Extra!
China's bronze size ranking has been updated!
Source: Photo.com
Not long ago, the important progress work conference of the major project "Wuwangdun" of "Archaeological China" was held in Huainan City, Anhui Province. It was at this meeting that the archaeological experts announced:
In this large-scale high-level tomb of the Chu State, which has been scientifically excavated so far, the largest and most complex structure so far, a bronze tripod unearthed has refreshed the size record of the Chu culture unearthed in China so far.
The big tripod placed at the south end of the east room 1 Photo source/People's Daily
The measurement results show that the diameter of this tripod has reached 88.3 centimeters and the height is about 1.2 meters, which is larger than the treasure of the Anhui Museum and the most eye-catching unearthed cultural relics of Li Sangudui, the Casting Ke Dading (also known as Chu Dading).
Although it is still impossible to challenge the dominance of the stepmother Wuding, the discovery of this Chu cultural tripod still makes people extremely excited.
You must know that the tripod is the important weapon of the country, and the casting of each bronze is hard-won, and it is a symbol of supreme power.
Especially as early as when the tripod was still a cooking utensil, the size of the tripod already hinted at the difference in identity and status. According to historical records, when the ancient nobles cooked, they divided different types of meat into several tripods to cook, and ate them directly after cooking. Later, the requirements in the "Zhou Li": the nine tripods of the Son of Heaven, the seven tripods of the princes, the five tripods of the doctors, and the three tripods of the scholars, were developed from this.
It is precisely because of this that the size and weight of the tripod also have a different meaning. So much so that even now, people will still talk about the size of the tripod.
Da Yu Ding, Da Ke Ding Photo source/National Exhibition
It's just that we all know that China's largest and heaviest tripod is the stepmother Wuding, what about the second one? And the third?
This time, let's take a look at the top 10 tripods in China from this perspective.
Advance notice: Spring and Autumn "Wang Ziwu" Ding, with a weight of about 100 kilograms, unfortunately fell off the list, ranking eleventh. Photo source/Music Club
In order to prevent the existence of a later new cast, such as the Yongle Bell (46 tons), from killing the competition, we have limited the list of artifacts to around the Bronze Age, that is, to the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.
At the same time, due to the limited sources of information and the dispersion of cultural relics, only the bronzes that we can see and collected by state-owned museums are selected, excluding overseas collections, private collections, and bronzes that have not yet been excavated.
PS: It is important to note that the weight of a bronze is not the only criterion for measuring its value, but its artistic value, historical significance, craftsmanship and other factors are equally important. Therefore, the ranking of this ranking does not represent a value judgment
01/ Stepmother Wuding
Era: Late Shang period, about 14th ~ 11th century BC
Weight: 832.84 kg
Dimensions: height 133 cm, mouth length 112 cm, mouth width 79.2 cm
Collection unit: National Museum of China
Stepmother Wu Ding, needless to say China's first bronze tripod, both in weight and size, is stronger than other tripods by more than one level.
It is also called Simu Wu Ding, Simu Wu Dafang Ding, unearthed in 1939 in Anyang City, Henan Province, military attache village, is the heaviest known bronze in ancient China.
It is huge, majestic and majestic, and exquisitely crafted; The body of the tripod is cast with delicate dragon patterns and gluttonous patterns, which increases the sense of majesty and solemnity of the cultural relics themselves.
The cicada pattern cast on the foot, the pattern expresses the cicada body, and the lines are clear. The inner wall of the abdomen is also cast with the three characters of "Houmu Wu", which not only shows the significance of its commemoration as the temple number of the mother of the king of Shang, but also has a different calligraphy charm.
The inscription pattern of the inner wall of the abdomen of the stepmother Wuding
The bronze square tripod body and four legs of the "Houmu E" are cast as a whole, and the tripod lug is cast after the tripod body is cast. To cast this tripod, at least one ton of metal raw material is required.
In the production of such large-scale artifacts, there are a series of complex technical problems in the process of shaping clay molds, reproducing pottery models, and pouring into the models. The casting of the bronze tripod of "Houmu Wu" fully shows that the bronze casting in the late Shang Dynasty was not only large-scale, but also well-organized and meticulously divided, which was enough to represent the highly developed bronze culture of the Shang Dynasty.
Shang Dynasty: "Houmu Wu" bronze square tripod
Source: The official website of the National Museum of China
02/ Wudun tomb unearthed Dading
Era: Late Warring States Period (Chu State)
Weight: Not yet announced
Dimensions: height 120 cm, diameter 88 cm
Collection unit: still at the excavation site
At least in terms of size, the bronze tripod of the Wudun tomb, which is destined to break the record of the great tripod of Chu culture, is still "lying" at the excavation site, and there is no more relevant information.
But what is certain is that there are many bronzes in the same "room" as the tripod. Such a well-preserved and relatively complete set of bronzes is enough to provide systematic archaeological data for the study of the high-level mausoleum system of the Chu State in the late Warring States period, as well as the history and culture of the Chu State after its eastward migration.
03/Casting Ke Dading
Era: Late Warring States Period (Chu State)
Weight: Approximately 400 kg
Dimensions: height 113 cm, diameter 87 cm
Collection unit: Anhui Museum
Casting Ke Dading, who ranks third with a difference of a few centimeters, is actually a heavyweight in people's hearts. It can even be said that in the state that the weight of the newly unearthed Dading is still unknown, it is difficult to say who is second and who is third.
It is also known as Chu Dading or Dazhu Keding, which was unearthed in 1933 in the tomb of King Chu of Zhujiaji Li San Gudui in Shou County, Anhui Province.
The shape of the big tripod is a round three-legged tripod, the abdomen is slightly bulging, and the three tripod feet are in the shape of animal hooves, and are decorated with embossed swirl patterns. The upper side of the neck is attached with two ears, and the upper part of the ears protrudes slightly outward.
There is an inscription at the beginning of the 12-character inscription "Casting Guest" on the flat edge of Dingkou, which refers to the craftsmen invited from other vassal states, indicating that the craftsmen of the Warring States Period were no longer appendages of the slave owners during the slave society period, and their identities were relatively free.
The tripod is quite majestic, and in the design of the modeling, it pursues the perfect combination of strength and momentum everywhere, all showing the ambition of its owner.
Photo source/Anhui Provincial Museum
04/ Shangzi Longding
Era: Late Shang Dynasty
Weight: 230 kg
Dimensions: height 103 cm, width 80 cm, belly depth 43 cm
Collection unit: National Museum of China
Shangzi Longding, because the inner wall of the vessel near the edge of the mouth is cast with the inscription "Zilong" and got its name.
And this "dragon" character can be said to be the earliest "dragon" character in the bronze round tripod inscription found so far. In addition to the image of the dragon in the inscription, the depiction of the dragon can also be found in the ornamentation on the upper abdomen of the sub-dragon ding.
And the inscription "Zilong" is also an important annotation to history. We can speculate that the owner of Zilongding may have been a prince in the last years of the Shang Dynasty, or a patriarchal aristocrat who served as a secretary and a powerful patriarch in the Shang Dynasty.
Having such a huge tripod is not only a symbol of power, but also an important symbol of the internal hierarchy of the Shang royal family in the Shang Dynasty, which had strict etiquette.
It is rumored that the Zilong Ding Department was unearthed in Huixian County, Henan Province in the 20s of the 20th century, and then flowed into Japan, and then moved to Hong Kong, and was collected back to China by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage in April 2006, and is now stored in the National Museum of China.
It preserves the complete condition, the shape is majestic, the body is full, the body is huge, it is the largest piece of all the Shang Dynasty bronze tripods that have been found, as the treasure in the bronze of the Shang Dynasty in China, the Zilong Ding and the largest square tripod - Simu Wuding reflect each other, a round side, can be called the peerless double in the bronze national treasure.
05/ Chunhua Dading
Era: Western Zhou Dynasty
Weight: 226 kg
Dimensions: height 122 cm, diameter 83 cm
Collection unit: Xianyang Cultural Relics Protection Center
Chunhua Dading, also known as the Ox Head Kui Dragon Pattern Ding, is the largest in the Western Zhou Dynasty bronzes seen so far, and it is also the largest in the round tripod.
It was found in a Western Zhou tomb group, but when it was discovered, the tomb had already been stolen, and there was no inscription and family emblem on the body, making its origin very mysterious. Even, according to its weight and size, some people speculate that it is the tripod that King Qin Wu held back then, of course, there is no actual basis.
Photo source/Xianyang Planning Museum
The shape of Chunhua Dading is magnificent, deep and dignified, and the ornamentation is wonderful, and its shape basically maintains the style of the late Shang Dynasty with a wide and thick tire wall, a magnificent shape, and a dignified and magnificent style.
It has a square lip and two standing ears on it, and the abdominal wall is straight, corresponding to the tripod. The middle of the tripod abdomen is decorated with three ring-shaped ears, the ring-eared ears are in the shape of a standing beast, and the three-legged is columnar-footed. The outside of the lugs is decorated with dragons facing each other, all of which are filled with fine thunder patterns. There are six dragons opposite to each other under the edge of the mouth, and there is a short ridge in the middle of the interval.
Two opposite dragons are cast on the outside of the ears. The upper part of the leg is embossed with a beast face, and the monster has curved horns and protrusions, huge ears and claws, and a row of mouths that seem to be devoured. The main body is decorated with thunder patterns on the outside, and the upper part of the foot is hollow, and three circular sockets with a diameter of about 17 cm are formed at the bottom.
For this reason, Chunhua Dading is an important material for studying the distribution of Zhou people and bronze casting technology in the early Western Zhou Dynasty.
06/ Eared bull's head and hooves and feet wok
Era: Spring and Autumn
Weight: 220 kg
Dimensions: height 93 cm, diameter 102 cm, ear spacing 129 cm
Collection unit: Shanxi Bronze Museum
The name is extra-long, and it has a size and historical background compared to its name.
Source: Shanxi Cultural Relics
It comes from the tomb of Zhao Qing, the tomb of Zhao Qing, which has the highest level, the largest scale, the richest funerary goods and the most complete information of the Jin Dynasty in the Spring and Autumn Period seen so far. And this big tripod is undoubtedly the first bronze tripod of the Spring and Autumn Period.
Round mouth, deep belly, there are three stout animal hoof-shaped feet, the heel is decorated with the animal face pattern of high relief, the abdomen is decorated with the dragon, the phoenix and the bull's head double body cockroach pattern, the shape is huge, the shape is simple and vigorous, giving people a solemn and solemn sense of beauty.
07/ Da Keding
Era: Late Western Zhou Dynasty
Weight: 201.5 kg
Dimensions: height 93.1 cm, diameter 75.6 cm, abdominal diameter 74.9 cm, abdominal depth 43 cm
Collection unit: Shanghai Museum
Da Keding, also known as "Shanfu Keding". It was unearthed in Ren Village, Famen Temple, Fufeng County, Shaanxi Province during the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty, and was donated to the Shanghai Museum by Ms. Pan Dayu in 1951.
Together with the Da Yu Ding in the National Museum of China and the Mao Gong Ding in the National Palace Museum in Taipei, it is known as the "Three Treasures of Bronze Ware in the Late Qing Dynasty", and it is also one of the two largest bronze tripods with inscriptions found so far.
Photo source/Shanghai Museum
Da Keding is huge, steady and solemn, with a luxurious belly, typical shape, the neck is decorated with deformed animal face patterns, the abdomen is decorated with wavy patterns, the feet are decorated with relief gluttonous patterns, and the bronze decoration and sculpture art are perfectly integrated.
The inscription is 290 characters, the layout is uniform, the strokes are rounded, the structure is harmonious, it is the representative work of the bronze inscription of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and it is of great value for the study of the officials, etiquette and land system of the Western Zhou Dynasty.
Photo source/Shanghai Museum
08 / Dabon Ding
Era: Western Zhou Dynasty
Weight: 153.5 kg
Dimensions: height 101.9 cm, diameter 77.8 cm
Collection unit: National Museum of China
Da Yu Ding, also known as the Twenty-three Ritual Yu Ding, its importance does not need to be said, it has been mentioned when introducing Da Ke Ding earlier.
Photo source/Shanghai Museum
Compared with Da Ke Ding, the wall of the Da Yu Ding is thicker, the ears are slightly skimmed, folded, the mouth is closed, the abdomen is transversely wide, the wall is obliquely stretched outward, the curvature near the outer sole of the foot is small, it is a hanging abdomen, and the lower bearing is three hooves.
The vessel is based on the cloud and thunder pattern, and the neck is decorated with a ribbon-like gluttonous pattern. The upper end of the foot is decorated with a relief gluttonous pattern, and the lower line is lined with two convex string patterns (also called "ridge line"), which is the typical style of large-scale and medium-sized tripods in the early Western Zhou Dynasty, which is majestic and dignified.
And the importance of the big bowl is more reflected in its inscriptions.
Photo source/Shanghai Museum
The inscription on the abdominal wall of the Da Yu Ding is 19 lines and 291 characters, which records the order of King Kang in Zongzhou. Because it truly reflects the social conditions of the time, it has extremely high historical value.
09/ Simu Xin Ding
Era: Shang
Weight: 128 kg
Dimensions: height 80.1 cm, mouth length 64 cm, width 48 cm
Collection unit: Yinxu Museum
The bronzes from Anyang Yinxu are on the list again! This time, it is the "Simu Xinding" that is closely related to the well-known female god of war "women's good".
Statue of a good woman
In 1976, Mr. Zheng Zhenxiang organized archaeological excavation of the tomb of the woman, and unearthed 1928 pieces of various cultural relics at that time, including a pair of Simu Xinding, the two are similar in size, almost only in weight, one is 128 kilograms, and the other is 117 kilograms. The one we see today is 128 kilograms, and the other is now in the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
"Simu Xin" copper tripod. Photo source/Anyang Three-Stack Boyou Culture Technology Co., Ltd
The tripod has a rectangular mouth, a short edge of the square lip, erect ears, a straight abdomen with a flat bottom, and a columnar hollow foot. The four sides of the mouth and the corners are decorated with animal face patterns, the thunder pattern is the bottom, the waist is decorated with milk nails, and the upper part of the foot is eye-catching. The inner wall of the tripod is engraved with the inscription "Simu Xin".
Today's Simu Xinding is the treasure of the Yinxu Museum and an indispensable part of exploring the culture of Yin Shang.
10/ Niu Fangding
Era: Shang
Weight: 110.4 kg
Dimensions: 73.3 cm high, 64.1 cm long and 38 cm wide
Collection unit: Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica, Taipei
For Niu Fangding, its excavation itself has a bit of a miracle color.
Before Niu Ding was unearthed, the original purpose of the archaeologists excavation was to find the oracle bone inscription, and later found the Yin Dynasty cemetery in the northwest gang, through three excavations, in the 1004 tomb that had gone through the catastrophe, it was found that the relics in the tomb had already been "looted".
Photo source/Longnan City Museum
But the person in charge found that the south wall of the tomb still retains about one meter of rammed earth and no one has touched it, and it is here that two pieces of Dafang copper tripod miraculously appeared, one is Niu Fangding, and the other is Lu Fangding.
The unearthed cow square lip, folded edge, standing ears, deep inner abdomen, steep and straight walls, flat bottom, there is an inscription "cow". There are four columns under the abdomen, which are hollow inside. The four corners of the big tripod and the center of the four sides are decorated with ribs. It is decorated with a striped belt along the lower neck, and the snout of the dragon is prominent, resembling a crocodile. The abdomen is decorated with a bull's head pattern on all sides, and the pattern is a relief type protruding table, which is very spectacular, and can be called the essence of bronze ware and a rare treasure.
Edited and organized|Art Tourism Culture