The biggest problem of Xia Dynasty archaeology is that it cannot find the text, but not finding it does not mean that it did not exist. It is likely that people at that time wanted to record things in the form of knotted ropes or carved on things that were easy to carve, such as dirt, leaves, book covers, animal skins, etc. These things are easy to decay, and the fact that they are not found in the dust does not mean that they have not existed. Otherwise, the oracle bone, and even the Jinwen that began at the end of the Shang Dynasty, could not have been so mature. When human beings are mature enough to carve words on carriers that are not easy to decay, on animal bones and bronzes, words are preserved.
Baoji has the reputation of the land of bronzes, which is the birthplace of the Zhou, the Shang Dynasty, especially the Zhou Dynasty bronzes unearthed a lot, and more famous, Li Gui, wall plate, He Zun and so on, all with very important inscriptions.
The first part of the National Museum's "Zhaozi China – Bronzes and Golden Essences Unearthed in Baoji" exhibits bronzes from the late Shang and early Zhou dynasties, on which only one or two characters of the clan emblem are cast. The clan emblem is the symbol of the tribe, and they will choose their own knowledge of the world, such as themselves, natural things or utensils used as the symbol of their own clan.
These bronzes are cast with artifact images, they are written words. But in turn, we can see through the text what the ancient ancestors used in their daily lives, and what shape or style those artifacts were.
In the golden text, the word "Zhong" is a hieroglyph, like the shape of a flagpole with a ribbon. The towering flagpole and the fluttering flag constitute the word "zhong". The oracle bone is commonly used as an example of "standing in the middle, dead wind", which means to erect a flag with a "middle" to determine the direction of the wind.
Early Western Zhou Dynasty.
The "Shee" is the clan emblem, which resembles a bow and arrow shooting at a tree, perhaps related to the clan's good shooting ability or some kind of shooting custom.
Xie Father Xin Zhen Early Western Zhou Dynasty.
The Ge people were an influential clan in the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, and from the early Shang Dynasty to the Spring and Autumn Period, bronzes with cast Ge clan emblems were found in Henan, Shaanxi, Shandong, Hubei and other places.
Early Western Zhou Dynasty.
Horse-drawn carriages during the Shang and Zhou Dynasties were mainly used for three purposes: daily riding, battlefields, and field hunting. The use of cars as a clan emblem may indicate that the clan is good at building cars or generally uses car building as a profession.
Che Ge Early Spring and Autumn.
This is the composite clan emblem of Gan and Ran. The "dry" glyph is derived from the image of a shield with feather ornaments.
The Ran were one of the most influential clans during the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. About 300 bronzes with the emblem of the ethnic group have been found throughout the country.
Gan Ranjue In the early Western Zhou Dynasty.
Ge is one of the common bronze weapons of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, and the Ge in ancient texts is taken from the shape of this weapon. The glyphs of the Ge characters in the inscriptions of this clan emblem are more obvious, and the pictographic features are more obvious.
Goding Early Western Zhou.
Very clear one "go".
This is a composite clan emblem, perhaps from the marriage and fusion of the two clans, or from the differentiation of the same matriarch. The image of the word "single" in the inscription of the clan emblem resembles a tool such as a bird catcher.
◇Early Western Zhou Dynasty.
This is a composite family emblem. The second word in the inscription is a tool such as an axe, which may be related to the profession and specialty of the clan.
A ding in the middle of the Western Zhou Dynasty.
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