简介:WhataretheoriginsoftheverydistinctiveancientChinesebronzes?ThequestionhaslongbeendebatedamongscholarsandthispaperattemptstoinvestigatethisdifficultanddemandingquestionbyexploringtheearlymetalobjectsdiscoveredthrougharchaeologythroughoutChina.Theterm‘earlymetals’referstoallpre-Shang(pre-16thcenturyBCE)metalobjectsfoundinChinathataremadeofpurecopper(hongtong红铜,Cu),brass(huangtong黄铜,Cu-Zn),arseniccopper(shentong砷铜,Cu-As)andbronze(qingtong青铜).Theterm‘bronzes'(qingtongqi)refersspecificallytothosedistinctivepiecesmadeofcopper-tin(Cu-Sn),copper-lead(Cu-Pb)andcopper-tin-lead(Cu-Sn-Pb)alloys.
简介:Thebronzeplaquesdecoratedwithanimal,humanorgeometricdesignsweretheornamentsontheleatherbeltsofthenomadicpeople,suchasXiongnu(Hun)andXianbei(Sienpi)inNorthernChinaintheQinandHanDynasties.Theseplaqueshaduniqueregionalandethnicalcharacteristics.Therehavebeenmanydifferentideasontheoriginationofthiskindofplaques.Theauthorplanstogivehisownopinionherebyonthisissue.