Wine is a special liquid. Ancestors had liquid wine. In order to drink it, the track must have a carrier and a container for drinking. Early people used horns for drinking water and drinking at the same time after hunting animals for a long time in their lives. After long-term life practice, they gradually improved the yeast. Archaeologists have proved that there are special wine vessels in modern unearthed pottery products, which belong to the late Longshan culture. This period is very close to the legend of Yidi wine-making in Xia and Yu periods, indicating that Chinese wine vessels existed as early as ancient times.
With the emergence and development of wine and its spread in China's history, wine containers seek innovation and change under different cultural, economic, productivity and artistic levels. China's wine vessels have their unique traditional styles and shapes, and the development of wine vessels is the most valuable historical material for studying China culture.
Wine vessels are the general name of vessels related to wine culture. It should include wine making vessels, wine holding vessels, wine warming vessels, wine freezing vessels, wine storage vessels and drinking vessels. The wine containers introduced in this paper are narrow sense wine holding, wine warming and drinking.
First, the types of wine vessels
China's wine vessels are numerous, varied and beautiful, which is really the best in the world. According to their materials and uses, they can be divided into the following categories.
(a), according to the wine to distinguish.
In terms of product materials, commonly used wine vessels can be divided into pottery wine vessels, bronze wine vessels, lacquer wine vessels, jade wine vessels, porcelain wine vessels, gold, silver, copper and tin wine vessels, crystal glass wine vessels, animal and plant wine vessels, plastic wine vessels and paper wine vessels.
(2), according to the use of wine.
As far as the use of wine vessels is concerned, they can be roughly divided into three categories, namely, wine containers, wine warmers and drinking vessels.
1 red wine container
In ancient China, wine containers were very elegant, with various names and fancy designs, and there were strict differences among drinkers. For example, the Zun and Jue in auspicious wine vessels are wine vessels presented to courtiers at ceremonies or by kings. They are regarded as treasures of past dynasties and still retain the value of national treasures. According to incomplete statistics, the name has been confirmed by unearthed cultural relics. Due to the unique shape, the surface is carved with exquisite patterns, which is very artistic. Therefore, the wine sensor is not only used to hold wine, but also an artistic ornament, which can be used for display and appreciation. In modern times, due to the popularity of folk wine supply, the output increased greatly, and the sensors were replaced by barrels, jars and bottles with larger capacity.
2 wine heaters
It is rare in ancient unearthed cultural relics. However, generally speaking, there are two kinds of containers, namely, one and one. These two containers have two purposes, that is, they are both wine warmers and wine containers. Later, the pot in the wine container was used as a wine warmer, but the ancient hip flask was not exactly the same as the modern hip flask. Nowadays, the hip flask is mostly made of porcelain or tin, which is simple in shape and convenient to use. The so-called wine-warming vessels are hot today.
3 drinking water equipment
In ancient times, there were vessels such as Jue, Jiao, Fu, Fu and Fu, and their shapes and techniques were similar to those of wine containers and wine warmers. They also have treasure value, from early pottery products, bronze products, porcelain products, precious jade products and so on. Up to now, ordinary porcelain products such as glass and plastic spoons have been replaced by them, and everything is practical, economical and convenient.
Second, an overview of the development history of wine vessels
(1) Ancient wine vessels: The earliest humans used the empty horns of animals to hold wine, and then used stone tools to hold wine. Humans gradually think that stone tools are clumsy and heavy, so in order to make wine and facilitate drinking, they created pottery vessels. This can be found in pottery unearthed from the Guantai Cultural Site and Banpo Site in Xi 'an six or seven thousand years ago. There are clay pots and kettles used for cooking or brewing, clay bottles used for brewing, and clay bowls used as drinking tools. In the late Neolithic period and after Dayu in Xia Dynasty, pottery developed greatly. Both firing technology and shaping are exquisite.
Among the relics unearthed in Longshan Culture period, there are iron and steel smelting products, including wine vessels, which proves that there were bronze containers in Xia Dynasty. Shang Dynasty was a period of great development of Chinese bronzes. Bronze wine vessels, such as Yi, Jue, Yi and Yi, were found in Shang cultural sites, such as Zhengzhou Mall, Panlongcheng in Huang Po and Yin Ruins in Xiaotun, Anyang.
According to the literature, Dayu used lacquered wine vessels during the sacrificial ceremony, but by the Han Dynasty, the technical achievements of lacquered wine vessels had reached the peak.
(2) Wine vessels in the Middle Ages: The characteristics of Chinese wine vessels in the Middle Ages entered a new historical period dominated by porcelain products, which experienced the Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Song, Liao, Jin and Yuan Dynasties. Due to the unbalanced economic and cultural development of each dynasty, porcelain wine vessels of each dynasty have their own unique styles. This is the development period of China porcelain wine vessels, which is in the ascendant, and emphasizes the patterns and patterns of porcelain in technology. At that time, celadon and white glazed blue flowers were more fashionable.
After Sui and Tang Dynasties, China's porcelain products became diversified. On the basis of the development of celadon, white glazed porcelain, blue glazed porcelain and black glazed porcelain appeared, among which three kinds of pomelo colors, namely sauce yellow, milky white and green onion, were formed, which were called "three colors of Tang Dynasty" and reached the peak of crystallization, with high artistic value. Thus, in the Tang Dynasty, Ding's famous "Tri-colored Cup in Tang Dynasty" appeared. During the golden mean period, Li mentioned in the poem "Farewell to friends on a spring night" that "silver candles smoke and gold honors the banquet". The wine vessels used at that time entered another stage, and developed into precious gold, silver and jade articles, which were extremely luxurious. At that time, the aristocratic giants not only paid attention to the wind of drinking, but also required the wine vessels to complement each other to show off and vanity. So precious wine vessels such as gold, silver, jade and agate appeared. The ancient capital Xi 'an discovered the wine cellar of the Tang Dynasty, which contained many extremely precious treasures, including an agate wine glass with a golden bull's head, a silver pot for dancing horses in the imperial forest in the Tang Dynasty, and some "agate wine glasses" and "crystal cups with chains" unearthed in Inner Mongolia not long ago. They were identified as wine vessels in the Liao, Jin and Yuan Dynasties, and they were all rare treasures.
(3) Modern wine vessels: The Ming and Qing Dynasties in China were the peak of the development of porcelain wine vessels. At that time, there was a "cloisonne" craft with a blue background, which was well-known at home and abroad during the Jingtai period of the Ming Dynasty, but it was mostly appreciated and collected by nobles and rich people.
At the end of the Qing Dynasty, porcelain wine vessels gradually moved towards large-scale handicraft production, such as Jingdezhen in Jiangxi and Shiwan in Guangzhou, with large-scale equipment. Products are sold all over the country and even exported abroad. At this time, in addition to blue and white, rich and holly, porcelain was improved with pastel, enamel, soft color, hard color and bronze color.
(4) Modern wine vessels: Except for the varieties developed from generation to generation, most ancient wine vessels have broken ground, but they have all changed with the passage of time, and their historical tasks have come to an end. Only for people's appreciation and cultural research, they have not disappeared, but they are worth a hundred times. The older they are, the more precious they are. Some of them have become national treasures and priceless cultural relics.
The subsequent development of modern wine vessels is only aimed at economy, practicality and convenience, and low-cost wine vessels such as ceramics, glass, plastics and even paper are used for mass production. Although there are many kinds, they all strive for simplicity. In order to meet the trend of popularization, it is discarded as soon as it is used When drinking, modern people have no leisure at that time, enjoying the exquisite beauty and modeling beauty of wine containers.