This paper reports the results of a thorough technical examination performed on 327 early Chinese ritual bronze vessels from the Smithsonian Institution's Arthur M. Sackler Collection. The examination included x-radiography, viewing under ultra-violet light, and overall viewing with a binocular microscope. Molds were made for some surface details in order to study them in reverse relief. Metal from most of the vessels was analyzed 1) for lead isotope ratios by means of mass spectrometry, 2) for the major metallic components by atomic absorption spectrometry and 3) for minor and trace elemental concentrations by neutron activation analysis. A clear degree of correlation was shown between the lead isotope ratios and the chronology of the bronzes. The lead isotope data was studied via three dimensional multivariate statistical analysis. A similar analysis was undertaken for the gold, silver, arsenic, antimony and cobalt elemental concentrations. It is suggested that even though this data needs to be correlated with art history data, the results suggest that lead isotope and compositional measurements can significantly supplement structural and stylistic evaluations of the origins and relationships between Chinese ritual bronzes.