wu Weishan’s Personal Website: http://www.wuweishan.cn/index01.asp
2. China Baidu: http://baike.baidu.com/view/65656.htm
3. http://d.wanfangdata.com.cn/Periodical_yspl200606025.aspx
4. http://d.wanfangdata.com.cn/Periodical_yspl200606028.aspx
5. http://d.wanfangdata.com.cn/Periodical_yspl200606024.aspx
6. http://d.wanfangdata.com.cn/Periodical_kxywh200104002.aspx 7. Wu Weishan’s Personal Blog http://zhonggang.blog.artron.net/space.php?uid=457680

Other sources[link]