The Sogdian symbol of the Hu figurines in the Tombs of the Northern Wei Dynasty

The Sogdian symbol of the Hu figurines in the Tombs of the Northern Wei Dynasty

World of Cultural Relics, No. 06, 2005, Zhang Zhizhong

In the summer and autumn of 2000, the excavation of the Northern Wei Tombs [1] of the Datong Yanbei Normal Academy was another important discovery after the tombs of Sima Jinlong[2] and Fangshan Yonggu Mausoleum[3], and a large number of Hu figurines were unearthed, especially a number of trick music acrobatic figurines, with distinctive character characteristics and novel and gorgeous clothing, which was of great significance for the study of the Silk Road during the Pingcheng period of the Northern Wei Dynasty and the trade, economy and cultural exchanges between the East and the West. In recent years, with the discovery and scientific excavation of the Tomb of Yu Hong of the Sui Dynasty in Taiyuan [4] and the Tomb of The Northern Zhou Anjia in Xi'an[5], it has shown a vivid picture of the customs of the Sogdian people in Central Asia with vivid characters and distinctive physical characteristics, providing vivid physical materials for the understanding and study of the customs and religious beliefs of the Sogdian people, and playing a positive role in helping to understand and understand the images of the Hu figurines excavated from the tombs of the Pingcheng period of the Northern Wei Dynasty through comparative research.

1. Symbols of the Sogdians on their faces and costumes

The number of hu figurines unearthed from tombs during the Pingcheng period of the Northern Wei Dynasty is not large. As a result, it has not been clear about its body shape, appearance and clothing characteristics. So much so that some people put the town tomb warrior figurines unearthed from the Northern Wei tombs. The fierce and domineering shape, the image of the deep eye and high nose as a symbol of the bearded figurine. In fact, this is only the image of the ethnic minorities in the north, the result of artificial exaggeration and ugliness, not the image of the Central or West Asians we want to describe. The real Hu figurines were excavated in 1965 at the tomb of Sima Jinlong. Numerous acrobatic figurines were unearthed in the Northern Wei tombs of the Yanbei Division.

The tomb of Song Shaozu of Yanbei Normal Academy [6] unearthed 4 pieces of Huren figurines, located in the east of the cloister of the tomb, and the two sides of the travel ceremony seem to shout or advocate, cheering for the travel team. The facial expressions of the characters are slightly different, but the physical characteristics are extremely consistent, with a high forehead and narrow eyebrows, thick eyebrows and deep eyes, a high nose bridge, a small black round hat, and a gorgeous round neck narrow body tight-sleeved cardigan with a beautiful round neck, which is woven with different patterns. The collar, sleeves, placket and hem are trimmed in different colors and decorated with different floral patterns. The waist is tied with a black belt, the feet are pedaled with black boots, most of the robe is slit under the crotch, and the front part of the small belly is prominent, slightly falling, corresponding to this, the back hips are significantly upturned. 7 Hu figurines unearthed from the M20 of Yanbei Normal Academy are located in the front of the burial chamber, and on the periphery are 8 sitting figurines, holding different musical instruments, with different postures, as performances. In the center is a long-sleeved dancing figurine, from the physical characteristics and dress, the forehead is wide, the nose bridge is moderate, the head wears a black fresh hat, and the left collar robe is worn, all of which are Han, Xianbei or northern ethnic minorities, that is, Mongolian race. The different standing movements in the middle and the amazing top acrobatic hu figurine performance, because of its different roles, different shapes and facial expressions, but its physical characteristics and clothing are the same. They are all high-fronted and narrow-headed, thick eyebrows, deep eyes, high nose bridge, wearing a small black round hat, wearing a round neck narrow-sleeved robe, embellished with similar color tufts. The robe has a crotch slit, round neck, sleeves, hem and opening sides with different colors, waist belt, footwear black boots. The only difference with the Hu figurines excavated from the tomb of Song Shaozu is that the clothes do not use the form of plackets, and it is not difficult to see the same physical appearance and decorative features as described above by carefully comparing the Hu figurines excavated from the tomb of Sima Jinlong.

The above Hu figurines have the ethnic characteristics of Central Asia and West Asia, with reasonable character structure, realistic design, complicated decoration, bright colors, and complex production process, which is quite difficult.

Looking at these Hu figurines, both musicians and acrobatic performers, they all have deep eyes, high noses, high foreheads and narrow jaws, wear round hats, and wear round necks and narrow sleeve robes, which have typical Western ethnic characteristics. The western regions west of Juyang Pass and Yumen Pass include the persian states of Persia, Bushan, Andmu, Khotan, Cheshi, Yanqi, Guizi, Shule, and Sogdia. According to the Book of Han and the Tale of the Western Regions; "From the west of Wanwan to the kingdom of rest, although it is quite different, it is the same, and it knows each other, and everyone has deep eyes and beard." The "Biography of the Northern History and Western Regions" says: "The people of the countries west of Gaochang, etc., have deep eyes and high noses. It can be seen that the image of the Hu figurine originated from the countries west of Gaochang, that is, in the area of present-day Central asia and West Asia. If you compare the costumes such as the round-necked narrow-sleeved robes worn by the Hu figurines with the costumes of the figures of the Western Regions unearthed today, it can be seen that the Hu figurines are closer to the Central Asian figures in the image.

Let's take a look at how the excavation briefing of the Anjia Tomb in Xi'an Northern Zhou describes the carved figures on the stone bed: wearing a virtual hat, wearing a red round neck tight cardigan robe, the neckline, placket, cuffs and hem are decorated with red color, waist belts, and black boots. There are more than 10 similar descriptions. The Taiyuan Sui Dynasty Yu Hong Tomb Briefing also has similar descriptions, such as the character with short black hair, deep eyes and high nose, wearing a round neck narrow sleeve robe with red and white flowers, white and green wide trim at the hem, a white leather belt at the waist, and a pair of black boots. In addition, according to the epitaph, the owner of the tomb, Anjia, was from the Anguo of the Sogdian region of Central Asia, and the image content of the stone bed screen showed the grand scene of Sogdian Zoroastrian art; In the Sui Dynasty, Yu Hong's official position was Sabao, in charge of the affairs of foreigners coming to China, and the statue of Shi Rafter also had obvious Sogdian artistic characteristics. The facial features of the Hu figurines unearthed from the Tombs of the Northern Wei Dynasty in Datong, such as round black hats, covering short hair, deep eyes and high noses, are very similar to the characters depicted on the stone rafters of Yu Hong's tomb, wearing round necks and narrow sleeves, and the neckline, cuffs and hem decorations are different colors, which are the same as the Sogdian costumes depicted on the stone bed screen of the Anjia tomb. According to kang Guo's article in the "Biography of the Northern History of the Western Regions", "The husband cut his hair, the brocade robe ... everyone had deep eyes and a high nose, and had a lot of hair." The Hu figurines excavated from the tombs of the Northern Wei Dynasty in Datong, with their costumes, novel patterns and bright colors, should be the result of imitating brocade paintings. Through data comparison and literature analysis, it is preliminarily believed that the Hu figurines excavated from the tombs of the Northern Wei Dynasty in Datong have the characteristics of the Sogdians in Central Asia.

Second, the historical background of the Sogdians' entry into Pingcheng

The Sogdian kingdom was west of the onion territory, between the Amu Darya River and the Syr Darya River, from Zhang Qian to the western region, the Western Han Dynasty set up the western region capital protectorate, the Silk Road became more and more smooth, and the economic exchanges and cultural exchanges between China and the West became more and more frequent. Sogdian merchants from Central Asia, known as the "merchants of the world", poured into Yumen Guanxing trade through the Silk Road. According to Mr. Rong Xinjiang's article "Sabao province and Sogdian settlements in the Sui and early Tang dynasties"[8], from the Wei and Jin dynasties onwards, due to commercial reasons and the invasion of the Sogdian nation by forces such as the Disgusted Da, turks, and big food, a large number of Sogdians were forced to migrate eastward. Some of them entered the Northern Turkic Khaganate, some entered the institutions of the Northern Wei, Northern Qi, Northern Zhou, and Sui and Tang Dynasties, and some have been active in Chinese society as commercial peoples. The Sogdians lived everywhere and formed settlements, and some of them continued to travel eastward, forming new settlements. The control of the Sogdian settlements by the central government from the Northern Dynasty to the Sui and Tang Dynasties was a long process. In the early Northern Dynasty, most settlements were not bound by the government, and there are few records of them. Since most of the Sogdians believed in the traditional Yuan religion, there were often ancestral shrines in the settlements, and Sabou became the political and religious chief in the Sogdian settlements. After the middle of the Northern Dynasty, in order to control these Hu settlements, the government set up the administration of Sa Bao Province, and incorporated Sa Bao into the Chinese bureaucracy, and Sa Bao was regarded as an exiled official, and was specially served by the Hu leader.

Around the 3rd and 4th centuries AD, Sogdian merchants "sold goods in the cool soil" and stopped here, thus forming settlements as a transit point for the trade of goods. In the fifth year of the Northern Wei Dynasty (439), Emperor Taiwu sent an army to Hexi, Kegu Zang Liangzhou), capturing a large number of Sogdians. In October of the same year, "the car drove to the east, and more than 30,000 families of the people of Liangzhou were in the Beijing Division." "This should include a considerable number of Sogdians. Thereafter, due to Bu Shan's "closure of the Wei Dao", "those who did not understand the Western Regions for several years" were not until the third year of Emperor Wencheng's reign (457), "the King of Sogdian sent envoys to ask for redemption and obeyed him." O From this record, it can be seen that the number of Sogdians in the Northern Wei at that time was very large, and after nearly 20 years of mixed living with the Han and Xianbei ethnic groups, most of them had adapted to the local way of life and production, and although the Sogdian kings ransomed with heavy money, there were still quite a few Sogdians left, and the large number of Hu figurines unearthed from the tombs of the Northern Wei in Datong can clearly illustrate this.

In the Northern Wei tombs of the Yanbei Normal Academy, the 5 brick chamber tombs are concentrated in distribution, arranged sequentially from north to south, the tomb structure and burial utensils are the same, of which the song Shaozu tomb and the pottery cart, pottery horse, pottery cow and pottery figurines excavated by M2 are extremely consistent in production and shape, which should be a family cemetery. According to the epitaph, Song Shaozu was a native of Dunhuang County, and the official titles were Youzhou Assassin History and Duke of Dunhuang. Since the Wei and Jin dynasties, the Song clan has always been the surname of Dunhuang, Tuoba Tao PingbeiLiang, many members of the Song family led by Song Peng migrated to Pingcheng, and were mostly appointed to important positions and reused, Song Shaozu may have come to Pingcheng at this time. Dunhuang County, which belongs to Liangzhou, is located in the western part of the Hexi Corridor and east of Yumen Pass, which is an important trade route of the Silk Road. Since the Eastern Han Dynasty, it has become the "Trading Capital of Huarong". During the Sixteen Kingdoms period, Li Hao, the king of Western Liangwu Zhao, moved the capital to Jiuquan and moved 23,000 households from Dunhuang at one time, of which no less than 100 Sogdians lived in 12 households. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, more Sogdians came or gathered here, engaged in trade, and established good relations with local residents, and their traditional culture subtly influenced the production and lifestyle of local residents, and brought this exotic style to the interior of Northern Wei with the migration to Pingcheng. According to the Book of Wei, Sima Jinlong's original wife was the daughter of Yuanhe, the King of Longxi and Taiwei Yuanhe. The tomb shape system with ear chamber and the large number of armored utensils and other cavalry pottery figurines with burials reflect the funerary customs of the Hexi region during the Sixteen Kingdoms period, and the Hu figurines excavated from the tomb and other Northern Wei tombs in Pingcheng reflect their connection with the Sogdians.

Third, the Sogdian factor in music and dance

During the Southern and Northern Dynasties period, the sogdian settlements in Central Asia were divided into nine countries, the most famous of which were Kang Guo and An Guo, commonly known as "Nine Surname Shang Hu". Most of them liked music, were good at singing and dancing, and used the power of the northern peoples to pour into the northern dynasties, and the music and song and dance of the western regions and Sogdians entered the interior with their footprints. According to the Sui Shu Music Chronicle, "Since the Later Wei Ping Feng clan, through the Western Regions, because of its tricks, it gradually multiplied its voice, and it was different (listed) in Taile. That is to say, by the time of Emperor Taiwu's Tuoba Tao, An Guo music in Sogdia had been introduced to The City of Pingcheng in Northern Wei and was listed as court music. In addition, some contents about Anguo music are recorded, among which the instruments are the hoop, the pipa, the flute, the reed, the reed and the drum. There are also some records of court tricks in the literature of the time, but it is still not known in detail. At this time, the Yungang Grottoes, which were excavated under the auspices of the royal family, had distinct national political overtones, and many images of Lotte were carved in some caves. For example, cave 9, commonly known as the music cave, is the front and back caves. The former cave carved trick Lotte, holding a variety of Western musical instruments, is exquisitely carved and richly decorated, reflecting the music and dance of the Northern Wei court with a strong color of Western ethnic music.

Yanbei Normal Courtyard M2 Northern Wei tomb, the Trick Music Hu figurines around the acrobatic Hu figurines, as an accompaniment, The Hu figurines are standing, the instruments held, may be wooden, have been lost, but from the hand style, it can be seen that the instruments held are pipa, flute, flute and so on. The outer part is wearing a fresh hat and wearing a humble trick figurine, the figure is a typical northern ethnic group, the hand style is similar to or the same as the Hu ren music figurine, indicating that the instruments they hold are also roughly the same, but their postures are all sitting, reflecting the difference in the way the two play. The former form is free and lively, and the northern Zhou Anjia tomb stone bed screen, Sui Dynasty Yu Hong tomb stone rafter carved music and dance figures are very similar, handheld musical instruments are also the same, are standing performances, lively and diverse forms, not limited to the venue and space, anytime and anywhere can be performed and entertainment. From many aspects, the performance of the Yanbei Normal Academy M2 can be said to be in line with it. Therefore, we believe that the Jule Hu figurines unearthed from the tombs of the Northern Wei Dynasty in Datong have many elements of Sogdian music or Anguo music in terms of music.

In addition, the scene of playing the Western Regions or Anguo Music and Dance is often found in other excavated cultural relics of the tombs of the Northern Dynasty, such as the stone carved pillars of the Tomb of Sima Jinlong of the Northern Wei Dynasty, with four tricks carved in the four corners, and the hand-held instruments are all Western Instruments. The orange glazed flat pot excavated from the tomb of Northern Qi Fan Chu in Anyang, Henan Province[13], shaped like a northern ethnic minority, is a local product from the production process, creating a perfect picture of western music and dance, not only for the musical instruments and dances of the western region, the physical characteristics and costumes of the characters, are typical ethnic characteristics of the western region. It shows that at this time, folk music and dance performances have become popular in the western region or anguo music, reflecting the fact that the Hu people in the western region have entered in large numbers and settled in the interior, and the Central Asian Sogdians are only a part of them. Later, the Sui Dynasty Shi Shebei Tombs found in the southern suburbs of Guyuan [14], buried in the earth without coffins, were different from the tombs of Han chinese or northern ethnic minorities, reflecting the characteristics of many Sogdian burial customs. The establishment and existence of Sabao Province in the early Tang Dynasty further proved the development process of migration and settlement formation from the Northern Wei to the Tang Sogdians from few to many, from remote areas to the interior.

Through the comparison and study of the above three aspects, we have a general understanding of the Hu figurines excavated from the tombs of the Pingcheng period of the Northern Wei Dynasty in Datong, and preliminarily infer that they are the symbols of the Sogdians in Central Asia. It is of great significance for studying the trade exchanges and economic and cultural exchanges between the eastern and western ethnic groups, and then understanding the development of the Sogdian people from migration and settlement to integration with the Han people. At present, the archaeological material in this regard is still thin, so it is difficult to make an accurate conclusion. He made a move to attract the attention of experts and scholars.