The gold wares of Shang Dynasty were mostly decorations, and the most common gold foils were mostly used on other utensils.
Decorations, or more precisely, are combined with other utensils to enhance the aesthetic feeling of the utensils.
The most important site of Shang Dynasty is Yin Ruins. The gold foil found here is very thin. From the thickness point of view, the hammering process at that time was quite superb, which also shows that merchants and craftsmen had a deep understanding of the ductility of gold, otherwise it would be impossible to process such a meager thickness.
Ring-shaped gold wares were found in the military attache's tomb in Yinxu, Anyang, Henan. Among them, six gold-plated copper bubbles were found in a burial pit in Houjiazhuang, Yin Ruins. Fold the periphery of the round gold sheet to the back of the copper bubble, so that the gold foil is firmly wrapped on the bubble surface. This method is very ingenious. These are boxes of bronzes decorated with gold foil.
There are many gold-plated wooden objects. There are three overlapping round gold nuggets with a diameter of 12 cm in the middle of the chariot pit of a Yin tomb in Confucius Village, Dasi, Anyang, Henan Province, which may be the decoration on the umbrella surface.
A gold foil was unearthed in Chemakeng of Yin Tomb in Xiaotun, Anyang. Gold foil is arranged in north and south columns and used as a whip. The pole ornament is divided into eight sections from the top of the jade ornament, and each section is decorated with a piece of gold. The rod diameter is about 2 cm, and there is no gold decoration at the end of the rod between 10 cm. The length of the gold sheet is 5.5 to 5.5.
6.5 cm, width 1 to 1. 1 cm, and total weight of 3.9 grams.
In addition, the bridge-shaped gold piece found in a tomb in Houjiazhuang, Yin Ruins, has nail holes on it, which may be a foil ornament nailed to wood. A jade tiger found in Fu Hao's tomb in Anyang Yin Ruins has gold foil on its eyes to make the finishing point.
Most of the gold products in Shang Dynasty were gold foil, gold leaf and gold sheet, which were mainly used for the decoration of utensils. Gold jewelry in northern Shang Dynasty was mainly personal gold jewelry. Among the gold wares found in this period, the most striking ones are a batch of gold wares from Sanxingdui Site and Jinsha Site in Guanghan, Sichuan, which are not only numerous, but also unique in shape, reflecting the diversity and imbalance of early civilization development in China.
The ancient Shu kingdom is one of the earliest ancient nations to develop and utilize gold in the world. He mastered the gold processing technology equivalent to that of the Shang Dynasty in the Central Plains, and made exquisite gold animal images and decorations such as gold bars, Jin Mianju, Hu Jin, gold leaves, goldfish and Zhang Jin.
These gold ornaments not only show the superb gold foil processing technology of the ancient Shu people, but also have rich cultural connotations. These gold foil processing technologies also represent the earliest level of gold products in Shang Dynasty, which has high research value for revealing the precious materials of ancient Shu civilization in Sanxingdui and re-understanding the early level of gold smelting in China. The gold wares in Sanxingdui site are the most abundant in Shang cultural sites. First, there are many kinds, such as gold rod, Jin Mianju, gold foil tiger-shaped ornaments, gold foil fish-shaped ornaments, gold foil Zhang-shaped ornaments, gold foil belt ornaments, gold nuggets and so on.
Second, it is large in size, and pits 1 and 2 have gold masks. Some copper heads in the No.2 pit are covered with gold foil masks, forming gold-faced copper heads. It can be speculated that the gold foil mask was originally attached to the copper head. The rich gold wares in pits 1 and 2 are also an important feature of the late Sanxingdui site.
The gold products of Sanxingdui site include Hu Jin, gold leaf, goldfish, gold card and gold belt. Made of gold foil or gold sheet, in addition to gold nuggets. In the process of making these gold products, forging and flattening, cutting and trimming, plane carving and other processes are adopted.
Among the gold products in Sanxingdui, the gold staff in the No.1 pit is a rare treasure in gold wares. Total length1.42m, diameter 2.3cm.. It is wrapped in gold foil on a wooden pole and has a net weight of about 500 grams. The wooden pole has long been carbonized, leaving only a complete gold foil.
There are three groups of patterns of people, fish and birds on the top of the golden staff, which shows that the golden staff has been endowed with both human kingship and religious theocracy. It is not only a royal power, but also a symbol and symbol of theocracy and the unity of politics and religion.
Near the end are two symmetrical human heads, wearing five-toothed crowns, triangular earlobes and smiling faces. The other two patterns are the same, with two birds facing each other and two fish facing each other. Their necks are stacked with patterns like arrows. The meaning of the pattern is roughly: under the protection of God, the arrow hits the fish, and the bird carries the arrow shaft on the back of the fish.
This is a scepter and can also be regarded as a wand. Legend has it that Yu Fu, King of Shu, is famous for fishing and hunting, so later gods regarded him as a god. This golden staff may be related to the legend of yufu.
The gold mask is another masterpiece of ancient Shu people using gold products. In terms of manufacturing technology, the pure gold is forged into gold foil, then the outline similar to the bronze figure head is made, the shoulders and eyes are hollowed out, and then wrapped on the bronze figure head. Finally, the gold mask integrated with the bronze figure is made by hammering, rubbing, removing and bonding.
Among the numerous gold wares in Sanxingdui, the gold-faced copper head consists of a copper head and a Jin Mianju. The height of copper head is 4 1cm, and the copper head is flat-topped, and the hair is combed back. The braid hangs over the back of the head and is tied to the upper end of the braid.
The size, shape and facial features of Jin Mianju are the same as those of Tongtou. Eyes and eyebrows were hollowed out, and the mask was attached to the head with clay pigment and lime as adhesive. The head is dignified and noble, with extraordinary bearing. This glittering and dazzling "golden messenger" looks like a king. At that time, it was the high-level people in society who held the power of life and death and had the ruling significance of leaders.
Judging from the gold mask on the bronze head of Sanxingdui, as early as the Shang Dynasty, Shu people knew that gold was the most important thing, so wearing a gold mask on the bronze head was not only for beauty, but to please the gods and make the gods represented by the bronze head more effective.
At the same time, as can be seen from the gold foil mask, a considerable part of the bronze portrait of Sanxingdui has a high nose, deep eyes and a beard under the jaw, which is obviously different from all kinds of facial features in Shang and Zhou Dynasties in China.
In terms of artistic style, almost all the facial expressions of Sanxingdui bronze statues are solemn and solemn, and the eyes are wide open, especially the prominent position of the eyes on the face, which is consistent with the artistic style of bronze statues in West Asia and the Near East.
In addition, Sanxingdui's golden face head is 48.5 cm high, with a dome, a mask closely combined with the face, inverted eight-character eyebrows, almond-shaped eyes, garlic nose, wide mouth, closed lips and wide square. Rectangular ears, decorated with Yun Leiwen, with a hole in the earlobe.
The tiger-shaped gold foil pattern found in Sacrificial Pit No.1 of Sanxingdui Site is 6.7 cm high and 1 1.6 cm wide, and it is made of gold foil hammer. Giant, with his head held high, his mouth wide open, his eyes sunken, his ears big, his body slender, decorated with tiger stripes, his front legs stretched, his hind feet curled up, his tail rolled up and growled.
The gold foil fish-shaped ornamentation of Sacrificial Pit No.2 in Sanxingdui Site is 22.68 cm long and 65,438 0.85 cm wide. It looks like catfish and thin leaves, with well-defined lines and perforations from one side. There is a small hole at the head end and a small gap on both sides.
Located in the west of Chengdu, Sichuan Province, the ancient civilization site of Jinsha Village contains more than 65,438+0,000 cultural relics, including 30 gold wares. Mainly made of gold foil and gold sheet, there are gold bars, Jin Mianju, Jin Mianju, gold belts, golden sun bird ornaments, box-shaped devices, trumpet-shaped devices, quads, round ornaments, frog-shaped ornaments, tiger-shaped ornaments, fish-shaped ornaments and so on.
These gold wares have been processed by various techniques, such as hammering, cutting, carving, punching, hollowing out and polishing. Their thickness is generally 0.02 cm to 0.03 cm, the thickest is about 0.04 cm, and the gold content is 83.3% to 94.2%. Some of them have reached a high level, and many of them are representative works of gold technology from the late Shang Dynasty to the Western Zhou Dynasty.
A series of discoveries show that the gold wares of Jinsha site have strong regional characteristics, and the ancestors of Jinsha had a unique "gold worship". First of all, the number is large and the forms are rich, reaching dozens; Secondly, these gold wares are basically accessories on utensils; Third, the gold wares of Jin Mianju and other figures are quite rare in China; Finally, the shapes and patterns of gold wares have strong symbolic significance and contain rich ancient historical information.
Among them, the pattern on the golden crown belt reflects the ancient Shu people's worship of ancestors and birds, while the golden ornaments of the sun god bird reflect the ancient Shu people's worship of the sun. The golden crown belt is circular, with a diameter of 19.6 to 19.9 cm, a width of 2.68 to 2.8 cm and a thickness of 0.02 cm.
The surface decoration of the golden crown belt consists of four groups of the same patterns, each group has a fish, an arrow, a bird and a circle. The pattern on this crown belt is basically the same as that on the golden staff of Sanxingdui artifact pit, with birds, fish, arrows and heads as the main elements.
Whether it is the golden crown belt or the golden staff, it may be the embodiment and representative of the supreme kingship and clan power of the ancient nation at that time, indicating the ethnic identity or continuation of the rulers of Jinsha Site and Sanxingdui Site.
The surface decoration of the golden crown belt is mainly completed by chiseling, and the local decoration is carved. In the pattern, the fish body is short and wide, the head is big and round, the mouth is slightly hooked, the mouth has a beard, the body has a long dorsal fin, and there are two short ventral fins under the body. The fish tail is Y-shaped, and the tips of the two tails curl forward. The arrow is inserted into the fish's head, with thick tail feathers and carved fish whiskers.
The bird is located behind the arrow shaft, with its head and fish head facing the arrow feather. The bird has a thick neck, a long tail, a big head, a hooked beak, a crown on the head, a small wingspan, legs and claws extending forward, and bird claws are also depicted.
The circular pattern is located between each group of patterns and has a diameter of about 2 cm. The outer contour is composed of two spiral patterns with two symmetrical circles in the middle, and it is still composed of two spiral patterns. The top and bottom of each small circle are decorated with a rectangular frame to form a pattern.
The whole design shows that people shoot fish with arrows, and the arrows pass through the side of the birds, and the arrows are deeply inserted into the fish head, so this golden ribbon is called "golden ribbon shooting fish". Sunbird, a special gold ornament, depicts clear patterns of "sun" and "bird" on the gold ornament. With the discovery of a large number of jade and gold ornaments showing kingship, it is enough to prove that this gold ornament is probably a treasure left over from the grand sacrifice ceremony held by the ancient Shu king.
The golden ornaments of the Sun God Bird are generally round, and their bodies are extremely thin. Outer diameter 12.5cm, inner diameter 5.29cm, thickness 0.02cm and weight 20g. The whole equipment is round and the fuselage is extremely thin.
The pattern is hollow and divided into two layers, the inner layer is circular, and there are 12 rotating toothed lamps at equal intervals around it; The outer pattern surrounds the inner pattern and consists of four identical birds flying counterclockwise.
Four birds are slender, with short wings, slightly hooked beaks, short drooping tails and three toes. The bird's head and feet are connected back and forth, flying counterclockwise in the same direction, opposite to the rotation direction of the internal vortex.
The overall pattern of the golden ornaments of the Sun Bird is like a paper-cut work, with simple and smooth lines and a sense of rhythm. Whether it is the four birds in the outer layer or the rotating sun in the inner layer, it is full of strong movement, strong symbolic significance and great imagination.
Especially against the red background, the vortex inside is like a spinning fireball, and the bird patterns around it are clearly red firebirds. The birds in the outer layer and the rotating sun in the inner layer show the ancient Shu people's worship and praise of birds and sun gods.
The golden ornaments of the sun god bird vividly reproduce the myth and legend story of ancient human beings that "the sun was lost by the sun" Four divine birds fly around the rotating sun, endlessly. Some studies believe that the four birds in the outer layer also represent the cycle of the four seasons, and the 12 awns in the inner layer represents the cycle of one year 12 months. This is the material evidence that the ancient Shu people worshipped the sun. Perhaps at that time, the ancient Shu people had mastered the concepts of year, time and month and their causes.
In addition, judging from the gold foil ornament image of the Sun God Bird itself, the inner layer has 12 optical rotation, which is as beautiful as flame, ivory and crescent moon.
Ancient Shu people summarized the natural phenomena and laws they could understand and master into scientific knowledge, such as astronomical calendar knowledge; The incomprehensible natural phenomena are attributed to mysterious religious worship and myths and legends.
On the one hand, sacrifice and pray for the blessing of gods and sun gods; On the other hand, conform to the weather, summarize the laws of nature, and use them to scientifically arrange production and life. At the same time, the ancient Shu people first used calendars to serve agricultural production.
The ancients predicted the progress of farming by observing images and timing. That is, observing natural phenomena to judge farming time. Therefore, birds can also represent the four seasons. The advanced nature of calendar is based on the infinite proximity between calendar year and solar year, and the simplest and most accurate way to measure tropic year is to measure the length of solar shadow. Therefore, the ancient Shu people who worshipped the sun, the moon and the birds were inseparable from the sun and the birds in the process of summing up the calendar.
With the progress of society and the accumulation of knowledge, the calendar has been gradually improved through the efforts of generations of wizards and ancient Shu people. Therefore, religious worship, especially the worship of the sun, birds and calendars, plays a vital role in the production and life of ancient Shu people, and the worship of the sun, birds and calendars is also an important factor in ancient Shu culture.
The development of calendars used by ancient Shu people not only summarized the laws of nature and made continuous progress, but also borrowed calendar knowledge from the Central Plains and other regions. Literature and archaeological data prove that the communication between ancient Shu people and other regions, especially the Central Plains, has been going on since ancient times.
The simple composition of sunbird gold ornaments is the perfect combination of rich philosophical and religious thoughts, extraordinary artistic creativity, imagination and exquisite craftsmanship of ancient Shu people, and also represents the brilliant achievements of gold ornaments in ancient Shu countries.
Jinsha site also found a circular gold ornament with a hole in the center, with a hole in the middle and a slightly curved surface. There are slight wear marks on the inner wall of this device. Diameter 1. 1 cm. There is also a round gold ornament, which has a side hole and a flat body.
This ring-shaped gold ornament is plain, with a residual length of 15.9 cm and a width of 1.04 cm. Rings vary in width, the body is mostly rusty, and the inner and outer edges of the ring have matching marks.
There is even a gold box in Jinsha Site, which is oval, uncovered, flat-bottomed, slightly curved, 3. 13cm high, 2.97cm wide and 9.43cm long. There are many scratches outside the near edge, the surface of the device has been polished, and the wall of the device is uneven and damaged.
The Jinsha site also found a golden giant with a height of 3.74 cm and a width of 4.92 cm. Round face, abduction of ears, clear ear line, hole in earlobe, but not through. The spindle-shaped eyes are sunken, the bridge of the nose is high and straight, the alar is connected with the zygomatic line, and the mouth is slightly open and sunken. The surface of the equipment is polished and the inner wall is rough.
The frog-shaped and fish-shaped gold ornaments in Jinsha site are also very distinctive, among which the frog-shaped gold ornaments are 6.96 cm long. The organ is flaky, the tip is peach-shaped, and a pair of round eyes are juxtaposed. The "A"-shaped body has a ridgeline in the middle of the back, the front and rear limbs are relatively bent inward, and the tail end is pointed. Symmetrical chords are decorated on both sides of the spine, extending from the back to the limbs, and a row of beads are decorated in the chords.
In addition, several other gold ornaments also have their own characteristics. Such as trumpet-shaped gold ware, with a diameter of 9.8 cm. The catheter is short, the top is small and flat, and there are irregular perforations at the top. The surface of the equipment is uneven, and the inner and outer walls are polished, leaving messy tiny scratches. There are also "Ji"-shaped gold wares, which are "Ji"-shaped, 49 cm long, with irregular outer edges and matching marks. Attached with copper rust, polished.
Long gold ornaments, plain face to the sky. The remaining length is 14.7 cm and the width is 1.6 cm. Triangular gold ware, 25 cm long. The container is a rounded triangle with a rectangular handle at one end. The outer edge of the vessel is rolled in, and there is a crack in the middle of the pot body. In addition, most Shang tombs are located near the bodies of the deceased, mostly gold foils decorated on clothes and hats.