【The image of the tiger on the ancient Dian bronze ware】
#Treasures of Yunnan##Me and My Yunnan#
The Niuhu copper case is reinterpreted. Speaking of the tiger image of the Dian culture, the most famous is of course the Warring States "Cow Tiger Copper Case" unearthed in Lijiashan, Jiangchuan, and the main structure of the instrument is a "sealed cow" with a giant horn ridge.
It uses the four legs of the "sealed cow" as its foot, and "hollows out" the back of the cow to make it a lower curved disc shape for the sacrifice. The ox's tail climbs a tiger, biting the ox's tail, the front paws clasp the edge of the case, the stoop is drooping, and the hind legs are standing on the ox legs. On the two horizontal stalls before and after the two horizontal stalls, a slightly smaller standing bull crosses the belly of the big bull, with a unique shape and exquisite craftsmanship.
The Niuhu copper case is one of the iconic artifacts of Yunnan bronze culture and is famous all over the world.
In the Kingdom of Yunnan, the tiger was the king of the hundred beasts and a symbol of authority; the ox was a sign of wealth and life.
Tiger eating cattle is not only a true reflection of the relationship between real-world carnivores and herbivores, but also contains the Yunnan people's knowledge and understanding of the ultimate proposition of life, "death".
The calf steps out from under the belly of the big cow, which is not explained as "cow calf protection", but rather represents "new life", a metabolism of life.
The Niuhu Copper Case uses "tiger eating cattle" to express "death" and "calf" to interpret "new life", skillfully expressing the Yunnan people's desire for wealth, life and wind and rain, livestock reproduction, and Guotai and Min'an.
It is a celebration of life, traveling through more than two thousand years of history, repeating the cycle and endless life.
(Written by Fan Haitao)
