Briefing on the excavation of the Warring States cast bronze craftsman tomb in the northern suburbs of Xi'an
Shaanxi Institute of Archaeology
In December 1999, the Shaanxi Institute of Archaeology excavated a tomb of the late Warring States period (No. 99SXLM34) in conjunction with the capital construction of Xi'an Lebaishi Food Co., Ltd. in Beikang Village, a northern suburb of Xi'an (Figure 1), and unearthed a number of artifacts with high historical and artistic value, such as cast copper pottery molds, pottery, bronzeware, ironware, lacquerware, and stone tools. Among them, the excavation of 25 pottery molds for casting Ordos-style bronze plaques and other artifact components is an important harvest of this excavation. The excavations are briefed below.
A tomb shape system and burial style burial utensils
This tomb is a vertical cave tomb with an alcove, the opening of the tomb is 1.7 meters from the surface, 5.1 meters deep, and it is a K-square with a large outsole. The tomb is filled with five-flowered soil, and the upper part of the soil is rammed to beat its upper mouth length of 4 and width 2.7, and the lower mouth is 2.5 meters long and 1.3 meters wide. The tomb is wider than the burial chamber, which is 3 meters long and 1.04 meters wide. There is an alcove at the front of the north wall of the burial chamber, which is 0.84 wide, 0.65 high and 0.52 meters deep. Tomb direction 90. , for the positive east-west direction, the burial chamber is in the east. The upper part of the burial chamber was broken by the burial chamber of a Han Dynasty tomb (99SXLM33), but fortunately the human skeleton and burial artifacts at the bottom of the tomb were not injured, nor were they stolen. The burial tools are wooden single coffins, which have decayed. The coffin is 2.2 meters long, 0.8 meters wide at the front end and 0.65 meters wide at the rear end. Buried inside, with the right side of the body flexed limbs buried, the head to the west, the skeleton is decayed, adult male, age unknown (Figures 2, 3).
2. Burial utensils
This tomb is very rich in burial utensils, including 41 pottery molds, pottery, bronzes, iron, stone tools, lacquerware, etc. Among them, the pottery is placed in the alcove, the copper seal, copper ring, copper seat lacquerware, iron carving knife, etc. are placed in front of the main head of the tomb in the coffin, and the cast copper molds, orthoping stones and other utensils are placed on both sides of the tomb owner's body and under the feet. Other than that. In the right corner of the entrance to the burial chamber are several decaying animal bones.
1. 25 pieces of ceramic mold. It is a master mold for casting bronze plaques and other artifacts. Clay, there are two kinds of red pottery and gray pottery. Due to the difference in the temperature during firing and baking noodles, some molds have a bluish-gray or gray-black surface.
1 character pattern (99SXLM34:28). Diamond-shaped, carved patterns, are decorative pieces on leather belts or other utensils. Clay red pottery with a gray-black surface. The baseplate is unusually diamond-shaped. Side length 6 to 7 cm. There are 4 protruding spikes on it. The bottom plate is thin on the left and thick on the right, and the bottom is uneven, with 6 deep finger press marks. The pattern is a transverse diamond shape, with two wheat grain-like rope patterns surrounding the diamond pattern, and there are 2 people. One of them, the one on the right, occupies the main position of the whole picture, a middle-aged woman, with a headscarf with two streamers wrapped around her head, smiling and amiable. Wearing a round neck narrow sleeved shirt and a pleated long skirt underneath, he hugged the person on the left. The man on the left seems to be a boy who has not yet taken off, wearing tight clothes and pants, sitting on the ground, with his left leg extended forward, his right arm bent to his chest, his left arm reaching down to support the ground, his body leaning against his mother's chest, and a playing hairball on the side of his leg. The layout of the whole pattern is clearly divided, and the expressions of the characters are naturally rich (Figures 4 and 9).
Animal ornamental plaque mold 4 pieces. It is made of different shapes and patterns. The bottom plate is handmade, the thickness is uneven, and some of the backs are uneven.
A, 1 piece of horse pattern brand mold (99SXLM34:21). Rectangular, a mold with a brass buckle. The base plate is 9.4 cm long, 7 cm wide and 2-2.5 cm thick. There is a small rectangular groove in the upper, lower and middle left sides, and a thinner layer of grass mud on the back. The pattern is 7.8 cm long and 5.6 cm wide. Clay red pottery with a gray surface. The pattern is bas-relief, consisting of a galloping horse with its forelimbs bent inwards, its hind limbs turned upwards, its hind hooves joined by the horse's mane, the horse's tail bent downwards, the upper frame with an "S" shape connected to the beak-like decoration, and the border decorated with a wheat ear-like rope pattern (Figure 5, 1 O:1).
B. Double sheep pattern brand mold 1 piece (99SXLM34:22):. Vertical rectangle, bifurcated in the middle to both sides, seems to be a decorative part on a crossbow machine. Clay red pottery with a gray surface. The base plate is an irregular rectangle with a fork in the middle, 7.7 to 7.9 long, 6.2 to 6.7 cm wide, and 1.4 cm thick. There is a small rectangular groove on each side of the baseplate and to the left of the middle fork. The motif is bas-relief, 6.4 cm long and 4.7 cm wide. It has a triangular layout with 2 running sheep symmetrically distributed within two opposite triangles. The sheep has thick chair horns bent into a circle on its head, its mouth open, its front legs bent inward, and one of its hind legs straight backwards and one turned upwards. The border is decorated with a wheat ear-like rope pattern (Fig. 6, 10: 2).
C, 1 piece of double horse pattern decoration mold (99SXLM34:15), is a decorative piece composed of 2 top connected triangles. The base plate as a whole is an irregular rectangle, with a split in the middle below, a raised "human" shaped cast on the top, and a small rectangular groove on each side. The base plate is 8.6-8.8 cm long, 6.7 to 7.1 cm wide and 1.3-1.5 cm thick. The bottom is accompanied by a layer of grass mud 0.6 to 1.4 cm thick, red pottery. The pattern is bas-relief, clay red pottery, the surface is red and yellow, due to wear, some of the patterns are slightly blurred The pattern is isosceles triangle, symmetrical left and right, independent and corresponding to each other. The pattern is a pair of horses, with a horse head in the middle and a horse body on each side, and the artistic concept is unique. The horse's legs are bent and flipped, as if running (Figure 7, 1 O: 3).
D. Eagle Tiger Fighting Pattern 1 piece (99SXLM34:35). It is an irregular oval shape with a broken lower right corner, but the pattern is complete, and it should be a decoration on some kind of artifact. The base plate is 5.2 cm long and 4.2 cm wide, 1.0.5-0.6 cm long. There are also grass mud marks on the back of the baseplate. The pattern is an oval layout, high relief, clay red pottery, and the surface is gray and black. Length 4.1, width of about 3 cm: the theme of the eagle with an outstretched wing fights two tigers: the eagle spreads its wings, its eyes are wide open, and its neck is extended and its mouth is clamped on the tiger's body, while the eagle's wings are bitten by the two tigers. Above the tiger's head are two bird-headed snake-headed monsters that bend to both sides. The whole pattern layout is compact, the composition is symmetrical, the carving is very fine, and the eagle and tiger image is realistic (Figure 8, 1 O:4).
10 pieces of foam trim molds. Clay red pottery, there are 2 kinds of round and oval shapes.
A. 1 round bubble mold (99SXLM34:32). The baseplate is oval in shape that is not very regular. It is 4.5 cm long, 4 cm wide and 1.1-1.2 cm thick. There are 3 symmetrical small square grooves on it, and there are rectangular gates at the ends. The diameter of the bubble decoration is 2.4, and the middle thickness is 0.9 cm. The pattern is carved and divided into two circles. The first circle is surrounded by a rope-like trim in the center in a sunflower shape, and the second circle is also surrounded by rope-like trim, and the pattern is blurred due to the more severe wear and tear (Fig. 11:1).
B. Oval foam trim mold group 1 (9 pieces) (99SXLM 34:34). The shape is the same, and when excavated, it is inverted under a rectangular ceramic bottom plate, arranged in a turtle shape. According to on-site observation, the bubble decoration mold was originally attached to the ceramic bottom plate, so the bubble decoration mold should be a combined bubble decoration mold. The baseplate is mutilated. Length 12.8, width 7.2, thickness 2.6 cm. The bubble molding is oval in shape, the head is slightly pointed, the bottom is flat, and the surface is bulging and plain. It is 3.1 cm long, 2.1 cm wide and 1 cm thick in the middle (Ed. 11:2).
10 device modules. Clay red pottery and clay gray pottery, molded, can be divided into carriage and horse ware, utensils accessories and single pieces of utensils.
A. 5 pieces of carriage and horse ware.
1 car book mold (99SXLM34:17). Clay red pottery. Trumpet-shaped, solid, straight at the end, engraved with a cross-cross line and a small round hole in the center. The apricot body has a round hoop, no jurisdiction hole and jurisdiction. Length 5, diameter 6.4 cm (Figure 12, 18:1). 1 piece of heng final die (99SXLM34; 29). Clay grey pottery, cylindrical, with four prismatic hoops at the top and a thin deep hole in the center of the end. The ribbed part is slightly mutilated. Length 11.6, diameter 3.2 cm (Fig. 13, 18:2) 0
1 cap mold (99SXLM34:16). Clay red pottery. The upper end resembles a vase, flared mouth, corset neck, bulging abdomen, with eight edges. The body is cylindrical, with a small circular hole formed after the hook is shed in the upper part, and two thin concave chord lines at the lower end. Length 9.9, apex diameter 2.8, lower end diameter 2 cm (Figure 14, 18:3)
1 stick trim die (99SXLM34:19). Clay red pottery. Cylindrical, slightly thinner at the upper end, with a middle core exposed in the top fragment. The addition of iron core to the ceramic mold should be used to strengthen the mold. Length 10, bottom end diameter 1.5 cm (Figure 18:4).
1 axle die (99SXLM34:31). Clay red pottery. Cylindrical, solid, with 3 wide convex ridges equally spaced on it, and 2 small triangular grooves carved at one end. Length 10, diameter 1.4 cm (Figure 15, 18:5).
B. Device module 4 pieces. All clay red pottery.
1 toroidal die (99SXLM34:27). The base plate is scoop-shaped with a ring on it, with 3 symmetrical rectangular slots around the baseplate and rectangular gates at the scoop handle. Length 6, bottom plate diameter 5.2, thickness 0.6-0.75, ring diameter 3.7 cm (Figure 16, 19:1).
1 piece of crossbow suspension knife die (99SXLM34:20). It is knife-shaped, flattened, semi-circular at the upper end, and has a perforation. Aperture 0.55 cm. A snap edge protrudes from the inside of the hole, and the underside becomes elongated. Judging from the symmetrical cracks in the two sides of the ceramic mold, the mold was once broken into three sections, and after being repaired by embedding iron bars, it is still in use. It is 10.2 cm long and 0.8 cm thick (Figures 17 and 19:2).
Dingzu mould 1 piece (99SXLM34:24). The beast is hoof-shaped, slightly crippled, and the inside is straight. Pass height 7.4 cm (Figure 19:3).
1 piece of quill shaper die (99SXLM34:18). Semi-oval in shape, flat on top, curved outer drum below, with handle marks remaining in the middle of one side. Length 9, width 6, maximum thickness 1.6 cm (Figure 19:4).
C. Goose foot lamp (seat) mold 1 piece (99SXLM34:23, 30): clay red pottery. The lamp tray is mutilated and the handle and base are disconnected. The lamp handle and the lamp holder contain a thin iron rod. The lamp holder consists of two layers of foot pedals and goose toes. The foot pedals are rounded in front of and behind, and the second layer is slightly smaller than the bottom layer, forming a single one. The legs and toes of the goose are finely carved and realistic. The residual height is 14, the length is 12.6, and the width is 11 cm (Fig. 2O).
2. 6 pieces of pottery. All placed in the niche, clay gray pottery, basically well preserved (Fig. 22).
Ding 1 piece (99SXIN34:5). Low body shape, lid with breastped, attached ears, deep abdomen, flat bottom, three animals hoof-shaped feet, all toes are mutilated. There is a folded edge in the middle of the abdomen, plain surface. The residual height is 11.1 and the abdominal diameter is 17.4 cm (Fig. 21:1).
Box 1 piece (99SXLM34:1) 0 lid is shorter, circle foot catcher, box body mouth, deep abdomen, circle foot. There is a folded edge in the middle of the abdomen, plain surface. The height is 11.5, the abdominal diameter is 17, and the bottom diameter is 8.2 cm (Fig. 2-:2).
Pot 1 piece (99SXLM34:2) 0 with lid, extravagant mouth, round lip, thin neck, broad shoulders, upper folded abdomen, lower abdomen oblique adduction, bottom concave. Plain noodles. The height is 22.8, the abdominal diameter is 19.5, the bottom diameter is 8.8, and the wall thickness is 0.6-0.8 cm (Fig. 21:3).
Can 1 piece (99SXLM34:3) 0 straight mouth, square lip, broad slanted shoulders, abdominal oblique adduction, flat bottom. The epaulette is pressed for several weeks, and the upper abdomen has a convex string pattern for five weeks, and it is decorated with vertical string patterns. Height 32, caliber 23, abdominal diameter 44.8, bottom diameter 21, wall thickness 0.8 to 1.2 cm (Figure 21: 4).
One pot (99SXLM34:6) □ buckled to the can (99SXLM34:3) when unearthed and can be used as a can lid. Mouth, broad rim, pointed round lip, straight upper abdomen, lower abdomen folded inward, circle foot. The upper abdomen is decorated with tile ribs for two weeks. Height 11.6, caliber 28, abdominal depth 11, bottom diameter 13.6 cm (Fig. 21: 5) 0
1 piece (99SXLM34:4). Small mouth extravagant, flat edge, pointed lip, short neck, broad shoulders, oblique adduction, flat bottom. The shoulders are pressed several times, the shoulder and abdomen are combined with a folding edge and a poke dot for a week, and the upper part of the abdomen is decorated with vertical string patterns. The shoulder is engraved with 2 characters (Fig. 23). Pass height 34.4, caliber 8, abdominal diameter 40.8, bottom diameter 17.6, wall thickness 0.8-1 cm (Figure 21:6).
3. 3 pieces of bronze.
Hook 1 piece (99SXLM34:13). Hook remnants. Mushroom-shaped buttons with a thinner body. Decorated with a high-relief sheep's head. There are two large semicircular curved corners on it. It is 4.4 cm long and 2.2 cm high (Figure 24, 26:1).
Ring (bracelet) 1 piece (99SXLM34:7). Broken. It is a thin strip with an oval profile. The maximum diameter is 5.5, and the ring thickness is 0.3 to 0.35 cm (Figure 26:2).
Seal 1 piece (99SXLM34:9) 0 minted. Bridge-shaped button, nearly square. The seal is in yin, which is a "cang" character, and the border has a border of 1.7 high, 0.6 button height, and 1.4 cm long and 1.3 cm wide (Figure 25, 26:3).
4. Iron rust is more serious, beaten.
Clip 1 piece (99SXLM34:10). Partially mutilated. It is made of an iron bar with the tip of the head bent upwards. Length 30, width 2, thickness 2 cm (Fig. 27:1).
Chisel 1 piece (99SXLM34:12). Severe rust. Long strips, oblique blades, traces of decaying wood on the handle. The remnant is 12 cm long, 1.6 cm wide and 1 cm thick (Pic 27:2).
1 knife (99SXLM34:11). Only one paragraph remains. Flattened, single-sided edge. The length of the stump is 9.4, the width is 4, and the back of the knife is 1 cm thick (Fig. 27:3).
5. Stone tools
2 pieces of stone. Natural fine purple sand stone. 1 complete and 1 mutilated. It is made with deep wear marks on it. Specimen 99SXLM34: 25 lute-shaped, one large and one small, the surface is relatively flat, there are two deep abrasion marks, and the back is uneven. Length 10.1, width 4.7, thickness 1.8 cm (Figure 28:1; Triple O)
1 stone tool (99SXLM34:26). Limestone. Flaky and mutilated. The surface is rough and uneven. The residue is 7.2 cm long, 5 cm wide and 1.4 cm thick (Fig. 28:2).
6. Lacquerware
1 piece (99SXLM34:8). Bamboo and wood tires: the body has decayed, only the copper buttons on the top cover, copper and copper seats remain: the buttons are "S" shaped, 3 pieces. The gilt hole is circular in shape, allowing only one index finger to pass through, and the upper part of the ring protrudes backwards flat with a cocked tail. The seat is round, hollow, and has three animal hoof-shaped feet. It is about 15.4 cm high, 12.8 cm in diameter, and 1.4 cm tall (Fig. 29).
3. Conclusion
From the perspective of the tomb shape system, the width of the tomb shaft is greater than the width of the tomb, and the niches are opened in the tomb chamber, and this tomb type is commonly found in the Qin tombs of the late Warring States period in Guanzhong"From the perspective of the combination of excavated pottery and the shape of the utensils, with ding, box, pot, pot, pot, pot as the combination, there is no common hyun in the early Western Han Dynasty. Ding, pot, pot, etc. have typical characteristics of late Warring States artifacts. Among them, Ding is similar to xianyang Tarpo Qin Tomb Aa II type pottery ding, the pot is similar to the Longxian Dianzi Qin Tomb M257:3J type clay pot and the Tarpo Qin Tomb Aa II type pottery pot, the pot is similar to the Tarpo Qin Tomb A II large-mouth pot, the Miao is similar to the M223:1 pottery and the Tarpo Qin Tomb D-type pottery in the Dianzi Qin Tomb, and the pot is similar to the M217:2A fl V curved belly pot in the Dianzi Qin Tomb. The era of these tombs in the Dianzi Qin Tomb is from the late Warring States period to the Qin Dynasty called the Talpo Qin Tomb Aa II type pottery ding, Aa II type clay pot, A II type large-mouth pot, II type pottery pottery era for the late Warring States period called in addition, from the excavation of the Ordos style bronze cultural characteristics of the decorative plate pattern theme style, the horse pattern plate and the Siberian excavation of the horse pattern on the same pattern so that its era should be basically the same. The era of Siberian horse pattern bronze medals was from the late Warring States period to the early Western Han Dynasty, but from the perspective of the border decoration of the pattern, its wheat grain rope pattern should be a popular decorative style in the late Warring States period. In addition, the animal bite fighting pattern represented by the excavated eagle and tiger fighting pattern is also the most popular pattern on the Ordos-style bronze plaque in the late Warring States period. Combining the above points, the age of the tomb should be in the late Warring States period.
The tomb owner is a sideways flexion burial, which is a common burial style for the Tombs of the Qin people in Guanzhong. The pottery and lacquerware of the martyrdom are common artifacts in the qin tombs of the late Warring States period in the Guanzhong region, so the clan of the owner of the tomb should be Han. In addition, the tomb is relatively rich with burial utensils, in addition to the general living utensils, there are a large number of cast copper pottery molds, tools and seals, indicating that the owner of the tomb should be a copper casting craftsman with a certain identity.
The artifacts such as cast copper pottery molds and other artifacts excavated from the tomb in the Ordos bronze culture style were found for the first time in Shaanxi and rare in the country, providing valuable physical materials for us to study the Ordos bronze culture, copper casting technology, ethnic cultural exchanges and archaeology in the Warring States period. The pattern of the excavated figure ornamental plaque is not found in the bibliography; the pattern of the double sheep pattern, the double horse pattern and the eagle and tiger fighting pattern are also different from the bronze plaque patterns of the same theme that have been found before. The pottery plaque molds unearthed in this excavation enrich their content and have important reference value for the study of the theme style and the characteristics of the era of Ordos-style bronze plaque patterns.
Excavation: Yue Lianjian, Wang Jiyuan, Lei Lizhi, Liu Feng
Drawing: Lei Lizhi
Photo: Yue Lianjian Zhang Minghui
Author: Yue Lianjian