In 2000, a Warring States Chu tomb in Jiangling, Hubei Province, was discovered and named the Tianxing Guan Chu Tomb. Jiangling was once the capital of the Chu state ,yǐng) and historically, many precious national treasures and relics have been excavated here, such as the Yue King's Gou Jian Sword, which shocked the world.
As the saying goes, the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment. When the hopeful archaeologists carefully opened the burial chamber, they regrettably saw that the entire burial chamber was soaked in water, and the water flow formed by thousands of years of seepage had already washed the artifacts in the tomb to pieces and caused serious corrosion.
One of the cultural relics that looks very chic is particularly interesting, and although it has been completely disfigured when it was found, it can barely see the wooden structure and depict the image of two birds and beasts.
In the face of the highly damaged artifact, the cultural relics restoration experts did not give up, and after careful comparison, research, cleaning and restoration, it took more than nine years to finally rescue this cultural relics that were on the verge of extinction. It was named "Warring States Tiger Bird Lacquer Wooden Drum".
Let's take a look at what it looks like after it's been repaired.
At a glance, the bird-shaped drumstick is the most eye-catching, which is composed of two phoenix birds. The phoenix is symmetrical in shape, stretching its wings as if it were about to fly, and it seems to be resting on the ground. Their eyes are shining brightly, interpreting the fairy spirit that a phoenix should have.
The craftsmen of the Chu Kingdom perfectly combined the birds in reality with the mythical and legendary birds to create such a vivid and lively shape that people will never forget.
The Central Plains culture advocates dragons, and the Chu culture advocates phoenix birds, it is said that the ancestor of the Chu people is Zhu Rong, who is himself a fire god and a thunder god, and the incarnation is a phoenix bird. In addition, the Chu people yearn for freedom, and the phoenix bird is a symbol of romantic freedom.
In the Tianxingguan No. 2 Tomb, along with the Tiger Bird Lacquer Wooden Frame Drum, there is also a lacquer feather man. It has a bird's tail, standing on the head of a phoenix, and the bottom is carried by a golden toad. Yuren is a god in the sky, the phoenix bird swims proudly between heaven and earth, and the golden toad is the spirit of the moon, and the three gods are one, turning into the illusion of the Chu people who travel proudly for nine days.
Let's go back to this drum stand. Looking down, two vivid and realistic Crouching Tigers form the drum stand, and they hold their heads high, as if defending the drum heart. Tigers are often accompanied by Chu people, and chu countries have survived and developed in the struggle with beasts of prey. The King of the Hundred Beasts on the drum shows the Chu people's respect for both mortal enemies and friends.
Between the two phoenixes, the drum hangs. It belongs to a kind of hanging drum, and the tomb of Marquis Yi of Suizhou in Hubei Province has also unearthed similar cultural relics, which can be used as an instrument appreciated in the court, and can also play the battle song in the army and inspire the soldiers to charge forward.
In the "Zuo Zhuan", it is said: "The great affairs of the country are only worship and rong", which means that the most important things in a country are two things, sacrifice and war. The fragile wooden structure is not suitable for motivating soldiers on the battlefield of fighting, but as a ceremonial instrument for sacrifice, this hanging drum is perfectly suitable.
Qu Yuan said at the beginning of his "Departure from Sorrow": "Emperor Gaoyang's Miao descendants are Xi", the Chu people remembered their Central Plains blood in such a proud way, and the south at that time was a barbaric land in the eyes of the Central Plains people.
The discrimination in the Central Plains did not affect the mood of the proud Chu people, but carried forward and inherited the Chu culture with the self-esteem of this unique origin.
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