My system is not decent

Chapter 1899 Pearl Wen Jia Tong Rhinoceros in the Harem
According to statistics, there are as many as 35 pieces of silk clothing unearthed from Mashan Tomb No. [-], and there are many categories.

Needless to say, this discovery provides a large amount of precious material materials for the study of the history of ancient costumes in our country.

In addition to clothing, Mashan Tomb No. [-] also unearthed a large number of exquisite embroidery.

Its needlework is uniform, the lines are smooth, and various animal and plant patterns are dignified and elegant, which has the characteristics of Chu culture.

This is a major breakthrough in the archaeological history of the pre-Qin period in my country. It not only has important reference value for the study of people's living customs in the pre-Qin period, but also for the study of the clothing culture of the Chu nobles.

More importantly, these clothes and silk fabrics, whether in shape or handwork, are extremely meticulous, which can be called exquisite workmanship.

This makes people have to admire the wisdom of the ancients in our country. How did they complete such superb skills?

The Chinese civilization is extensive and profound, and there are more precious cultures waiting for us to explore.

Returning to root carving, after all, Chen Wenzhe doesn't want to learn silk technology, what he likes is carving.

On top of root carving, carving plus originality can often create miracles.

Root carving art can be said to have a long history.

As early as the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, the Jurchens had precedents of using tree roots as platforms and shelves to display objects.

Later, some people carved the strangely shaped roots into works of art with unique aesthetic value, and gradually formed the art of root carving, which has been passed down to this day.

The earliest surviving root carving works are the "evil warding off" and horn-shaped utensils of the Warring States period just mentioned.

Let me first talk about the No. [-] Chu Tomb in Mashan. The root carving work "Repelling Evil" from the Warring States Period unearthed in it is still very representative.

As a tomb-suppressing beast, this root carving has a tiger head and a dragon body, and four feet are carved with patterns of snakes, sparrows, frogs, cicadas, etc., full of momentum.

This shows that more than 300 years ago, the root carving art of the working people in ancient my country has reached the level of the ingenious combination of natural form and artificial carving.

Then there are the Warring States horns, which can be regarded as the earliest root carving works in the world.

It may surprise you, it is actually the same as the bull horn pattern, why is this?

The two wood carvings discovered at that time were simply two inconspicuous and strange wooden products.

At the beginning, it did not attract the attention of experts. One of them was that the root carving of eucalyptus was a woodcarving to ward off evil spirits.

Although it is small in size, the carving process is extremely exquisite.

As a tomb-suppressing beast, the evil spirit is carved so lifelike that it looks majestic at first glance.

So it is not only called a treasure, but also received a lot of praise from all over the world.

There is another artifact that is also very strange, and it is difficult for people to associate it with wood.

Its lower part is controlled internally and externally, in the shape of a trumpet, and the bottom is straight, which is also made of tree roots.

This piece of wood is like a handicap, and the whole looks like a rhinoceros horn, so the academic circles named it "horn shape".

It is indeed a wood product, but also a root carving product.

This root carving cultural relic is made of more expensive camphor wood.

The work measures 5.8 centimeters in lower diameter and 12.5 centimeters in height.

So why did the ancients place such a strange thing in the tomb?
There has also been a lot of research on anglers over the decades.

There are also many opinions about its use. Generally speaking, there are three more well-founded views.

The first theory is that it is a status symbol, which is exactly a symbol of rhino horn.

"Zhou Li Zhu Shu" records: "The horn of the rhinoceros is the most expensive of the horns."

"Hanshu Biography of the Western Regions" even records: "Pearls, Wenjia, and Tongxi are full in the harem."

It can be seen that rhino horns have been a precious wealth since ancient times.

There are root carvings in the shape of rhinoceros horns in the tomb, which is likely to show the noble status of the tomb owner.

But some objected, and they thought that this kind of thing was used to untie knots.

Because the ropes at that time were not strong, the horses pulled the carts, and the ropes were easy to break. In order to connect the ropes and tie the dead knots on the ropes, the coachman needed this horn very much.

Regarding the use of this horn, there is another theory with many supporters, that is, it was an offering during sacrifices.

Because the horn-shaped utensils are too similar to "Ya", "Zhou Li·Chunguan·Sheng Master" records: "Ya, shaped like a lacquer wand with a mouth, big two circumference, five feet six inches long, made of sheep and wei". , there are two groups of (new) sparse paintings."

This record is basically consistent with the unearthed horns. Experts even detected traces of leather covering on the surface, which makes it more in line with the "elegant" appearance.

Some people even say that there is also a tiger-seat bird-frame drum in the tomb, which was unearthed together with the horns, which implies that it is a kind of musical instrument.

Exactly what the angler was used for is still uncertain.

However, according to the comparison of the difficulty level of the experts, this horn-shaped vessel should have existed a few years earlier than the root carving of evil spirits.

This is really a cultural relic that "cannot be judged by its appearance". It can be seen from this that this horn-shaped vessel is the ancestor of root carving and is the best in the world.

After the Warring States Period, in the Western Han Dynasty, the descendants of Confucius used the natural curved shape of Kaimu to make crutches.

During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, many practical objects and furniture such as stick heads, pen holders, Buddha handles, scratch backs, and pipes made of tree roots appeared.

Secondly, in the Southern Qi Book, there is a record that Qi Gaozu gave Shaozhu root "Ruyi" to the hermit monk.

At the same time, some root-made utilities, furnishings and furniture appeared.

After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, root carving was not only widely spread among the people, but also favored by the royal family and nobles.

According to the "New Book of Tang Li Mi Biography" records: "Bi tried to take pine branches to hide his back, called 'Yanghe', and those who got the shape of a dragon later, because they offered to the emperor, the four parties competed for it."

It is about Li Mi, an official in Ye in the Tang Dynasty, who used natural tree roots to make a dragon-shaped claw back and dedicated it to the emperor.

In "Timu Layman", Han Yu has a poem "The fire penetrates the waves and does not count the spring, the root is like the head and the face is dry like the body. Occasionally inscribed as a wood layman, there will be endless people who seek blessings."

The "wooden layman" in the poem is a root art work regarded as the image of "God and Buddha".

This must be a description, a root carving "figure" work.

Root carving works in the Song and Yuan Dynasties developed in the court and among the people.

The root art of this period was not only popular and developed in the court and among the people, but also appeared in grottoes and temples.

In some grottoes and temples in our country, there are still root-carved Buddha statues.

Moreover, some painters also use root carvings as their creative materials.

In "Bo Ya Guqin Picture", many of the paintings are root carving works.

In the Ming Dynasty, root carving works had more unique artistic features.

A large number of root carving artists emerged in the Qing Dynasty, which brought root carving creation to a new stage.

They inherited the tradition of wood carving art and created many excellent root art works.

So far, there are still many treasures of root carvings from the Qing Dynasty in the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace and the Yu Garden in the sea.

(End of this chapter)