In Chinese history, the image of the dragon has always been a symbol of dignity and auspiciousness, and has also derived interesting allusions and legends such as "the finishing touch" and "the dragon gave birth to nine sons", and we also call ourselves "the descendants of the dragon".
For thousands of years, our predecessors have given non-real dragons a variety of vivid images with their rich imagination, and through sculptures, paintings, bronze castings and other artistic creations, they have been passed down to the present day, so that we can get a glimpse of the diverse dragon culture behind them.
The Year of the Dragon has arrived, and the cover news will take you to the "cloud exhibition" to see the dragons in the museum.
The debut of Sanxingdui dragon-shaped bronze ornaments.
The No. 8 sacrificial pit of Sanxingdui site was unearthed.
Special exhibition at the Sichuan Museum.
On January 23, the Sichuan Museum, together with a number of museums in the province, jointly launched the "Dragon Walking China - 2024 Spring Festival Special Exhibition", bringing many precious cultural relics. Among them, the dragon-shaped bronze ornament unearthed in the No. 8 sacrificial pit of the Sanxingdui site in Guanghan, Sichuan Province in 2021 was unveiled, which is the first time it has met with the public. At the same time, there are more than 60 sets of cultural relics related to dragon culture, such as high-relief green dragon stone carvings and dragon pattern sandwich silver cups. The exhibition will run until May 19.
Bronze altar part (left) and dragon-shaped bronze ornament (right).
c" debuted as the "first dragon in China".
Inner Mongolia Wengniute Banner Sanxing Tara unearthed.
Collection of the National Museum of China.
In 1971, the Neolithic Hongshan culture "jasper C-shaped dragon" was accidentally discovered by the people, which led to the brilliant Hongshan jade culture, showing how jade became the material carrier of the Chinese ancestors to communicate with heaven and earth more than 5,000 years ago. This jade dragon is carved from dark green Xiuyan jade, with a smooth body, a long snout on the head, a flying mane, and a curled body. This is the original form of the dragon image in China, and it is also the leader in the early dragon form cultural relics in China.
Jasper C-shaped dragon.
A painted dragon plate that symbolizes royal power.
The site of Tao Temple in Xiangfen County, Shanxi Province was unearthed.
Collection of Shanxi Museum.
At the end of the 70s of the 20th century, the painted dragon plate was unearthed in the early cemetery of the Taosi site. The cemetery is so large that archaeologists have excavated 1,309 of its tombs. The dragon pan can only be found in five large tombs, and there is only one in each tomb, which is a symbol of rank and status, and it is also a high-standard sacrificial ritual vessel. The texture of the dragon plate is gray pottery, the dragon head is in the outer ring, the dragon tail is curled up in the plate, and the dragon body is the body of a snake, which is the image of the early Chinese dragon.
Painted dragon plate.
Cute "conspicuous bag" jade pig dragon.
Liaoning Province Niuheliang site No. 1 mound No. 4 tomb unearthed.
Collection of Niuheliang Ruins Museum.
Jade pig dragon is the name of a kind of jade found in Hongshan and other places in China's archaeological circles, and is considered to be the earliest prototype of the dragon. Its head is broad and fat, its snout is convex, its head and tail are connected, and its face has thin folds, and its shape resembles a dragon and a pig. But it does not have dragon horns, dragon whiskers and other characteristics, and the form is simple and natural. The jade pig dragon is large and small, and the height of the small one is only two or three centimeters, which is mostly used for wearing; The large one is as high as 15 centimeters, and experts speculate that it may be a "sacred object", a totem worshipped by the ancestors of Hongshan.
Jade Pig Dragon.
The red gold dragon that has been running for thousands of years.
Unearthed in Hejia Village, Xi'an City.
Collection of Shaanxi History Museum.
In 1970, when this group of Tang Dynasty artifacts was unearthed, they were not exposed, but contained in a fine silver jar. When the experts opened the silver jar, they saw that the silver jar contained liquid, and a piece of gold leaf floated in it, and on top of the gold leaf stood a small golden dragon. They are slender, lifelike, and running, shattering people's minds about dragons. Its unique shape and position when it was unearthed also metaphorically implied extraordinary intentions, and experts speculate that it may be a sacrificial weapon.
Red Gold Walking Dragon.
A delicate and rare cloud dragon pattern plate.
The ruins of Faxing Temple in Quyang, Hebei Province were unearthed.
Special exhibition at the Shanghai Museum.
From January 26th to March 31st, the "Spring Dragon Fusion - Spring Festival Exhibition in the Year of the Dragon at the Shanghai Museum" will display 8 dragon cultural relics from different periods and different images. Among them, the white glaze printing cloud dragon pattern plate of the Ding kiln in the Song and Jin dynasties is exquisitely crafted, and it is scarce in existence, which can be called a masterpiece. Its body and foot end are full of glaze, and the glaze is white and yellowish. The inner wall is molded with cloud dragon patterns, the dragon body is vigorous, the scales and armor are fine, and the head and tail look at each other, leaping in the clouds. Since the Song Dynasty, the shape of the dragon has formed a relatively fixed paradigm, which has had a profound impact on later generations.
Dingyao white glaze printed cloud dragon pattern plate.
Zeng Hou Yizun plate.
Tomb of Zeng Marquis B in Suizhou City, Hubei.
Collection of Hubei Provincial Museum.
In 1978, the early Warring States period of the tomb of Marquis Yi officially began to excavate, in addition to the world-famous bell, its plate is also the world's attention. This is a vessel composed of two parts, the Zun and the plate, and the height is 301 cm, diameter 25 cm, plate height 235 cm, caliber 58 cm. The rim of the mouth, neck, abdomen and hoop feet of the Zun are covered with embossed dragons, the plate is more intricately made, and the four hands are also hollowed out by countless dragons and snakes. The Zeng Hou Yizun plate is the pinnacle of Shang and Zhou bronzes.
Zeng Hou Yizun plate dragon-shaped attachment.
A dragon-shaped zodiac figurine to ward off evil spirits.
Unearthed by Yangzhou Institute of Agricultural Sciences.
Collection of Yangzhou Museum.
In the zodiac, the dragon is the only imaginary animal. The 12 zodiac figurines were regarded by the ancients as a tomb vessel for "overpowering" and "warding off evil spirits", and there were many burials in the tombs of the Tang and Song dynasties. In 1984, three of the 12 zodiac figurines were unearthed, namely the rooster, the dragon, and the afternoon horse, and the figurines were standing figures, all of which were molded with the head of the beast, wearing a long robe with wide sleeves and pulling the ground, and the hands were crossed in front of the chest, and the belt was tied.
Three-color zodiac figurines.
Epilogue.
Long Teng auspicious, Vientiane enlightened. As one of the long-standing symbols of Chinese civilization, the history associated with dragons goes far beyond that. I hope that these cultural relics can make the descendants of the dragon feel the high vitality and continue to write the glory of pioneering and enterprising in the new year.
Cover News Liu Lin Synthesized from various museums.