At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, a girl was born in the village of Zhuji, Zhejiang, and she was Xi Shi, one of the four beauties of ancient China.
Eighteen years later, when Fan Li, the minister of the State of Yue, searched for beauty, he found Xi Shi and gave her to Wu Wang Fuchai.
According to the historical records, Wu WangFuchai indulged in the beauty of Xi Shi and abandoned the imperial government, which eventually led to the demise of the Wu state.
Literati and inkers always like to blame women for their mistakes, and we don't know if this is really the case.
But Wu Wangfu's love for Xi Shi was real. Where do I know the truth 2500 years ago? A cultural relic can prove that this is the "Wu Wang Fu Cha Luo" collected in the Shanghai Museum.
Wu Wangfu Cha Cup, the whole body is decorated by dragon patterns, indicating that it is of noble origin, the top of the cup has a lid, the lid has a tie, set on one end of the chain, and the other end is connected with the small line on the beam.
The most prominent feature on the whole artifact is the curved lift beam of the cup, which adopts the shape of a dragon, and the inside of the lift beam is hollow, which is formed by countless small dragons entangled with each other, which is called the through-carved dragon pattern.
Wu Wangfu Chalu showed superb casting skills, which can be called the best bronze casting in late Spring and Autumn China.
On the shoulder of the cup is engraved a 12-character inscription: "Wu WangFu Sent Wu Jin cast the woman's instrument Ji".
The inscription is to the effect that Wu Wangfu sent a bronze presented to him by the princes to cast this cup for a woman.
During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, bronze was only a luxury that nobles could enjoy, and the inscription on bronze was of extraordinary significance, one to commemorate a major event, one to worship ancestors, and one to show identity.
However, this bronze vessel did not leave a surname, only the word "woman", which shows that this woman must not be of aristocratic origin, because in ancient times, surname and surname were different meanings. Nobles have surnames and surnames, while commoners have surnames and no surnames.
Looking at history can be deeply loved by Wu Wangfuchai, and use Jijin to create artifacts to show that the only woman he truly loves is Xi Shi.
How did the "keepsake of love" 2,500 years ago be included in the Shanghai Museum?
In late 1996, Ma Chengyuan, former curator of the Shanghai Museum, saw a bronze vessel in Hong Kong's heritage market. As an expert in bronze ware, Ma Chengyuan saw at a glance that this cup belonged to the southern ware of the late Spring and Autumn Period, not newly excavated, but circulated in the world for many years. He picked it up and looked closely, and the inscription on His shoulder concluded that it was something that Wu Wangfu had sent. Without much scrutiny, I decided to buy it.
The price of HK$1.2 million is difficult to raise for a while. He had to agree with the boss on a 15-day deadline and pay again.
Ten days have passed, and the money has not yet been secured. The whole museum was in a hurry. At this moment, Mr. Ho Hung-cheung, a wealthy Hong Kong businessman and philanthropist, called and asked Director Ma if he could buy it.
Director Ma replied: "We can't afford it, of course you can buy it, you can put it here after you buy it, this thing is not interesting for personal custody, it is best displayed in the museum." ”
Haha, what could be more obvious than that?
Finally, Mr. He Hongzhang was also unequivocal, and after buying it, he donated it to the Shanghai Museum, and said: "Such an important cultural relic, it is better to stay in Shanghai, so that King Wu will settle in Shanghai." ”
Wu Wang Fu Cha Lu not only witnessed the love between Fu Cha and Xi Shi 2500 years ago, but also reflected the contribution of social caring people to the development of shanghai museums.
At present, this cultural relic is placed in the shanghai museum donated cultural relics "Sheng Shi Fanghua" special exhibition, after the epidemic, please be sure to go to see ~