Archaeology is a meaningful task, and archaeologists have found several inconspicuous small jade pieces in the tombs of the Sui Dynasty. When experts study them, they agree that they are rare and good treasures, what exactly are they? What kind of historical secrets will these mysterious artifacts reveal? If you want to know, let Xiaobian reveal the secret for you.
In 1957, researchers at the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences discovered an ancient tomb in the Xi'an area, about 50 meters south of West Avenue outside Yuxiangmen in Xi'an. After protective excavations, the archaeological team carefully studied the gold and silverware, bronzes, porcelain, etc. in the tomb, and determined that the tomb was dated to the Sui and Tang dynasties.
What makes experts most pleased is that an epitaph has also been unearthed in the tomb, recording that the owner of the tomb is named Li Jingxun, the granddaughter of Yang Lihua, the princess of Leping of the Sui Dynasty, and was only nine years old when she died. When the experts opened the stone coffin, they found the skeleton of a child and determined that what the epitaph said was true.
When experts cleaned up the artifacts inside the coffin, several small jade pieces were found on the upper body of the skeleton. The jade piece is white and shiny, slightly raised in the middle of the front, the edge is thin, and there is a horizontal perforation in the middle of the back, and the hole is drilled obliquely from both ends to the center, and its shape makes people feel familiar.
After the experts passed on each other, it was difficult to determine its use for a while, and some experts believed that it was probably some kind of decoration of the ancients, or a necklace or pendant for the tomb owner's little girl. This claim was immediately opposed by other experts, because the number of jade pieces unearthed was not only one piece, and there were no traces of ropes connecting, so it was inferred that it could not be an item such as a pendant.
After the cultural relics in the tomb were cleaned up, the experts returned to the Archaeological Research Institute, and after intense discussion, the experts finally agreed that the clothes and costumes of the ancients were "tops and bottoms", and the clothes had to be tied with buttons, so these jade pieces were the jade buckles embedded in the clothes of ancient nobles.
In ancient mainland China, the history of the development of buttons can be traced back to 1800 years ago, and the earliest buttons were mainly made of original materials, including stone buckles, wooden buckles, shell buckles, etc. With the gradual increase of productivity, people were no longer satisfied with this simple shape of the buckle, so the disc buckle sewn with cloth appeared.
Like a handicraft, the clasp not only has the practical function of the button, but also plays a role in decorating the clothes. In the Sui and Tang dynasties, the shape of the button began to increase, gold, silver, jade, agate, jade, etc. can be made into buttons, this fashion has been spread to the Ming and Qing dynasties, not only did not have the slightest decline, but more and more favored by the nobility.
The ancients dressed gorgeously, and each dynasty had its own distinctive characteristics, so the buttons were constantly changing. The shape of the jade buckle unearthed in Li Jingxun's tomb seems to be no different from that of modern buttons, but it is very different in the way of eye punching.
The button hole above the jade buckle is not like the penetration of modern buttons, but the use of perforations that drill obliquely from both ends to the center, which can not only be better fixed to the clothes, but also play a role in concealing the threading.
Since the Han Dynasty, the ancients believed that jade was not only valuable, but also had the effect of warming the human body and preservative, so the nobles often made jade into accessories and wore it on their bodies. The several jade buckles found on the owner of the tomb are the symbols of his status and respect before his death, and are also considered to be "gods" who keep the flesh incorruptible, and it can even allow the owner of the tomb to get eternal life in another world.
The excavation of the jade buckle in Li Jingxun's tomb not only explains the superb skills of the jade making process in the Sui and Tang dynasties, but also shows the outstanding wisdom of the ancient laborers, and provides an important physical basis for future generations to study the historical and cultural development of the Sui and Tang dynasties.
Wen xiucai, editor-in-chief of Wenlan Hairun Studio, written by: Special history writer: Changshan Zhao Zi worm