Chapter 20 Section 5 The Great Development of Bronze Culture in Various Regions

During the Spring and Autumn Period, with the gradual application of iron tools and the rise of various vassal states, the economy and culture of each region developed by leaps and bounds. Regional bronze cultures with distinctive characteristics gradually formed, and the bronze wares of various countries also developed greatly.In addition to the bronzes of the Zhou royal family, the bronzes of Jin, Qi, Yan, Qin, Chu, Wu, Yue, Lu, Zheng, Song, Wei, Cai, Zeng, Xu, Jiang, Huang, Dan, and Du have been discovered. 〕, Deng, Xu, Chen, Cao, Teng, Zhu [zhu Zhu], Xue, Ju, Bu, Qi, Ji, Zhu, Yu, Guo, Su, Rui, (Xiyi) [xixi], Fei, Yu [ni Ni], Dai, Xi, Pan, Hu, Pi [pi batch] and other bronze wares from more than 40 countries.Due to the uneven economic development and differences in cultural customs of various countries, the bronze wares of various countries are also different.At present, we can roughly divide the cultures represented by bronze wares in various countries during the Spring and Autumn Period into six cultural areas, namely, the Jin cultural area represented by the Jin state in the Central Plains, the Qi cultural area represented by the Qi state in the east, and the Yan state in the north. The Yan culture area in the west, the Qin culture area represented by the Qin state in the west, the Chu culture area represented by the Chu state in the south, and the Wuyue culture area represented by the Wu state and the Yue state in the southeast.To be introduced below.

First, the Jin Cultural District.At the beginning of the Western Zhou Dynasty, King Cheng of Zhou enfeoffed his younger brother Shu Yu in the Tang Dynasty, which was later renamed Jin.After King Ping of Zhou moved to the east, Jin became an important pillar of the Zhou royal family, and gradually became stronger. When Jin Wengong defeated the Chu army in Chengpu and became the overlord.The Jin Cultural District includes the vast areas of Shanxi, Hebei, Henan and other provinces today. It is located in the Central Plains and has a developed economy, which was the most advanced at that time.The above-mentioned ruins of the copper casting handicraft workshop of the Jin Dynasty discovered in Houma, Shanxi fully represent the high level of the bronze smelting and casting industry of the Jin Culture.Bronze wares of the Jin Dynasty have solid and solid shapes. For example, most of the tripods have deep belly round (huan ring) bottoms, attached ears, hoof feet, and shallow round lids.The famous bronze wares of the state of Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period include Jinjiang (Jin Wenhou’s wife) tripod, Jin (Ding) Gong (upper laying down a dish), Zifei (Huyan) chime bells, 郘〔lu Lu〕(upper (left household right Ge ) Xiahei) bell and Zhao Mengjie pot, etc.For example, there are 16 chime bells in total, 8 of which are combined into a 132-character inscription. Wengong's battle of Chengpu and the meeting of practicing the soil are of great historical value.Another example is Zhao Mengjie pot, two pieces, which are said to have been unearthed in Huixian County, Henan Province.48.3 cm high.Round, wide mouth, narrow neck, bulging lower abdomen, short circle feet.There are two vertically carved animal-shaped ears on the neck, and the top of the cover is in the shape of lotus petals.The neck and abdomen are decorated with embossed patterns of panchi, animal face and 绹 [tao Tao] patterns.There are 19 characters of inscription cast on the outside of the cover, which records the meeting in Huangchi (now south of Fengqiu County, Henan Province) in the thirteenth year of Duke Ai of Lu (482 BC), where Duke Ding of Jin and King Fu Chai of Wu competed for leadership. It has important historical and artistic significance. value.In addition, after the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period, an artistic font emerged in the bronze inscriptions of the Jin Culture. The strokes are characterized by pointed heads, fat belly, and tadpole-like shapes, which are called tadpole patterns.It not only plays the role of note, but also has the function of art decoration.For example, it is said that the Zhijunzijian in Huixian County, Henan Province is 22.2 cm high and 43.5 cm in diameter. The six characters inscribed in the abdomen: "Wise Gentleman's Nongjian." It is tadpole script.According to research, Zhijunzi is Zhiyao, a senior official of Jin State in the late Spring and Autumn Period, who was destroyed by Han, Zhao, and Wei in 453 BC.

Second, Qi Cultural District.At the beginning of the Western Zhou Dynasty, King Wu of Zhou appointed Grand Duke Jiang to Qi, and his capital was in Yingqiu.During the Spring and Autumn Period, Duke Huan of Qi appointed Guan Zhong as Prime Minister to rectify the administration, military and taxation systems, making Qi strong and prosperous.He also put forward the slogan of "respecting the king and fighting the barbarians", united some countries to defeat the Beirong and Di people, and sent troops to inquire about Chu's crimes in Zhaoling (now Yancheng County, Henan Province), becoming the original overlord in the Spring and Autumn Period.The Qi cultural area mainly includes the present-day Shandong area.Its bronze ware also has its own characteristics, for example, Dun, which was developed from Gui, was first developed here in the mid-Spring and Autumn Period.For example, in the 19th year of Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty (AD 1893), the Qi Hou Dun unearthed in Yixian County, Hebei Province in the late Spring and Autumn Period or the early Warring States period is 17.5 cm high, with a neck and a deep abdomen. Button, self-inscribed as "Sandun", was a concubine made by the Marquis of Qi when he married his daughter in Yan.The tripod produced together has a flat cover with ears, which is also a characteristic of Qi culture bronzes.The inscriptions on the bronzes of the Qi culture are mostly rectangular, with neat rules and straight strokes, which are their characteristics.During the Spring and Autumn Period, the famous bronze wares in Qi State include Shuyi Bo, Shuyi Bell, (Su Ming) [ming Ming] Bo, Guocha (Fou Zhan) [dan Dan], Qi Hou Yu, Qi Hou Jian, Huanzi Mengjiang Huan , Gongsun Zao Hu and Guozi Ding, etc.Among them, in the fifth year of Xuanhe in the Northern Song Dynasty (1123 A.D.), the Shuyi pot was unearthed from the old city of Qi in Linzi, Shandong. The inscription is 491 characters long, and it records the historical events of 300 counties and 4,000 disciples in the Laidu area of ​​Shuyi given by Duke Ling of Qi. , has important historical value.Another example is the (Su Ming) Pie, which was unearthed next to the Houtu Temple in Ronghe, Shanxi Province in the ninth year of Tongzhi in the Qing Dynasty (AD 1870), and is now in the Chinese History Museum.It is 66 cm high and has a mouth length of 44 cm. It is tall and thick.The buttons are in the shape of two dragons biting beasts, and the seals and drums are decorated with cloud and thunder patterns.There are 174 characters of inscriptions cast, which record that Qi Hou gave Uncle Bao ((Su Ming)'s grandfather) 299 towns and the people of Huzhi are contemptuous, supplementing the omissions recorded in "Historical Records Guan Yan Family".

Third, Yan Cultural District.Yan State is a big country in the north, but there are very few records about Yan State in the literature of the Spring and Autumn Period, such as "Zuo Zhuan" and "Guo Yu".However, from 1972 to 1973, the silk book "Spring and Autumn Stories" unearthed from Mawangdui Tomb No. 3 in Changsha, Hunan Province contains records about the battle between Yan and Jin, which shows that Yan and the Central Plains still had a certain connection at that time.Therefore, the Yan State bronze wares discovered since 1949 have a great consistency with the bronze wares in the Central Plains, for example, the decoration is also dominated by panchi patterns.However, because Yan State is located in the north, it is far away from Chengzhou; therefore, many traditional features from the Western Zhou Dynasty have been preserved.For example, the upper part of the tripod's feet and the flat-folded part of the upper end of the tripod's ears are still mostly decorated with animal face patterns.However, the bronze wares of the Yan culture represented by the Yan state also have their own characteristics.For example, in the late Spring and Autumn Period, the patterns of personnel activities on the bronze wares of the Yan State were mostly hunting patterns, but not water and land attack patterns; and animal patterns and bird patterns were common.This may be related to the fact that Yan State is adjacent to Inner Mongolia and Northeast China, and was more influenced by the northern nomadic culture.The famous bronze wares in Yan State during the Spring and Autumn Period include the 杕 [didi]'s pot, which is 37.8 cm high.Round, wide mouth, long neck, bulging belly, ring feet, covered.There are two looped ears on the neck, tied with a chain, and connected with the button on the top of the cover.The neck and belly are decorated with three fine inlaid hunting patterns, separated by three convex string patterns.There are 41 characters of inscriptions engraved on the convex string pattern in the middle, which records that the Mu family defeated Xianyu. This pot is a treasure and has important historical and artistic value.

Fourth, Qin Cultural District.When the Western Zhou Dynasty fell, Duke Xiang of Qin sent troops to save the Zhou Dynasty; when King Ping of Zhou moved eastward, he enfeoffed the former land of the Western Zhou Dynasty to Qin, and the Qin State gradually developed.In the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period, Qin Mugong developed westward, "beneficiating the country in twenty, opening up the land for thousands of miles, and then dominating Xirong" ("Historical Records Biography of Li Si").However, due to the seclusion of Qin Dynasty in the west, its development was relatively slow, and its bronze ware was relatively rough, but there were many factors to preserve the traditional culture of the Western Zhou Dynasty.For example, the inscriptions on the bronze wares of the state of Qin directly inherited the scripture system of the late Western Zhou Dynasty, forming a regular style.In addition, the bronze wares of the Qin culture represented by the Qin State also have their own characteristics.For example, the bronze tripod in the early Spring and Autumn Period unearthed in Song Village, Huxian County, Shaanxi Province in 1974 has a shallow belly and thick hooves.Famous bronze wares of the state of Qin during the Spring and Autumn Period include the Qingong Bell and Qin Gongbo unearthed in 1978 from the Taigong Temple in Baoji, Shaanxi, and the Qin Gongzhong that has been recorded in the Song Dynasty, and the Qin Gonggui unearthed in 1923 in Southwest Township, Tianshui, Gansu.Among them, Qin Gonggui is now in the collection of China History Museum.It is 19.8 cm high and 18.5 cm in diameter.Round shape, slightly closed mouth, bulging belly, round feet, double animal ears without earrings, with a cover.Both the vessel and the cover are decorated with panchi patterns and tile patterns.A total of 105 characters of inscriptions were cast on the vessel and the cover. The content mainly records Qin Jinggong’s self-reporting of the history of the Qin State: Xia." Has important historical value.And its inscription is molded separately for each character, then stamped on the clay model, and then cast.Therefore, it can be regarded as the origin of seal, sealing clay and movable type printing.

Fifth, the Chu Culture District.During the reign of King Cheng of Zhou, Xiong Yi, the son of Chu, was enshrined in Danyang. In the early Spring and Autumn Period, King Wu of Chu established himself as king. When King Wen of Chu established his capital in Ying [yingying], it began to flourish in the Jianghan area.In the late Spring and Autumn Period, Chu State merged forty or fifty small states in the Jianghuai region, including Shen, Xi, Deng, Tang, Pang, Luo, and Li, and became the most powerful vassal state in the south, and gradually formed the Chu State represented by Chu State culture.Bronze wares of the Chu culture have distinctive features, for example, the bronze tripods are mostly thin and tall.In particular, bird script appeared and became popular in bronze inscriptions, that is, writing characters in the shape of birds or adding bird-shaped decorations above and below the strokes, becoming a beautiful artistic font.In addition, the inscriptions in the bird script are often applied on the surface of the utensils as decoration, and many inscriptions are staggered with gold, which looks very gorgeous.In the Spring and Autumn Period, the famous bronze wares of Chu state include Wangzi Wuding, Wangsun Gaozhong, Wangsun Yizhe Zhong, Chuwang Lingzhong, Shao (Zhao) Wang Gui, Chu Quzi Chijiao, Wangzi Shenzhanyu, Wangziyingci furnace, Chu Wang Sun Yuge and others.Among them, the Prince Wu Ding was unearthed in 1978 in Xiasi Temple, Xichuan, Henan.It is a column (liter) tripod of seven pieces, the largest of which is 67 cm high, 66 cm in diameter, and weighs 100.2 kg.Round, wide mouth, waist, shallow belly, flat bottom.The ears are extravagant, and the legs are three-hoofed.Six monsters cling to the outside of the abdomen.Covered, with a dagger inside.The abdomen is decorated with Kui patterns, stealing curved patterns and cloud patterns.There are 84 characters of inscriptions cast inside the abdomen, and four characters of cover inscriptions, which are bird scripts.The author Wang Ziwu, that is, Zigeng, the son of King Zhuang of Chu, was Ling Yin during the reign of King Kang of Chu, and died in the eighth year of King Kang (552 BC).This tripod is a typical bronze ware of Chu culture in the late spring and Autumn period.

Sixth, Wuyue Cultural District.At the end of the Shang Dynasty, Tai Bo and Zhong Yong, the sons of King Tai of Zhou, went to Wu, and King Kang of Zhou entrusted his descendant Zhou Zhang to Wu.In the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period, King Wu Shoumeng began to grow stronger. In the late Spring and Autumn Period, with the support of the State of Jin, King Helu of Wu led his army to break through Yingdu of the State of Chu. His son, King Fucha of Wu, attacked Qi many times. The leader is Yu Huangchi.At this time, King Goujian of Yue who lived in Kuaiji (now Shaoxing, Zhejiang) took the opportunity to invade the capital of Wu (now Suzhou, Jiangsu) and destroyed Wu in 473 BC.Since then, Yue State has become the most powerful vassal state in the southeast.The Wuyue culture represented by Wuyue in the Spring and Autumn Period has distinct local characteristics.First of all, Wu Yue's bronze weapons were the most sophisticated at that time, and the sword was the most famous.The "Zhou Li Kao Gong Ji" in the Warring States Period has long been praised, and the Fu Chai Sword of the Wu King and the Gou Jian Sword of the Yue King discovered in archaeological work prove that the records are by no means empty words.For example, the Goujian Sword of the King of Yue unearthed in Jiangling, Hubei in 1965 is 55.6 cm long and 4.6 cm wide. There are two lines of eight characters inscribed on the body of the sword: "Gou Jian, the King of Yue, uses his own sword." The sword grid is inlaid with blue glaze and turquoise. Although it has gone through 2,400 to 500 years, it is still as clean as new and extremely sharp.Secondly, the bronze ritual vessels of the Wuyue culture also have distinct local characteristics in terms of shape and decoration.For example, the three-legged tripod of the tripod is commonly known as the Yue-style tripod.The gui has a small mouth and a flat belly, with hollowed-out ribs on the outer sides of the ears.It is respected as an oblate belly with a convex shape, or in the shape of a bird.The ears of the dish are close to the abdominal wall and become a decoration.The decorations are mostly deformed animal face patterns, deformed Kui patterns, weaving patterns and cone tattoos.There are also horn-shaped vessels with local characteristics, three-wheel discs, bird-covered double-ring ear pots, etc.In addition, the famous Wuyue bronze wares of the Spring and Autumn Period include Jiejiazhong, Zhe (氵刀) [daodao] bell, Peier Gou鑃, Wu Wang Guangjian, Wu Wang Fuchai, Wu Wangsun Wuren Ding, Wu Wang Yushi簠, Han Wang It is Ye (Shoumeng) Ge, Prince Yu Ge, and Gong Yan (wu Wu) Wang Guangjian, etc.