The earliest use of bronzes
Chinese bronzes appeared in prehistoric times and flourished in Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties. Not only are there many kinds of utensils, but also their solemn and gorgeous shapes and exquisite patterns are rare in the world. Moreover, the inscriptions are rich in content and have very important historical value, and are also precious materials for studying the development and evolution of characters. In terms of use, bronzes can be divided into containers, weapons, musical instruments, chariots and horses, etc. This paper mainly introduces the types and names of main bronze containers. Bronze containers are one of the most important vessels in Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties, including cookers, food containers, wine containers and scrubbers. Most bronze containers are ritual vessels.
pot
Ding: an ancient cooker, similar to the pot in the home now, used for cooking or holding fish, sheep and tapirs. Most of them are Fang Ding with round belly, two ears, three feet and four feet, such as the famous Simuwu Dafang Ding in Shang Dynasty. Ding is one of the most important bronzes in ancient China. It is said that Yu Xia once cast Jiuding at the foot of Jingshan Mountain as a symbol of Kyushu, and carved a fascinating figure on it to alert people and prevent them from being hurt. Since the legend of Zhu Yu's Nine Ding came into being, Ding has been regarded as a symbol of national weight, state and power. The so-called national destruction will lead to the relocation of Ding, and later people call it the capital or the establishment of a dynasty? Dingding? .
Ancient cooking tripod with hollow legs
Li (phonological calendar): It is shaped like a tripod with a small mouth and three feet. Generally used for cooking, the feet are hollow and used for cooking and heating.
An ancient cooker with a grid
Yan (voice over): It's equivalent to the present steamer. There are two kinds: round tripod and square quadruped. The whole vessel is divided into upper and lower parts. The upper part is Zeng, holding food. The lower part is covered with water. If retort and retort are cast as a whole, it is called a combined retort with copper pieces in the middle, which is called bi (sound ratio). There are cross holes or straight holes through which steam can pass.
dagger
Bi: It is equivalent to the current spoon and spoon. It is an ancient utensil for scooping food. From the body, it can be divided into pointed body and ellipsoid, and from the handle, it can be divided into hand handle and straight handle.
graphical user interface
Gui (audio track): It is equivalent to the current bowl, which is used to hold rice. Generally, it has a round belly, a small mouth and feet.
China ancient square grain ritual vessels
Fu (phonetic auxiliary word): In fact, just like Fu, it is also used to hold food. Rectangular, extravagant outside the mouth, four short feet, the lid is the same as the elephant in the container, and it is also the same two vessels when closed.
cup
Polygonum (Xu,): used to hold millet, millet, rice and sorghum. Oval, convergent, ears on the ventral side, round foot, with four rectangular buttons or round foot cover.
honest
Exchange: used for millet, millet, rice and sorghum. It evolved from a tripod and looks like a watermelon, also known as watermelon town or watermelon tripod. Its top, bottom, inside and outside are all round. The cover and the body are combined into a sphere or an ellipse with two ears and three short feet. The cover can also be used in reverse.
pea
Beans: In ancient times, it was a carnivore and Zu Hai. Fermented wine is today's pickles, and fermented wine is today's meat sauce and other foods. The upper part of the bean is a disk belly, which is shallow in the early stage and becomes deeper after the spring and autumn. There are long-handled round feet under it, and some have covers.
Ancient small mouth wine vessel
You: One of the containers for wine. The basic shape is ellipsoid, the abdomen is deep and bulging, the circle is full, covered with a cover button, shaped like a pot but with hanging beams, the abdomen is round or oval or square, and some are birds and animals.
elder
Zun: The basic shape of wine containers is mostly small mouth, full belly and shaped like a wine bottle, but the middle part is fatter than the wine bottle and the mouth is bigger than the wine bottle. Generally speaking, venerable people can be divided into three categories: venerable people, venerable people with big shoulders, and venerable people with birds and animals.
Niujiao wine container
Palace: Also called Sigong, it is an ancient vessel for holding wine. ? Hey? This is an ancient rhinoceros. It used to be made of its horns. Because it is not easy to preserve, it was changed to copper in the Yin and Shang Dynasties. The skull is oval or square, with a round foot or four feet under it, a wide flow in front and a hand (disc, meaning handle) behind it. Most of the covers are in the shape of animal heads or long noses.
he
He (sound and): It is equivalent to today's teapot. It is an ancient device for blending wine, water and warm wine. "Said the article? Cuisine:? Hey, seasoning? Therefore, the concentration of wine flavor can be adjusted by adding different amounts of water. Generally, the mouth is closed, the abdomen is deep, and there is a cover. There is a tubular flow in front, a hairpin in the back, and three or four feet under it.
Ancient urn-shaped wine vessels
(Ray): This is an old winemaker and a big wine container. There are two shapes: round and square. It is characterized by an open mouth, a short neck, a wide shoulder, two ears on the shoulder, a ring nose on the front and lower abdomen for threading, and a tether to extract wine and wrap it around the foot.
Kettle for boiling water
Pot: A long-necked container for holding wine or water. "Poetry? Daya？ Han Yi has a cloud:? A hundred pots of sake? "Mencius? There is a cloud in Wang Xia, Hui Liang: Eating pot pulp to welcome Julian Waghann? . Pots have various shapes, such as round, square, flat, retort, ear hole and garlic.
Fang Yi
Fang Yi: It's a container for wine, or a container for mixing wine and water. It is also the floorboard of ancient bronze ritual vessels. It is square in shape, high, with a straight belly and a cover. It looks like a roof with buttons and some edges.
noble
Jue: The floorboard of ancient drinking utensils, equivalent to the present wine glasses, is one of the earliest bronze weapons in ancient China. The basic shape is a round belly, with a tile-shaped flow for pouring wine in front, a pointed tail in the back, webbed on the ventral side, two rows on the mouth, and three-pointed feet under the abdomen.
A drinking vessel
Gu: This is the earliest bronze drinking fountain. The top and bottom are trumpet-shaped, with a long neck and a thin waist in the middle.
corner
Horn: drinking fountain. Shaped like a knight, there is no flow and no column, the mouth and wings are like tails, with a cover, a semi-circular bottom and three cones.
Hmm (expressing hesitation, etc.)
I (Jia, Yin Jia): What's the name of the wine warmer in the Book of Rites? Scattered? , so? Scattered? Why? Hey? Alias of. Shaped like a knight, but larger than a knight, with large capacity, round mouth, two rows, no flow and no tail, rafts, mostly triangular feet.
Fu; Feed unit
Zhi (phonology): drinking apparatus. It looks like a statue, but its capacity is smaller than that of the statue, its abdomen is drooping, its mouth and feet are full, and most of them are covered.
spoon
Spoon: Also known as long-handled spoon, it is a wine extractor. Generally, it is short cylindrical, with short handle, hollow handle or side to fix the wooden handle.
plate
Washer: also known as water container, ancient water container. Dish: an instrument for holding water and receiving discarded water when washing hands in ancient times. Round shape, big mouth, perfect, shallow and flat abdomen, some with ears, some with flow.
Gourd-shaped spoon (for water/wine)
Moo (Yi, phonograph): In ancient times, a watering device and a plate were a set of utensils. The shape is oval, like a spoon, with water flowing in front and a handle at the back, with three or four feet or no feet below, and some with lids.
mirror
Note: shaped like an urn, it has a large opening, a wide abdomen, a flat bottom, no feet or a circle of feet, two ears or four ears, and is a large water container. Used to hold water, ice, take pictures and take a bath. ? Jane? One is based on the role of watching water (as a mirror).
What is the bronze tripod used for?
Ding is one of the most important bronze wares, and it is an instrument for cooking and storing meat. There are three-legged tripod and four-legged Fang Ding. The earliest tripod was made of clay, and later there was a bronze tripod made of bronze.
Legend has it that Yu Xia once collected the gold of nine animal husbandry and cast Jiuding under Jingshan Mountain to symbolize Kyushu, and carved fascinating figures on it to alert people and prevent them from being hurt. There is a record in Zuo Zhuan in the Spring and Autumn Period: In the early years of Xia Dynasty, Kyushu was designated as the world, and state animal husbandry was established. Xia Qi asked Kyushu Pastoral to contribute bronze casting tripod. Send people to paint famous mountains, rivers, places of interest, and strange things in all States of the country into picture albums, and then select craftsmen to imitate these paintings on Jiuding, symbolizing that a state has a tripod. Jiuding symbolizes the unity of Kyushu and the high concentration of kingship.
1. Cookware. Ding, originally very common, is just a cooking thing, similar to the current pot. Xu Shen said in Shuo Wen Jie Zi:? Ding, three feet and two ears, the treasure of five flavors. ? The three legs of the tripod are the mouth of the stove and the bracket. The fire burns under the belly and is used to stew and hold fish. ? Dingdong, jade, bells, bells and food? Idioms like this illustrate the luxury of ancient aristocratic life. At that time, princes and ministers all liked to eat meat and often cooked it with a tripod. Different kinds of meat are put in tripods of different sizes and eaten directly after cooking. Eat while standing still? That scene is really spectacular.
2. Specially used for sacrifice or ceremony, which is a symbol of status.
After the bronze tripod appeared, it added another function and became an important ritual vessel for offering sacrifices to gods, which was difficult for ordinary people to enjoy. Because of the high casting cost, it is also a symbol of aristocratic status and class. Your position depends on how many pots you have at home. Emperor Jiuding, seven governors, five doctors, three yuanshi county Ding or one Ding? This is the etiquette system formulated by the Zhou Dynasty.
3. It is regarded as a weapon of the country.
Since the birth of Jiuding legend, Ding has grown from an ordinary cook to a national heavyweight. The country was destroyed, Ding moved, Xia dynasty was destroyed, Shang dynasty was prosperous, and Jiuding moved to Beijing. After the demise of Shang Dynasty, Xing He Jiuding of Zhou Dynasty moved to Haojing, the capital of Zhou Dynasty. From the calendar, what is the name of the capital or dynasty from Shang Dynasty to Zhou Dynasty? Dingding? .
Is there one in history? Win the championship? Allusions, language "Zuo Zhuan"? For three years in Gong Xuan, Chu Zhuangwang came to Luoyang to crusade against foreign enemies, and inspected the army in the territory of the Emperor of Zhou. King Ding of Zhou sent Doctor Wang to comfort him and took the opportunity to ask about the size. Wang Yue: The government is virtuous, the tripod is small and heavy, the monarch has no way, and the tripod is big and light. The Zhou Dynasty made a tripod for the Central Plains, and its power was a godsend. The weight of the tripod is not appropriate. Chu Zhuangwang won the championship, which means replacing the Zhou Dynasty. The result was severely reprimanded by the king's angel. Later called conspiracy to usurp the throne? Win the championship? . ? Take the central plains and win the top three? It directly shows the importance of tripod to the country.
China's traditional culture is extensive and profound, and there is so much knowledge in just one pot. My life is endless, so make a bowl of knowledge soup and let us become the most reliable partners in the circle of friends!
Evolution of the use of bronze vessels
First, the germination period (Xia Dynasty BC 2 1 century ~ BC16th century)
Bronzes of Xia Dynasty were first discovered in Erlitou, Yanshi, Henan Province. At present, the number and types of bronzes found are few, mainly bronze containers, weapons, musical instruments, tools and decorations.
Bronze containers have obvious ceramic-like characteristics, uniform walls and simple geometric decoration. There are wine vessels and food vessels in the container, indicating that the bronze ritual vessel system began to appear. Bronze weapons and tools have emerged from the influence of stone tools. Fan Tao method is the main casting method of bronzes in this period. Bronze ornaments and some weapons have been decorated with turquoise. All these indicate that the bronzes at that time were in their infancy.
Second, the breeding period (BC16th century ~ BC13rd century)
The growth period includes the early and middle period of Shang Dynasty. During this period, bronzes were found in the middle reaches of the Yellow River and the Yangtze River. The types and quantities of bronze containers and weapons have obviously increased. The use of bronze ritual vessels has a certain combination relationship. The shape of bronze ware gradually got rid of the influence of pottery and began to form its own shape norms. The main decorative themes of bronzes, such as animal face, dragon pattern and bird pattern, have been widely used and have begun to develop into mature decorative techniques. In bronze casting, the technology of separate casting has been skillfully applied, and the casting of large bronze containers is also very common. The characters on bronzes were also found in the later period of this period. At this time, bronze craft is at the peak of gestation and growth.
Third, the heyday (BC13rd century ~ BC110th century)
Bronze art reached its glorious peak in the late Shang Dynasty and continued to the early Western Zhou Dynasty. During this period, the types and types of bronzes were basically complete, and the shapes were mature. Large and square vessels were common, and animal images were used as decorative patterns. The combination of utensils was clear, and the system of emphasizing wine on ritual vessels was perfect in the late Shang Dynasty, and the system of emphasizing food began to change in the early Western Zhou Dynasty. Bronze ornamentation is unprecedentedly developed, and objects are often covered with ornamentation. The combination of flat carving and relief makes the decorative patterns of bronze ware layered and three-dimensional Inscriptions appear on quite a few bronzes. In the late Shang dynasty, the user's family emblem was the main symbol, and later there were inscriptions in the form of notes. By the early Western Zhou Dynasty, inscriptions were generally cast on bronzes, with hundreds of words. Since the mid-Western Zhou Dynasty, great changes have taken place in China bronze art, which can be divided into two stages.
In the early days, this change was caused by national culture, religious concepts and social customs. Bronze craft began to change from luxury and beauty in its heyday to dignified and heavy, and the simplicity and practicality of modeling and the simplicity and simplicity of ornamentation complement each other. During this period, food containers developed greatly, some new shapes appeared, wine containers gradually disappeared, and the ding and chime system was established. The bronze pattern changed from concrete to abstract, and the bending ripple and the deformation pattern of the animal body caused by the deformation of the animal face and dragon pattern became the main body of the pattern. Long inscriptions are common, rich in content and standardized in font. In the later period, due to the decline of political economy, the bronze craft was relatively stagnant, and the shape and decoration of bronze ware were mostly the continuation of the previous stage, with little innovation and a tendency of stylization. This process lasted until the early Spring and Autumn Period.
Fourth, the revival period (7th century BC ~ 22nd BC1year).
After the mid-Spring and Autumn Period, the decline of the old ritual system eliminated the shackles of bronze technology, and the economic development of the vassal States promoted the revitalization of the bronze casting industry, and the updated face of bronze art gradually appeared. The old model has been greatly improved in style, and new models have begun to appear. Because the design of modeling pays attention to the combination of practicality, the style is more changeable. The production of dragon bronzes is fine and complicated, and patterns with the theme of human activities began to be decorated on bronzes in the form of similar paintings. New surface decoration technologies such as inlaying, misplacing gold and silver, gilding and painting. The bronze ware has a brand-new artistic style. The inscriptions on long memorabilia gradually decreased, and the simple contents of Wu Le workers' names began to appear, and artistic fonts such as bird and insect books became popular in the inscriptions. New casting technologies, such as lost wax method and impression method, make it possible to cast bronzes with strange shapes, and greatly improve the efficiency of casting technology. The bronzes of vassal States have different styles because of the differences of regional culture.
After the mid-Warring States period, although the forms of bronzes were still colorful, with the arrival of the Iron Age, the bronze casting industry inevitably came to an end. Bronzes in the late Warring States period clearly reflected this declining trend.
Guess you like:
1. What are the characteristics of Shang bronzes?
2. What are the characteristics of bronzes in different periods?
3. Development history and experience stages of cookware.
4. How to clean and maintain unearthed bronzes?
5. What is the method of removing rust from bronze?