Aerial view of the ruins of Zhengpingfang in Luoyang
In the past two days, the "Mansion of the Princess Taiping" has sent the archaeological excavation work of the Zhengpingfang site to the hot search topic.
On the 15th, combined with the hot spots that everyone cares about, at the archaeological excavation site, the reporter invited archaeologists to reveal more details.
Lotus Wadang
Cornice tiles
●What are the main cultural relics excavated from the Zhengpingfang site?
Shi Zishe, director of the Luoyang Workstation of the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, leader of the Luoyang Tangcheng Archaeological Task Force, and associate researcher: A large number of lotus-patterned tiles, cylinder tiles, plate tiles, ridge decorations and other building components have been excavated from the Zhengpingfang site, as well as green glazed, white glazed, black glazed cups, plates, bowls and other daily necessities. These excavated architectural components are the same as those seen in the Sui and Tang Dynasties Luoyang City Palace District, with complex craftsmanship and exquisite ornamentation, and the age is mainly from the middle and late Tang Dynasty, which also confirms the high level of the buildings in the workshop. Archaeological findings indicate that watts were already present and used during the Western Zhou Dynasty. Influenced by Buddhism, lotus-patterned tiles were very popular during the Wei and Jin Dynasties, directly affecting the Sui and Tang dynasties, and the higher the level of architecture, the more exquisite the production and ornamentation of tiles.
Excavations of Tang Dynasty tiles
●As the "highest institution of learning" at that time, what archaeological discoveries were made in Guozijian?
Wang Ju, researcher of the Municipal Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology: Guozijian is an important place for the assessment and selection of officials, and the site of Guozijian excavated so far is from the late Tang Dynasty, and the Confucius Temple occupies about a quarter of the southeast area of Zhengpingfang. Through excavations, it can be confirmed that this area can be divided into three parts: east, middle and west, and the Guozijian is located on the north-south central axis, and the central axis extends to the south side of the wall with a gate. At present, the layout of the square, the main hall and the Confucius Temple on the east side of the Guozijian has been basically clarified. In the square area, we cleared out a kiln workshop and unearthed a large number of Tang Dynasty tiles. This workshop dug cellars, burned bricks and tiles on the spot, and provided building materials for the construction of the Guozijian and Confucius Temples. There are several kiln workshops like this in the central square of Guozijian, which shows that there were many bricks and tiles fired at that time. After the Confucius Temple and the Guozijian were built, these kiln workshops were abandoned.
Aerial view of the kiln workshop used in the construction of the Guozijian
●What are the discoveries in the northeast area of the Zhengpingfang site?
Shi Zishe: At present, the archaeological work of the Zhengpingfang site is mainly concentrated in the western half of the square and the southeast corner, according to preliminary exploration, the northeast region may be distributed with some Tang Dynasty officials, large households of the residence, is the Zhengpingfang "fireworks" in the place is relatively strong. In the next step, we will further explore the layout of the site to reveal the appearance of The Lifang District as much as possible.
Staff make measurements and draw drawings at the kiln workshop
The staff conducted archaeological excavations in the Area of Guozijian in Zhengpingfang
●Regarding princess Taiping's residence, what are the next steps?
Shi Zishe: There are many Taiping Princess residences recorded in historical documents, mainly distributed in Xi'an and Luoyang, such as Shangshanfang in Luoyang City of the Sui and Tang Dynasties, but most of them have not been verified. This place in the Zhengpingfang site is the only Taiping Princess residence revealed by archaeological excavations, and it is also a strong confirmation of historical documents. In the next step, archaeologists will further clarify the functional partitions and specific buildings inside the house through archaeological excavations, and strive to solve the mystery of the layout in the house as soon as possible. (Reporter Wisdom Trainee Reporter Lv Baiying/Wen Reporter Zhang Yixi/Photo)