Photographing gold at the Shaanxi History Museum is a fortunate thing and a hard job. According to the official data, the collection of gold and silver objects is as many as 1800 pieces, and the permanent exhibition has more than 100 gold objects. One of the many gold-related artifacts that must not be missed is the four-luan silk gold and silver flat mirror in the permanent exhibition, which is near the golden bowl of the Mandarin duck lotus petal pattern. During the filming process, it was found that many viewers missed this luxurious mirror, perhaps because the years obscured its former brilliance, or because they were distracted by the brilliance of other cultural relics. Pass through the lens together and savor its extraordinary.
Mirrors are the most common thing now. In China, historians have given the mirror a deeper meaning, the most famous of which is the "Old Book of Tang and Wei Zheng biography" in which "with copper as a mirror, you can dress properly; with people as a mirror, you can know gains and losses; with history as a mirror, you can know the rise and fall." "Jian, the ancient character is written "supervisor". It first appeared in oracle bones, like a man bowing his head in a vessel filled with water to illuminate his face. Around the spring and autumn, the addition of "gold" next to it became "jian", that is, the meaning of copper as a mirror.
Ancient Chinese bronze mirrors are generally cast with bronze with a high tin content, which first appeared in the Shang Dynasty and were ceremonial instruments used for sacrifice. In the Spring and Autumn Warring States to Qin, it was generally enjoyed by kings and nobles, and by the end of the Western Han Dynasty, bronze mirrors slowly became popular and were indispensable living utensils for people. The back of the bronze mirror is also cast with various auspicious patterns and words, pinning people's yearning for a better life and realistic records, and even political appeals.
In the Tang Dynasty, the development of bronze mirrors was pushed to a new historical period. The mirror of the Tang Dynasty, the most legendary is the "Yangzi Jiangxin Mirror", in addition to its production process is full of magical colors, the history book records are more legendary: Tang Tianbao eight years, Qinzhong (present-day Shaanxi) drought, Xuanzong prayed for rain but could not, so he asked the monk why he could not ask for rain. The monk said that because there was no true dragon in the magic weapon for asking for rain, he chose this Jiangxin mirror in the royal storeroom. Because what is cast on the Mirror of Jiangxin is a true dragon. After Emperor Xuanzong got the mirror, he asked for rain again, and in an instant, heavy rain fell from the sky, seven days in a row, and this year achieved a bumper harvest. In this way, this mirror has a great ability to summon the divine dragon and call the wind and rain to the "magical effect".
The most luxurious thing is that this gold and silver flat off the mirror. The production process of this copper mirror is called gold and silver flat off, gold and silver flat off is a bronze, lacquer decorative process, as early as the Han Dynasty, the ancients had a lacquerware gold decoration process, the gold, silver pounded into a very thin sheet, cut out the pattern, pasted on the lacquerware. Although it looks good, the gold leaf is too easy to be worn and shed. Gold and silver flat off process, to put it simply is an upgraded version of the gold paste. First paste the gold and silver foil on the utensils, then paint the utensils, paint them again after the shade is dried, repeat many times, cover the gold and silver patterns, and then repeatedly polish the surface to expose the gold and silver grain pieces. Because the grain is flush with the paint surface and is exposed from the paint surface, it is called "gold and silver flat off". Not only is the process more complicated than ordinary gold, but the gold leaf used for flattening is also thicker than the material of gold, so it is also possible to carve decorative textures on gold and silver to form a more exquisite and luxurious visual effect. Unfortunately, the gold and silver flat-off process only prevailed for a while between Kaiyuan and Tianbao, and after the Anshi Rebellion, the national strength of the Tang Dynasty went into decline, because the production of gold and silver flat-off was too expensive, and Tang Suzong and Tang Dynasty Emperor both issued edicts prohibiting the production of gold and silver flat-off products. Since then, the production of gold and silver has declined sharply, and by five generations it has declined and eventually disappeared. The craftsmanship of the Song Dynasty was mainly based on gold and gold depiction, and the gold and silver flat-off process has become a masterpiece.
Because of this, there are very few cultural relics handed down from the gold and silver flat peeling process, which is rare to see. The museum with this craft artifact in China is also rare like a morning star. The impression is that there are collections in the National Museum and Luoyang Museum, and there are collections in Jinan Museum. Once I also made a special trip to the Jinan Museum to see the real face, but I saw a lonely look, only a picture of cultural relics hung in the exhibition hall. Turning to the staff to inquire, tell that some years have not seen this mirror, so this copper mirror can be regarded as the pinnacle of the Tang Dynasty copper mirror, and it is also the most exquisite gold and silver mirror that can be seen in China at present.
The motif on the mirror is the four-partridge ribbon. The bird, also known as the bird and the blue bird, has a multicolored pattern. In the pre-Qin period, in the "Classic of Mountains and Seas and the Classic of The Western Mountains", it is recorded that there is a bird named Luan Bird on the mountain of the female bed. It is a sacred bird in ancient Chinese legends, and when seen, the world is peaceful, and it is the messenger of the spring god and a symbol of auspicious wishes. In the folk, luan phoenix and singing are also commonly used to bless the love of husband and wife, family harmony, prosperity of children and grandchildren, and prosperity of the family business. The bird is also a more common pattern in Tang Dynasty goldware.
Ribbon has a richer meaning in ancient China, first of all, "silk" is harmonized with the word "shou" of longevity, representing longevity and immortality. In the "History of Fan Ju Cai ZeLie's Biography", it is recorded that "the seal of gold is carried, and the purple is tied to the waist". In the Han Dynasty, ribbons were worn by officials, and the length and color were strictly prescribed. "Bird Of Arms" contains the meaning of happiness and longevity, wealth and longevity.
This kind of bronze mirror process is complex, time-consuming, laborious, expensive, and at that time, it was regarded as a superb work, a luxury of luxury goods, and those who could see its style were even more rare. If time and space can be traveled, perhaps on an early summer morning in Chang'an, the noble concubine is dressing up her prosperous beauty in front of this mirror. After a thousand years, the Si people have gone, looking back at Chang'an, the bronze mirror is still there. Have the opportunity to go to the Shaanxi History Museum, stay in front of it for a while, and feel this artistic treasure that belongs to the wisdom of the Chinese nation!
Photo of this issue: Zhang Wenbin
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