◎ Science and Technology Daily reporter He Liang
The tiger runs thousands of miles to stay majestic
Rabbit into Wanjia to report auspicious
Fight between the stars
The chronology has come to the Year of the Rabbit
In China's long-standing traditional culture
The rabbit of the zodiac has always occupied an important place
Artifacts related to rabbits
It is also often endowed with rich connotations and meanings
Pinning on humanity
The yearning and pursuit of a happy and beautiful life
Let's take a look
Those rabbit related babes
Rewrite the history of birds and beasts on the mainland
Witness the rabbit's mysterious connection to the moon
A rare symbol intertwined with Eastern and Western cultures
Rare things are precious to achieve the honorable status of the white rabbit
Western Zhou Bronze Rabbit Venerable
The ancient rabbit-related artifacts on the continent can be described as colorful.
"Because the rabbit is gentle and cute, it means auspicious and lucky, and it is loved by people." Xiao Fang, a professor at the School of Sociology at Beijing Normal University and director of the China Festival Culture Research Center of the Chinese Folk Artists Association, told Science and Technology Daily that ornamental rabbit-shaped artifacts made of terracotta existed as early as the Neolithic period.
In addition to pleasing to the eye, the artifact must also be practical. Among the treasures of Chinese cultural relics, bronze is a typical representative, among which there are many bronzes cast in animal form, such as the famous "Four Rams Fangzun", the exquisite and realistic "Wrong Gold and Silver Cloud Pattern Bronze Rhinoceros Venerable", the magnificent and magical Sanxingdui "Bronze Divine Beast"... But are rabbit-shaped bronzes rare?
In 1992, Chinese archaeologists excavated three Western Zhou bronze rabbit statues from Tomb No. 8 (M8), a Jin Marquis cemetery in Beizhao Village, Quwo County, Shanxi. These "bronze rabbits" are very good-looking, lying on the ground, their forelimbs on the ground, their hind legs bent, and their ears close to their bodies, as if they are about to jump forward. Du Xiangsong, a researcher at the Palace Museum, once commented: "The three rabbit-shaped statues unearthed in M8 are the first time that they have appeared in birds and beasts. This also means that the unearthing of these three rabbit-shaped bronze statues rewrites the history of no rabbit-shaped statues in Chinese bronze birds and beasts.
Western Zhou Bronze Rabbit Venerable. Image source: Visual China
It is worth mentioning that the most common forms of Zun are round, extravagant, circle-footed, and luxurious, and birds and beasts are their special forms. The shape of the rabbit Zun makes people see that the bronzes of the Western Zhou Dynasty not only shoulder the mission of ritual weapons, but also develop in the direction of simplicity and practicality. The rabbit's canopy and trumpet-shaped opening reflect the exquisite design concept of the craftsmen of the Zhou Dynasty, and if the rabbit's belly is not empty, it cannot reflect its use value, which also shows that the bronze at this time has become both practical and decorative.
Mawangdui Han tomb painting
The most famous legend about rabbits is the "Jade Rabbit" in "Chang'e Rushing to the Moon". It is said that Chang'e was depressed in the Guanghan Palace, but fortunately had a jade rabbit with her. "The saying that the jade rabbit is Chang'e's pet is deeply ingrained in the minds of modern people, but in the understanding of the ancients, the status of the rabbit is much more important." Xiao Fang told the Science and Technology Daily reporter that the ancients not only regarded the jade rabbit as a representative of the moon, but also thought that the rabbits in the moon were doing, such as "jade rabbit pounding medicine".
Xiao Fang said that the animal figure in the moon, "Gu Shu", was actually a toad at the beginning, and the toad was called "moon spirit" (that is, the moon's monster). Later, Wang Yi, a scholar of the Eastern Han Dynasty, believed that "Gu Jiao" referred to rabbits looking back because the ancients observed the shadows formed by craters on the moon and imagined them as a lively little rabbit. Since then, as totemic worship has evolved, the two statements have merged into one.
T-shaped painting of Mawangdui No. 1 Han tomb. Image source: Hunan Museum
In the 70s of the 20th century, two Western Han period paintings unearthed from the Mawangdui Han tomb in Changsha depict the sun and yangwu (a bird representing the sun), the crescent, toads and rabbits. In many early Han dynasty tomb murals and portrait stones, it is common to see the image of a rabbit running in the middle of the moon. For example, on the mural on the top ridge of the shallow well-headed tomb in the western suburbs of Luoyang, which belongs to the middle of the Western Han Dynasty, the full moon held by Nuwa is depicted as a toad and a running rabbit.
Dunhuang "Three Rabbits with Common Ears" algae well diagram
Regarding the worship of rabbit images, there is also a history of exchanges and mutual learning between the East and the West.
Mogao Grottoes, located in Dunhuang at the western end of the Hexi Corridor, were excavated and built in the pre-Qin Sixteen Kingdoms period and lasted for 1,000 years, and are a treasure trove of multicultural art formed by the convergence and integration of Eastern and Western cultures.
The "Three Rabbits with Common Ears" algae well diagram found in the Mogao Grottoes is the most mysterious of the algae well diagram. In human history, there is rarely a pattern that can appear in different times and spaces and different cultures, and the "Three Rabbits Common Ear Map" has appeared on the cultural relics related to Buddhism, Christianity and Islamic culture. If combed according to time, the "Three Rabbits Common Ear Map" of the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes is undoubtedly the earliest known example.
"Three rabbits with common ears" algae well diagram. Image source: Visual China
In the Mogao Grottoes Cave 407 (Sui Dynasty), three rabbits are connected end-to-end in a circular and flexible posture, and they seem to run in the same direction and follow each other, as if to symbolize auspicious perfection and endless life.
According to statistics, there are at least 21 "three rabbits with common ears" in the Mogao Grottoes, of which more than 90% appear in the algae well at the top of the cave. The patterns are elegant and beautifully painted, some of which were created in the Sui Dynasty, some of which were created in the Tang Dynasty, the most famous of which is the "Three Rabbits with Common Ears" Mojing in Cave 407 of the Mogao Grottoes.
Jade rabbit at the ruins of Lingjiatan Ruins
Hares live in grasslands and wilderness, and out of the need for survival, hares have evolved a protective color - gray-yellow fur. However, occasionally one or two hares suffer from "albinism" and grow snow-white fur. After the ancients saw it, they thought it was very magical, so they took the white rabbit as a symbol of auspiciousness.
The Spring and Autumn Period's "Liji Yuzao" recorded: "The Son of Heaven wore white jade and Xuan group silk, Gonghou Peishan Xuan jade and Zhu group silk, Dafu Pei Shui Cang jade and pure group silk..." The ancients believed that the white and flawless white rabbit, like beautiful jade, was not only a sign of auspiciousness, but also a symbol of longevity and power. It is not difficult to understand that the ancients offered rabbit-shaped jade to emperors and even gods.
Jade rabbit at the ruins of Lingjiatan Ruins. Image source: @Anhui Museum
The jade rabbit unearthed from Tomb 10 of the Lingjiatan Site in Hanshan County, Anhui Province belongs to the Neolithic period about 5,300 years ago and is the earliest known rabbit-shaped jade. The jade rabbit is carved into a galloping posture, the jade material is thinly flakes, the jade is gray-white, and the surface is shiny. The rabbit raises its head, its tail is rolled up, its ears are close to its back, and its hind feet are raised. The lower part of the rabbit is sharpened into long strips with concave edges, and 4 round holes of different sizes are drilled on the concave edges.
Xiao Fang told the Science and Technology Daily reporter that the jade rabbit used for sacrificial ceremonies reflects another reason why the ancients loved rabbits: the worship of reproduction. Rabbits are regarded as symbols of fertility because of their strong fertility, ancient social productivity is low, people are the decisive factor of productivity, the number of people determines the rise and fall of clans and tribes, so human beings worship all life phenomena with vigorous fertility.
Bibliography:
[1] LI Yufen. Jin Hou Great Tomb Rabbit Zun Small Discussion[J]. Heritage World, 2011(01): 16-18.
[2] Si Wenwen, Wang Yansong. Analysis of the wells of the three rabbits in Dunhuang Grottoes[J]. China Nationalities Expo, 2015(12): 229-230.
[3] ZHAO Yanlin. Image interpretation of "Three Rabbit Mo Well" in Mogao Grottoes[J]. Journal of Northwest University for Nationalities (Philosophy and Social Sciences), 2017(05): 125-131.
[4] LI Jingjie, QI Qingyuan, LI Qiuhong. New Discoveries and Thoughts on the Co-Ear Image of Three Rabbits[J]. Grand View of Fine Arts, 2022(02): 40-41.
[5] Jian Zilong, Ren Zhanjun, Gao Yuqi. Rabbit culture in ancient China[J]. China Rabbit Breeding, 2014(03): 38-46.
Source: Science and Technology Daily Synthesis
Editor: Wang Chengyue
Reviewed: Julie
Final judge: Wang Tingting