Chapter 6 Chapter 6 Characteristics of Wadang from the Western Zhou Dynasty to the Warring States Period

A tile is a stoneware product produced in a brick and tile workshop to keep rainwater from entering the roof and to protect the rafters of the eaves.Wadang is not as strict and fine as daily pottery.Not crystal clear, not gorgeous, only rough gray and dark colors, but it can withstand the wind and rain.Chinese classical national architectural art has layers, turning points, and ups and downs.Every house and every courtyard wall has hundreds of rafter heads, and each rafter head has a tile inlaid on it.Simple shapes and elegant patterns are neatly arranged horizontally, and the whole building immediately adds a lot of artistic atmosphere.These tiles are like gray bead chains. Their neatness, ups and downs and turns are like notes in melodious music, exuding the fragrance of national art.

According to archaeological data, the earliest tiles in my country appeared in the Western Zhou Dynasty.A large palace complex in the early Western Zhou Dynasty was unearthed in Zhaochen Village, Famen Township, Fufeng County, Shaanxi Province.All these buildings have been tiled, and the tiles are semicircular, with specifications ranging from 16.5 to 21.5 centimeters in width.The decorative pattern is thick rope pattern, thin rope pattern and heavy ring pattern.At that time, the tile was still in its infancy, and people hadn't put much energy into beautifying it, but the simple lines already contained some kind of thought, simple and pure, with unique charm.

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, Chinese society accelerated its development process, and the situation of feudal lords competing for hegemony made all countries compete to build their capitals and palaces.The academic atmosphere of contention among a hundred schools of thought brought the development of culture and art into a new period.Since the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, the complex and mysterious things in bronze art have disappeared. People have a much deeper understanding of society, reality, and nature, and their observations are much more delicate.In the pursuit of grandeur and beauty in architecture, the production of tiles also changed accordingly.Warring States tiles are still dominated by half tiles, with sizes ranging from 14.5 to 18.5 centimeters.When forming, a frame is left, and the frame is surrounded by two protruding corrugated lines.Some tiles are decorated with deer and tree patterns. In the center is a tree with strong dry branches and colorful clouds. There are two deer on both sides.People, deer, and tree-patterned tiles, a tree in the center, a woman in a long skirt on the right, walking towards the tree, and a donkey on the left, as if there is an upside-down figure on its back, also walking towards the tree.There must be an interesting legend in it.There are also people, animals, and tiles with tree patterns. The person on the right is carrying a double-toothed tool, holding a weapon, and wearing a ring decoration on his head. On the left is a horse, with its neck stretched out and its head bowed, standing quietly. A big bird has just landed on the tree. The branches are both decorative and storytelling.Compared with the bronze art of Shang and Zhou Dynasties, the tiles at this time are not bloated or complicated, and they are refined and realistic, which shows that the tile art has entered a new period.

In the Spring and Autumn Period, bricks also appeared in firing building ceramic materials, and a small amount of rectangular bricks and square thin bricks were found in some ruins.There were many kinds of bricks in the Warring States Period.These bricks may not be wall bricks but floor tiles, but also molded square bricks and rectangular bricks.Rectangular hollow bricks more than one meter long are often unearthed in Warring States tombs, which are hard and beautiful.It is very bold to use it to pave the steps and steps of large buildings, or use it to replace firewood in the tomb to build coffin chambers.There are also patterned bricks and rectangular grooved bricks with a cross-section in the shape of "Ji", which may be used on the roof ridge.Bricks found in Xinzheng, Henan, can be used both for paving and as walls.A kind of railing brick was discovered in Yanxiadu, which is the earliest brick for railing buildings in my country.

Various bricks in the Warring States period have various patterns, such as parallel line pattern, square pattern, sun pattern, rice pattern, Yinshan pattern, and panchi pattern.Some are engraved with double animal patterns on both sides, and the beasts are crouching, bowing their heads and tails, and their postures are vivid. These patterns are mostly on the fence bricks. At the same time as pottery water pipes, pottery well circles are also produced.It has been used for a long time in northern my country.When archaeologists inspected various eras, they found that the craftsmanship of ceramic building materials has become more mature from generation to generation, all of which are the result of improvement and improvement on this basis, including the appearance of glazed tiles.