The ancients worshipped jade very much, not only regarded jade as a divine object, but also used it as a certain form of instrument to suppress evil. This kind of divine artifact made of jade was very popular during the Qin to Wei and Jin dynasties. Its varieties mainly include Jade Gang 卯, Jade Yan 卯, Jade Weng Zhong, Jade Ward Off Evil and so on.
Yugang 卯 and Yan 卯, referred to as double 卯, are newly produced jade varieties in the Two Han Dynasties. The shape system is the same, all are rectangular columnar, about inches long, there are holes, there are inscriptions on all four sides, generally 8 characters on each side, a total of 32 words on all four sides, according to the inscription is divided into "Gang 卯" and "Yan 卯".
Eastern Han Dynasty Yugang 卯, Yan 卯
The content of the inscription is a text of disgust, which is used to drive away epidemics and ward off evil spirits, which is consistent with the use of the "Shuowen" to call shuangjiao "to chase away the spirits". The vast majority are made of high-grade white jade or green jade in Xinjiang Hotan and other real estate. It is reported that the production and use of shuangdi, except for Wang Mang's usurpation of power (923 AD), was explicitly banned for avoiding the surname of Liu, the Han Emperor, and was used in both the Han Dynasty, especially between the middle and late Western Han Dynasty and the Eastern Han Dynasty.
The vast majority of the people who see it are heirlooms, and the only ones unearthed are the Eastern Han Tombs of Fenghuangtai in Bozhou City, Anhui Province, where a pair of Yugang and Yan 卯 were found. Similarities are also found in museums and private collectors everywhere, and some appear to be imitations or forgeries of the Ming and Qing dynasties.
In the literature of the Han Dynasty, there are often records of warding off evil spirits and tianlu, and calling them divine beasts. However, what the form of these divine beasts was not very clear in the past. In recent decades, jade artifacts to ward off evil spirits have often been found in Han and Wei tombs and sites. that. Among the most famous are two excavated near the tomb of the Western Han Emperor in Shaanxi Province, and one excavated from the Tomb of the Eastern Han Dynasty in Baoji City, Shaanxi Province. In addition, in some museums and private collectors, there are also a number of early excavations of heirlooms.
Han portrait stone on the exorcism of evil
The two excavations near the Tomb of the Emperor of the Western Han Dynasty are the earliest of the excavations known so far. In this period, jade to ward off evil spirits, all are round carvings, shaped like teeth and teeth, there are one or two horns on the brain, some horns are also forked, the abdomen has two wings, four claws, long tail hanging on the ground, or walking upright with its head held high, or lying down, shaped like a beast such as a lion and tiger.
Western Han jade to ward off evil spirits
It is worth pointing out that according to the literature, there is a difference between warding off evil spirits and tianlu. The one with one horn is called Tianlu, and the one with two horns is called to ward off evil spirits. Nowadays, people are generally referred to as warding off evil spirits and using less tianlu. This kind of divine beast has been produced since the beginning of the Han Dynasty and to this day, and its name has also changed continuously, some are called foreign beasts, and some are called Luduan. The use of jade to ward off evil spirits, as the name suggests, is to help people identify good and evil and remove evil.
The Eastern Han Dynasty warded off evil-shaped jade bottoms
Weng Zhong is an ancient personal name, but the early texts of his person are unknown. After the Tang Dynasty, especially the Ming Dynasty, the writings were more comprehensive and systematic.
Judging from the accounts, Weng Zhong's surname was Ruan, a native of Annam, a general of the Qin Dynasty, who had made great military achievements because of his bravery and good fighting against the Xiongnu, and the Xiongnu people were terrified when they heard of his name. Therefore, the Qin people worshiped it as a god and worshipped it very much.
After his death, Qin Shi Huang remembered his bravery and immortal deeds, and ordered the craftsmen to cast a bronze statue of Weng Zhong standing in front of the palace gate to commemorate his majesty and people. During the Han Dynasty, the yanqin people used the jade as Weng Zhong as an ornament, and also used his merits to suppress and defeat evil.
Yu Weng Zhong has seen many excavated items so far. One of them was excavated in the 1950s at the Tomb of Yaogou Han in Luoyang, Henan Province; Others were excavated in the 1980s at the tomb of Ganquan Han in Hanjiang, Jiangsu Province, and the tomb of King Zhao Ofe of Nanyue in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province.
Eastern Han Dynasty Yu Weng Zhong
Among them, several pieces excavated from the tomb of the King of Nanyue are the earliest ones seen today, and one of the most typical pieces from the Eastern Han Tomb in Ganquan, Jiangsu Province. In addition, there are many similar excavations, but some of them are imitations of the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Judging from the excavated and reliable heirloom Jade Weng Zhong, the jade Weng Zhong at that time was simple in form, half-standing, shaped like a bun without a crown, decorating the eyes, nose and mouth of the face with a single line of yin pattern, and a male elderly figure standing on the arch of the hand, all of which had perforations for wearing.
It is worth mentioning that in the Han Dynasty jade humanoid instruments, in addition to Weng Zhong, other forms of jade humanoid instruments are still seen. For example, the jade excavated from Liu Sheng's tomb is a few sitting people, and a horseback jade person unearthed near the Han Tomb. In addition, a jade screen excavated from the tomb of Liu Chang in the Eastern Han Dynasty also has the statues of the Eastern Prince and the Western Queen Mother made by people. Although these are isolated examples, they show that the Han Dynasty used human figures and patterns to imitate jade, which has its diversity.
The Eastern Han Dynasty carved the jade seat screen of the Eastern Prince and the Western Queen's Mother
For more knowledge of jade identification, click Yang Zhenhua's "Ancient Jade Identification Series Tutorial" below.