What are the characteristics of Zhaoling Six Horses?

Six Horses in Zhaoling are the six horses that Li Shimin rode when he started the career of Emperor Taizong. They all gave their lives on the battlefield with Li Shimin. Bai Juyi said in a poem: "The great purpose is to inspire Wang Ye, and it is difficult for Wang Ye to tell his descendants." In order to warn the descendants of the hardships of starting a business, and at the same time remember the six good horses who lived together with him, Yan, a famous court painter, was asked to draw a picture scroll, and a famous craftsman at that time was selected to carve it into a relief smaller than a real horse. On the upper right of the relief is the inscription of Li Shimin by the famous calligrapher Ou Yangxun. After Li Shimin's death, these six reliefs were listed as attendants of Dongxige in the north gate of Zhaoling.

Liu Jun vividly shows the posture and character of a war horse and the scene of galloping with an arrow on the battlefield with simple lines, accurate modeling and high relief techniques. Every painting tells people a thrilling historical story. There is a poem that says: "The king of Qin rode an iron horse to win the world, and six generals were good at painting." It is said that these six horses are all "excellent horses", which were selected from the excellent Persian horses in the western regions. Liu Jun's image, name and origin are based on facts.

"Zhaoling Six Horses" are carved on a 3-meter-long and 2.5-meter-wide slate and arranged in two groups. The first gentleman in the East is called "cashier (Qin) Qi". This horse is called "Qi" because its fur is yellow and white, and its white beak is slightly black. "Secret Service" is the official name of Tujue nationality, which may be given by a secret service of Tucuo nationality. Li Shimin rode this horse to fight Song Jingang in 6 19. In this battle, Cashier Yi led a heroic battle into the enemy line, fought for dozens of rounds day and night, and fought eight hard battles in a row, making great achievements. Emperor Taizong praised his inscription: "We should take measures to fly and carry the voice of half of China people;" Natural disasters destroy enemies and use danger to help the poor. "

The second king in the East was called "Qinggui", pale and mottled, which was taken by Li Shimin when he pacified Dou Jiande. At that time, Tang Jun was guarding Hulao Pass and occupied favorable terrain. Li Shimin took advantage of the enemy lines for a long time, hungry and tired, ordered a comprehensive counterattack, led an army, went deep behind enemy lines, and captured Dou Jiande in one fell swoop. In stone carvings, green turtles, like galloping horses, were shot in the front when they charged, but most of them were shot behind the horses, showing the speed of galloping horses. Emperor Taizong wrote an inscription for it: "The film is light enough, God sends secrets, and I will wear clothes if I fly."

The third champion in the East is called "Shivaqi", pure red, with 4 arrows in front and 1 arrow in the back. "Shifa" is a transliteration of the Persian word "Ma". It is a red horse from Persia, and it is also a mount when fighting against Wang and Dou Jiande in Luoyang and Hulao Pass. The horses on the stone carving galloped in the air. In this major battle, Li Shimin fought bloody battles, killing and injuring Sanma, and basically completed the great cause of reunification. Emperor Taizong's inscription is: "The river is quiet, the axe is majestic, Zhu Hanman is youthful and triumphant."

The first gentleman in the west is called "Salouzi", which is purple in color and has an arrow on his chest. The man riding a war horse with an arrow is called Qiu. This horse was ridden when Pingding Dongdu defeated Wang. Among the six monarchs, this work is the only one engraved with characters and their deeds. According to records, the courtiers in Li Shimin were brave and good at riding and shooting. In the battle to capture Mangshan Mountain in Luoyang, Li Shimin rode Lou Zi to personally test each other's reality, and rushed out of the position to meet them with dozens of riders. All the riders were separated, only Qiu followed. Suddenly, Wang came after him, and Liu Ya shot the horse. At this time, Qiu turned around and bowed his head. The arrow was not empty, and the enemy did not dare to move forward. Then Qiu immediately jumped off the horse, pulled out an arrow for the royal rider, gave his mount, then killed him on foot with a knife, beheaded several people and suddenly returned. In order to commemorate this event, Emperor Taizong specially ordered someone to carve this war horse for Qiu. Qiu Xing Gong Man, handsome and mighty, dressed in a combat shirt, wearing a pocket hammer, a knife and an arrow bag tied to his waist, made a gesture of bowing his head like an arrow, recreating the scene at that time. Li Shimin's inscription for Zalouzi is: "Ziyan leaps, Bones Shen Tengjun, Adventure Sanchuan, Lingwei Eight Arrays."

In the west, the second champion named "Quan Maoluo" is a Darkmouth Huang Ma, with rotating hair, 6 arrows in front and 3 arrows in the back, which was taken by Li Shimin when he pacified Liu Heita. The boxing camel on the stone carving was shot with 9 arrows, indicating fierce fighting. Emperor Taizong praised: "The moon is clear, the sky is high, the arrows are full, and the air is clear."

The third champion in the west is called "white hoofed horse", which is a pure black war horse with four white hooves. It was used when fighting Xue. The white hoofed horse in stone carving is full of anger, its hooves are flying rapidly, and its mane is facing the wind, as if it were galloping in the wind on the Loess Plateau. Emperor Taizong praised it as: "Relying on the heavenly sword, chasing the wind and chasing the feet; I will be calm and calm, and return to the saddle to settle down. "

The six horses in Zhaoling used realistic carving techniques to vividly depict the strong and symmetrical posture and resolute temperament of the horses, which was a masterpiece of stone carving art in the early Tang Dynasty. For example, the dew is purple, choose the arrow in the horse and follow the moment when Qiu draws his sword. The sculptor vividly described the posture of the horse retreating because of pain and tension. The Six Horses in Zhaoling is a treasure of ancient sculpture art in China, and it is also a rare treasure among China cultural relics. It was praised as "unprecedented" by Mr. Lu Xun. Regrettably, the Sixth Army of Zhaoling was stolen by foreign cultural relics smugglers. The most vivid expressions of the six generals, "Saluz" and "All Mauro", were stolen abroad and are now in the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, USA. The other four weapons were intercepted by the masses when they were stolen and are now in the Shaanxi Provincial Museum. In order to facilitate smuggling, thieves deliberately broke the six kings into several pieces, which greatly damaged the image of the six kings and caused irreparable losses.