See the lively Xia Shang Zhou in "Zhaozi China"

On July 30th, the audience visited the exhibition hall of "Zhaozi China - Henan Xia Shang Wednesday Civilization Exhibition". Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ren Long

The "Zhaozi China - Henan Xia Shang Wednesday Generation Civilization Exhibition", which is being held at the Shanghai Museum, jointly organized by the cultural and tourism departments and museum institutions of Henan Province and Shanghai Municipality, has been very popular since its launch, and the enthusiasm of the citizens to watch the exhibition seems to be higher than the rare hot summer weather.

"Zhaozi China" is a bronze inscription that appears in the Western Zhou bronze He Zun, which means to build a palace and settle down in this place "China". The "China" of the Xia Shang Dynasty is today's Central Plains, which is an important birthplace of Chinese civilization and the core area of the Xia Shang Dynasty civilization.

There are many archaeological sites and cultural relics in the Central Plains, and the exquisite and valuable degree of many artifacts is always unexpected and amazing. Among them, I think that bronze and jade can especially reflect the uniqueness and maturity of the early Chinese civilization, and are unique among the major civilizations in the early human period. In addition, many pottery, wood, lacquerware, textiles, etc., are also very impressive.

When visiting the museum, you don't have to be respectful and sincere, let alone regard cultural relics as cold and lofty artifacts. You know, many of the things called "cultural relics" today are the life or leisure tools of the ancients, which are closely related to their food, clothing, shelter and transportation, reflecting their aesthetics and tastes. We may wish to enjoy them with the mood of "divine intercourse" with the ancients. In the exhibition "House China", you can see a vibrant "animal world", a lively Xia Shang Zhou, and see the way Chinese lively and lively with nature.

Livestock 4,000 years ago

Xia's "Vast Yu Traces" is the first hall of the exhibition, and a "pig's head" is placed in the middle of the exhibition hall! Its official name is "Pig's Head Shaped Pottery Cover". This is a cultural relic from the early Xia Dynasty (21st century BC - 18th century BC), 18 cm high and 23 cm caliber, excavated in 2000 at the xinmi xinzhong site in Henan. Rough estimates, about 4,000 years ago.

This "pig's head" can be described as a clever portrait: First of all, its size and size are almost indistinguishable from the real pig's head; Secondly, it is a gray pottery product, the surface is dark, and the color is no different from a black pig; Moreover, its appearance, whether it is eyes, ears, nose or mouth, is highly realistic. This is a chubby pig's head, showing its "pampering"; The pig's mouth is facing the sky, as if it is roaring, and it has a point of untamedness - perhaps, the pig at that time was not long after domestication, and it has not lost all its wildness?

This artifact is not a toy, but a pottery lid. Pottery may be used to hold hot rice and hot soup, what should I do if the lid is hot? This, the ancients also thought of, they "made" the bristle part into the handle of the lid. Although this part has been damaged, we can still appreciate the ingenuity of the makers.

Pigs are one of the earliest domesticated domestic animals by humans, and Chinese have feelings for pigs. The ancient name of the pig is "Feng", giving "Feng" a roof, that is, "home".

In the Book of Poetry, a collection of poems covering the three dynasties of xia and shang and mainly weekly, we can also see the figure of pigs. For example, in "Feng Feng July", it is said that hunting, "talking privately, offering the pig to the public", "the pig" is a small wild boar about one year old, and the "pig" is a big wild boar about three years old. And in the "Zhao Nan Yi Yu", it is written, "Pi Zhuo is ye, one hair and five pigs", "Pi Zhuo is peng, one hair and five pigs". To "translate" in modern vernacular, it goes something like this: in that dense reed bush, five sows (jacks) were shot in one fell swoop; In that lush basalt bush, he shot five piglets (豵) in one fell swoop - hunter (驺虞) Hello!

The domestication of animals is an important symbol of human civilization, especially agricultural civilization. Ancient Chinese successfully domesticated many animals. In the "Book of Poetry, Wang Feng, Gentleman in Service", it is written: "Chickens perch in the womb, the sun and the sunset, sheep and cattle down", what a warm pastoral pastoral! Among the domestic animals, perhaps the most important are the pigs, cattle and sheep known as the "three animals". In the "Zhaozi China" exhibition, there are also many elements of cattle and sheep, and there are several jade cows alone:

——In the exhibition area of Zhou "Chengzhou Wangcheng", there is a jade cow-shaped color palette, which is an early cultural relic of the Western Zhou Dynasty, hidden in the Luoyang Museum, which is 3.5 cm high, 11 cm long and 5 cm wide. It was a reclining buffalo, curled up on all fours, with a large head, gentle eyes, and a very relaxed look, as if "bathing" in a pond in the shade of a summer tree. The cow's back is flattened with four holes in it. According to the staff of the Shanghai Museum, residual cinnabar red was found in one of the small holes. Judging from this, this is a color palette. Perhaps, the owner of the tomb used it to color paint; Or maybe he used it to paint beautiful people and beautiful flowers.

——In the exhibition area of Zhou's "Fengbang Jianguo", there is also a jade cow, which is slightly smaller than the color palette, and the form is quite similar. This jade cow is a piece of green jade throughout, the jade is delicate, and the turquoise is lovely. Interestingly, although this jade cow was excavated in the tomb of the State of Yu in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty, it was actually an artifact of the late Shang Dynasty. That is to say, people in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty have treasured it as a "cultural relic" that has been passed down for hundreds of years!

There are Qiankun in "Yu": there are elephants in Henan

After talking about the livestock in the exhibition, let's take a look at "Fauvism".

In the exhibition area of the Shang "Dayi Shangdu", you can see a white pottery elephant statue from the late Shang Dynasty, which is 8.8 cm high and 15.8 cm long, and is collected by the Xinxiang Museum. It is an elaborate elephant with its nose rolled up high, as if it were playing with water sprays after absorbing water; Under the nose, there are two long saber teeth, which look majestic; Four feet are stout, a posture that stands tall in the sky. The elephant is covered with ornaments, including phoenix patterns, dragon patterns and so on. Although its material is white pottery, its shape and ornamentation are deeply influenced by bronze ware of the same period. According to reports, Xiangzun was one of the wine ceremonial vessels used in the ritual sacrifices of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties.

When you see xiangzun, what is the first thing that comes to your mind? What I thought was: During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, the Chinese in the Yellow River Basin were very familiar with elephants? At that time, in Henan, would there be native wild elephants? Because in today's China, only in the southernmost part of Yunnan, there are wild elephants. Last year, Yunnan elephants also came to the "All the Way Elephant North" that attracted the attention of the whole people.

Henan once had elephants, which is very likely. Ge Jianxiong, a famous historical geographer and professor at Fudan University, believes that the historical Yellow River Basin was warmer and wetter. Elephants are recorded several times in the oracle bones, including the king hunting elephants; Bamboo is also mentioned in many places in the Book of Poetry, such as "Zhan Pi Qi'ao, Green Bamboo Qiqi" in the "WeiFeng Qi'ao"; What is more interesting is that the ancient name of Henan is "Yu", which means that humans hunt elephants with bamboo spears. Artifacts speak, and they prove from one side the changes in the Earth's climate.

Beasts of prey were both fearful and worshipful objects of the ancients. Chinese the most familiar beast should be the tiger. In the "House China" exhibition, you can find a lot of tigers:

——In the exhibition area of Shang "Dayi Shangdu", there is a small but kit-chic bone tiger, 5.2 cm long, 2.2 cm high and 1.0 cm thick. Don't look at this tiger small, it comes from the famous Anyang Xiaotun Merchant Woman's Good Tomb. She was the queen of Wuding, the King of Shang, and was said to be a female general. The Tomb of The Lady has unearthed many valuable treasures, including many lifelike carved animals.

Look at the bone tiger, with a big head, big ears, a curly tail, and four claws clenched, a fierce and cute look. It is carved from animal bones, with a beige appearance and a warm texture like jade; The body is inlaid with turquoise pieces, and the color combination is pleasing to the eye. Speaking of turquoise, I have to mention that the "treasure of the town hall" of this exhibition, the bronze plaque of the summer beast face, is inlaid with turquoise on the surface, exquisitely processed, and the silk is buckled, and it has been intact for thousands of years.

——In the exhibition area of Zhou's "Four-Sided Wing", there is a green jade tiger, 16.5 cm long and 3.8 cm high, collected by the Luoyang Museum. This piece of green jade itself is very special, the upper part is dark green, the lower part is light green, and the craftsmen skillfully use this material to make the dark green line from the tiger's ears to the hip, like a sharp arrow that is about to leave the string. You look at it, grinning wide-mouthed, sharp teeth Sensen; The crouching posture seems to be preparing for a swoop; The tail is curled, as if it is gathering strength.

Seeing this jade tiger, I couldn't help but think of the stone statue of Fuhu in front of the tomb of Hou Huo, the champion of the Western Han Dynasty, which looked like this jade tiger with a high degree of god. From the perspective of chronology, "Huo went to the sick tiger" is still the descendant of this jade tiger.

——In the exhibition area of Zhou's "Fengbang Jianguo", there is also a rare lacquered wood tiger, which is a cultural relic of the middle warring states period, 27 centimeters high, 52.5 centimeters long and 24.1 centimeters wide, excavated from the ruins of Yangcheng, the ancient capital of the Chu State in Nanyang, Henan. It is carved entirely from wood, first cut and shaped, and then carved into local details, all painted in black. The tiger's head is round, its limbs are stretched forward, and its hind limbs and hips are cocked, as if it is about to jump! It has square hollow slots at the waist, head, and hips, which should be a jack for placing objects such as tables.

It is said that this lacquered wood tiger is rare, first, because of the material, lacquerware and wood are easy to decay, and it is more difficult to preserve; The second reason is that it is a product of Chu culture and is very different from the typical Central Plains cultural style. During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the Chu State, located in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, was strong and powerful, and its sphere of influence was once close to the Yellow River Valley, and King Chu Zhuang, one of the "Five Hegemons of Spring and Autumn", even "conquered the Central Plains". As a result, the Chu people also brought Chu culture into the Central Plains, especially in the southern regions of the Central Plains such as Nanyang. Chu culture is dazzling, colorful and imaginative, which is fully reflected in cultural relics such as bronze, lacquerware, and silk fabrics. The Zenghou Yi chimes of the Hubei Provincial Museum and the Mawangdui Han Tomb of the Hunan Provincial Museum are the essence of Chu culture. In fact, along with this lacquered wood tiger, many cultural relics from the Nanyang region have a strong "Jingchu charm".

The Book of Poetry, Daya Han Yi, describes the fiefdom of a great nobleman as follows: "Kong Le Han Tu, Chuan Ze Zi, Bream Fufu, Lu Deer, Bear and Cat, Cat and Tiger." "There are fish in the water, deer in the mountains, bears and bears, bobcats and tigers... And there are some in the poems, and there are also in "Zhaozi China".

There are dragons and phoenixes, and the "divine beasts" are housed

After talking about the animals in reality, let's talk about the "divine beasts" in the exhibition - dragons and phoenixes.

Let's start with dragons. The dragon totem in Chinese culture originated very early, from the Stone Age to the Bronze Age, and it is reflected in the sites and cultural relics of various periods. In the "House China" exhibition, many bronzes are decorated with dragon patterns, and the animals attached to the utensils are also dragons. Among them, I found it —

In the exhibition area of Zhou's "Fengbang Jianguo", there is a bronze square book with turquoise diamond patterns in the middle of the Warring States period, which is 21.6 cm high and 30.8 cm wide. Jian, in fact, is a water tank, the calm water surface can illuminate the shadow of the person, so in ancient times there was a saying of "mirror jian". This jian is generally square, and its four walls have a small dragon on each side. The four claws of the little dragon grasped the wall of the bronze, and it extended its neck as if it were on the surface of the water inside the probe Zhang Wangjian, and the image was vivid and cute. What is even more ingenious is that these four small dragons are not pure ornaments, but the handles of the utensils, which are easy for people to lift.

There is also a late Spring and Autumn inlaid turquoise bronze sacred beast, which is the dragon's head, tiger's neck, tiger body, tiger's tail, and turtle's foot, and you can say that it is the "four different" of the divine beasts. And on its dragon head, the device that looks like a dragon's horn is actually six small dragons; On the back of the Divine Beast, stood a smaller Divine Beast; In the mouth of the little god beast, there was a snake-like dragon... Such a layered and complex device makes some viewers sigh that the ancients really spent a lot of time on useless and beautiful things; Some viewers said that this sacred beast has a very "rococo" art flavor, but in fact, western "rococo" art will not appear until thousands of years later.

One of the "dragons" I would like to introduce is a jade object - a snake-shaped jade pendant in the exhibition area of Zhou's "Fengbang Jianguo". Dragons are a collection of many animals, and the main torso of the dragon is derived from snakes. In the zodiac, we always call snakes small dragons. This small dragon is rounded and has a fairly rounded body; Its body color is between "xiaobai" and "xiaoqing", warm and transparent; The little dragon spits out snake letters, has three lines of scales on its body, and its tail curls inward. I think that only people with innocent hearts can immerse themselves in turning a piece of jade into a small dragon and turning the ordinary into magic.

After talking about dragons, let's talk about phoenixes. Second to none, it is the phoenix pattern square pot of the late Western Zhou Dynasty. The square pot is 47.8 cm high and has exquisite ornamentation around the body, and the most eye-catching thing is the phoenix ornament throughout the body. The body of the pot is divided into three layers from the neck to the abdomen, with four phoenix birds on each layer. These phoenix birds, with large heads, round and large eyes, large beaks, and more prominently, the crown of the phoenix, long and large. They are not like gorgeous, timid pheasants, but more like the "martial arts" falcon and even kunpeng!

In addition to this phoenix-patterned square pot, the exhibition also exhibits a number of exquisitely carved jade phoenixes. According to the staff, the phoenix is the "mascot" of the Zhou people. Indeed, it is written in the Book of Poetry, Daya Scroll, "The phoenix is in flight, and the phoenix is in flight, and it is also set to stop", "The phoenix is in flight, and the phoenix is in flight, and it is also in the sky", "The phoenix is singing, and it is in The High Gang." Sycamore is born, and the sun rises in the air. 菶菶萋萋, 雍雍喈喈". Singing and sighing, how much they love the phoenix. The morning sun rises, the phoenix is flying, such a scene, how not to be fascinating!

Look! Jade bear, jade deer, jade rabbit, jade cicada, jade swallow, jade eagle, jade parrot, duck-shaped clay pot, tiger head zun, beast head simu Xin Qi, female good owl (owl) zun... Cultural relics are never "dead", they are lively in front of our eyes. In "House China", you can see the biodiversity of this land of China, and you can see the symbiosis of human beings and all living beings! (Reporter Yang Jinzhi)

Source: Xinhua Daily Telegraph