Cover news reporter Dai Zhuxin
Looking forward to it, it's New Year's again! 2022 is the Year of the Tiger in the Lunar Calendar, and the cover news launched the "Tiger Beckoning" series of planning to interpret the tiger culture in the cultural relics and talk about the cold knowledge of tiger culture.
In most of the cultural relics of Sanxingdui with "dragon" as the main image, what "tigers" are hidden? The cover news reporter has combed the list of "tiger babies" in Sanxingdui's wonderful discoveries for you, they are: "tiger head tiger brain" bronze, gold leaf tiger ornament, bronze tiger inlaid with turquoise... And the real tiger teeth!
In fact, many ancient Chinese peoples had the custom of worshipping tigers. Some experts believe that the shape of the tiger unearthed from Sanxingdui is simple and complex, and the atmosphere is vivid, indicating that the Shu people observe the image of the tiger quite carefully, and the image of the tiger has a very important position in their minds.
Slide down to browse the Samsung Pile "Tiger Baby" and spend the New Year in a festive mood!
"Tiger Head Tiger Brain" bronze
Recently, in a new round of archaeological work in the Sanxingdui sacrifice area, a new dragon-shaped artifact was discovered. Amazingly, this dragon with its body raised had a tiger head.
In October this year, in the middle of Pit 8, a triangular bronze base was gradually revealed, and on the feet of the base stood bronze birds. At first, archaeologists thought that there might be a sacred tree on the base. After a month and a half of excavations, a bronze statue in the shape of a dragon was finally revealed. Surprisingly, this dragon looks like a "tiger head".
"Its head resembles a tiger's head, it has round ears, it has a relatively long horn on its head, and it has something like a knife in its mouth." Zhao Hao, the archaeological team of the Sanxingdui site sacrifice area, said. This dragon-like and tiger-like artifact, the forefoot stands on the triangular base, the body is raised, and the overall shape is thick.
Archaeologists speculate that for now, this should be only a part. "We now speculate that the artifact is not a complete part, but only the base or bottom of a larger artifact." Zhao Hao said.
Gold leaf tiger-shaped ornament
Gold leaf tiger
The form of the gold leaf tiger is both majestic and cute. According to He Junmin, a docent at the Sanxingdui Museum, this tiger-shaped ornament is shaped with a gold leaf hammer and embossed with a "mesh" glyph-shaped tabby pattern, which is very exquisite.
At a glance, the gold leaf tiger tiger head is raised, the mouth is opened to make a roar, the eyes are hollowed out, the front foot is extended, the back foot is squatting, and the tail is rolled up, in a running shape. "It looks like it's roaring against the enemy, but it looks mighty but has a touch of cuteness." He Junmin said that the golden tiger is semi-circular, and may have originally been an ornament pasted on other utensils.
Authentic tiger teeth
Tiger teeth
Three tiger teeth were unearthed from the second sacrificial pit, which were 9.3 to 11.3 cm long and 2.3 to 3.1 cm wide. He Junmin introduced that due to the long-term burial with bronzes, the tiger's teeth are turquoise due to the erosion of patina. As a result, the collection is often mistaken for bronze by visitors. Actually, it's a real three tiger teeth!
"Each tiger tooth has a perforation at the base, which may be used for hanging and wearing for decorative purposes." He Junmin said that the Shu people have the custom of shanghu, the tiger is awe-inspiring with its mighty and fierce image, and the crafts made with tiger teeth not only have the function of decoration, but also may be a symbol of power and strength, which is considered by the ancients to have the effect of warding off evil spirits.
Bronze tiger-shaped plaque
This tiger-shaped ornament, with a total length of 43 centimeters, is covered with turquoise, its giant ears, open mouth and teeth, angry eyes, the tiger's tail is dragging down, and the tip of the tail is curled, giving people a feeling of roaring mountains and forests. One side of the micro-arch is semi-embossed, light-free, and the other side is cast with tabby grooves, and the grooves are filled with small square turquoise inlays.
Copper Tiger Shaper
This artifact was excavated from the No. 1 sacrifice pit, with a diameter of 7.8 cm, a tiger body length of 11.4 cm, and a residual height of 10.8 cm. The tiger is fat, circle-shaped, and stands on four feet on a circle seat. The tiger's eyes are round, the ears are pointed and round, the head is raised and the tail is erect, the teeth are grinning, and the image is fierce. According to reports, experts speculate that the circular hollow tiger body may have been equipped with a cylindrical device of some material.
"A great place to stay"
Come and show your little tiger!
The Year of the Tiger is coming, what cute tigers around you are unforgettable? Cover News issued a "Tiger Solicitation Order" to global photographers, inviting you to show the cute tigers around you.
You can walk into the Senucci Museum in France and visit the treasure of the town museum, the tiger-shaped man, you can walk into the Bronx Zoo in New York City, USA, to shoot the thrilling scene of the tiger biting its prey; you can walk into the National Museum of the United States and post zhang Shanxiao's "Flying Tiger Map" created for Chennault; you can also share the folklore of the Year of the Tiger in your area, cut a tiger window flower, or make a tiger head hat.
If you have a "cute tiger" around you, welcome to the cover news Green Banana community to publish the dynamics, use pictures or short videos to post the little tiger around you, you have a chance to win movie tickets and other New Year gifts.