Hello everyone!
The wonderful Baobo Micro Class is starting again!
Today, Bao Bojun
Bring you one thing
Unique bronzes
Western Zhou Beast Head Copper Mou (mao)
This beast head bronze skull was excavated from Tomb No. 7 of Zhuyuangou, a national cemetery in Baoji City (Bowfish) in 1980, in the early Western Zhou Dynasty, and was divided into 旄首, mushu (bi) and 鐏 (zun), of which only remnants of the wooden tree remained. The head is duck-headed, hollow inside, with an animal face ornament on the top of the head, and a peach heart-shaped mouth with a peach heart-shaped mouth. The brass is cylindrical in shape, with a slightly drawn mouth and a closed bulge at the top, decorated with phoenix and fish scales. There are small nail holes in both the head and the copper hammer, which can be fixed to the wooden coffin. The entire ornament should be restored according to the remnants of the wooden coffin, the length of which should be about 50 cm, and there may be ornaments such as the jewelry on the head.
This Western Zhou beast head bronze mould has a unique design and a vivid and ingenious ornamental layout, which is a very interesting bronze vessel. The location of the bronze skull of the beast is on the second floor platform above the head of tomb No. 7.
In fact, the (bowfish) national cemetery has not only unearthed a group of bronze axes, but also a group of them have been excavated in the B room of Zhuyuangou Tomb No. 13, Zhuyuangou Tomb No. 4, and Rujiazhuang Tomb No. 1. Among them, the copper cup excavated from Zhuyuangou Tomb No. 13 is placed on the lacquer case buried in the tomb; the copper cup of Zhuyuangou Tomb No. 4 is excavated on the coffin cover of the burial concubine room, and the excavation of Room B of Rujiazhuang Tomb No. 1 is next to the bronze vessel of the burial.
(Copper line diagram Image source: Archaeological report)
(Copper BRM1B:72 Baoji Bronze Museum Collection)
(Copper BZM13:10 Baoji Bronze Museum Collection)
(Goose-shaped as BZM4:137 Shaanxi History Museum collection)
According to the shang shu mu oath recorded that "Jia Zi Ming Shuang, Wu Dynasty as for the Shang suburb of Makino, Nai Oath, left staff Huang Yu, right Bing Bai Xu Yi Yi" records, the above bronze artifacts are the "copper axes" held by King Wu in the Battle of Makino. The head can be attached to the jewel, which should be used as a ceremonial instrument and a symbol of aristocratic power with a high political status. This made Bao Bojun think of the scepter that Hou Ye held in his hand when he sent the enemy army to negotiate in the TV series "Langya List".
(Image source: STILLS from the TV series Langya list)
However, Mr. Li Shuicheng believes that such artifacts should not be the ones mentioned in the literature, which are quite similar to the "dusting" made of oxtails or feathers in later generations. The Western Zhou beast head bronze scepter should be the "duck head staff head", which is a scepter pole head ornament, a kind of instrument used for ceremonial guards, or can be used as a symbol of prince or noble status, and is also used for burial.
So let's take a look at the word 旄, the Shang Dynasty oracle bone does not have the word "旄". This word first appeared in the Western Zhou Dynasty, and jin wen wrote "xiang" (Jin Wenbian, p. 464); Saying that the text is "grain" (Shuwen, p. 141); Qin Seal as "Cold" (Sleeping Armor, p. 105). "旄" is a shape-sound word. Jin Wencong (Fang Ren), Mao Sheng, used as a personal name, under the guise of "Mao". "Shuowen": "旄, 旄也." From (Fangren), from Xu, Mao also sounded. Zhu Junsheng's "Speaking Of The TongXun Dingsheng": "Press, Jingyi (sui) pole decoration also." This uses the ox tail of the lumber (li), which is noted on the head of the flag pole, so it is known as 旄. Later, it was used with feathers, or a combination of neon (mao) and feathers. The "yak" here is the yak, and the word "旄" originally means the yak tail decorated with the head of the flagpole. The Shuowen is trained as the "yak tail" of the "yak tail", which also refers to the yak tail used in dance or conducting.
In fact, in addition to these copper ornaments, in recent years, in the northeast corner of the M111 two-story platform of the Yejiashan Cemetery in Suizhou, Hubei Province, there is also a copper mould similar to the (bowfish) national cemetery.
(Hubei Yejiashan Zengguo Cemetery M111:134 Image source: excavation briefing)
Finally, everyone followed Bao Bojun to admire the exquisite scepter and scepter head.
(Copper hedgehog scepter head Warring States period Shaanxi History Museum collection)
(Golden scepter head, bronze scepter tail, early Spring and Autumn Collection of Shaanxi Archaeological Research Institute)
(Bronze four sheep head scepter head, Siba culture, Gansu Provincial Museum collection)
(Owl head scepter head Eagle head shaped scepter head Shajing culture Yongchang County Museum collection Gansu Provincial Museum collection)
(Golden Cane Shang Sanxingdui Museum Collection)
After-school reading:
If you want to know more about the scepter, you can read Mr. Li Shuicheng's "Glory of The Scepter: The Source of the Scepter", published by Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House in 2021, if you have some feelings after reading, you can communicate with Bao Bojun online
bibliography:
1.CHEN Liang. Treasures of Baoji Bronze Ware Museum. Northwestern University Press, 2021.04.
2. Li Shuicheng." Bull Horn Instrument""Copper Axe" Two Instrument Examination. Central Plains Cultural Relics, 2021.01.
3. Lu Liancheng, Hu Zhisheng. Baoji (Bowfish) National Cemetery. Beijing;Cultural Relics Publishing House,1988.]
4. Hubei Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Suizhou Museum. Briefing on the excavation of M111 in Yejiashan, Suizhou, Hubei Province. Han River Archaeology, 2020.02.
Image Source:
Baoji Bronze Museum, Sanxingdui Museum, Shaanxi History Museum, Weibo, Baidu Pictures
Editor: Chen Haomin
Editor-in-charge: Cui Ruihua Yang Qian
Review: Li Qi