TCM Unearthed: Bronze Mortar and Bronze Medicine Pot

This exquisite set of bronze vessels from the Han Dynasty represents the core tools of a pharmaceutical workshop from 2,000 years ago. The bronze mortar and pestle were used to crush medicinal ingredients. TCM often uses hard substances like minerals (e.g., gypsum), shells (e.g., oyster shell), or nuts, which needed to be crushed in a mortar to ensure their active components could be fully released during decoction. The nearby bronze medicine pot was a cauldron specifically used for boiling these ingredients into a medicinal soup (decoction). The intricate animal-head ring handles on these tools are not only functional but also reflect the high regard for medical practice at the time. They are now housed in the Shaanxi Medical History Museum.

Portions of this article were adapted from research materials originally published on National Museum of Traditional Chinese Medicine.