The golden dragon is flying, and it is the New Year again.
The dragon has always been regarded as a symbol of the Chinese nation. Whether it is in the mainland of the motherland and its coastal islands, or the descendants of Yan and Huang who live in different parts of the world thousands of miles away from home, when celebrating national festivals or holding celebrations, they will never forget to perform the cheerful and fiery dragon dance. In the multi-person dance, with the beat of gongs and drums, it rolls forward and retreats, and dances vigorously. In particular, the dragon lantern that dances after nightfall is flying in the night, spreading light and joy, and sending out the pride of striving for progress, symbolizing the spirit of the Chinese nation that is not afraid of hardships and dangers.
When it comes to dragon dance, its origins are at least in the pre-Qin period or earlier. Up to now, there is no distinction between north and south, no distinction between Han and Miao or other nationalities, the props of the dragon dance, the dragon, have common characteristics, all have a beautifully crafted dragon head, which is then connected to a slender body, which is composed of several sections, without legs and claws, and there is a long pole under each section for the dragon dancer to hold. The shape of the giant head with a long body and no feet is reminiscent of the physical characteristics of a prehistoric jade dragon. The 5,000-year-old jade dragon of the Hongshan culture unearthed in Sanxingtala, Inner Mongolia, is connected to a slender body behind a huge head, without legs and claws. The jade dragon with a similar shape has been repeatedly found in the Hongshan cultural sites in Inner Mongolia, Liaoning and other places, and some have thicker heads, more curled up bodies, and even close to the shape of the head and tail. The prehistoric jade dragon with a similar shape has also been unearthed at the Lingjiatan site in Hanshan County, Anhui Province in the south, with the same large head and slender body, no legs and claws, and the tail end of the hook is even connected to the chin, but there are horns on the head and the dorsal fin is more obvious. The image of a prehistoric dragon with a slender body and no feet later appeared in the pottery plate painting pattern of the Longshan culture of Xiangfen Taosi in Shanxi Province, but its head is slightly smaller, the teeth in the mouth are obvious, and the body is full of scales. In the Shang Dynasty, the jade dragon unearthed from the tomb of the Yinxu woman is the shape of the giant's long body without feet, and the dragon pattern decorated with the copper plate unearthed in the same tomb is even more exquisite, the huge dragon head is in the center of the plate, and the more slender body is circumferentially turned, without feet and claws, and the head is born with double horns and the body is covered with scales. The word "dragon" in the oracle bone inscription is also taken from the pictogram of the dragon pattern of the giant head and the long body. At the same time, the development trajectory of the giant chieftain body without a foot dragon pattern also shows that the Chinese ancestors have the commonality of national culture and the centripetal force of cohesion since ancient times, and it is also the spiritual symbol of the cohesion and unity of the Chinese nation today.
In addition, there are also some images that are considered to be "dragons" in prehistoric art, such as the image of a mussel simulating a Chinese crocodile, which appears on the western slope of Puyang, Henan; Simulated image of salamander (baby fish), which appears in the color pattern of Majiayao culture in Gansu Province. Although they have four legs, they are different from the four-legged dragons after the Qin and Han dynasties. As mentioned earlier, due to the convergence and integration of ancient cultures, the shape of the dragon became more and more mature during the Yin Shang period. However, until the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, the decorative patterns of bronzes and silk fabrics of the divided vassal states were still varied and varied, and the shapes were also different depending on the era and region. After Qin Shi Huang unified the six kingdoms, the dragon pattern was gradually standardized. By the time of the Western Han Dynasty, it was more stereotyped as a slender body, with scales and armor all over the body, four legs with claws, and horns on the top. After the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the body of the dragon turned to be more plump, more handsome, the fin armor erected on the back became more and more obvious, and there were wings behind the elbows, and the typical shape was the mosaic brick painting of the tomb of the Southern Dynasty in Danyang. Until the Tang and Song dynasties, the dragon was a common decorative pattern on daily copper mirrors and ceramic vessels. After the anthropomorphic "Twelve Chen" images became popular in the Sui and Tang dynasties, the "Chen" figurines with the shape of the dragon's head robe became the ancestor of the dragon king's crown and dragon head art in later operas.
As the Year of the Dragon is approaching, may our great Chinese nation soar like a dragon!
The author is a researcher at the Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences).
Hongshan Culture Jade Pig Dragon, Neolithic Age, Inner Mongolia Bahrain Right Banner Museum Collection.
Dunhuang Cave 245 Xixia Tuanlong Caojing Xixia.
Guwen Jade Dragon, Warring States Period, Shanghai Museum.
The Green Dragon of the Four Gods Wadang, Han Collection, Shanghai Museum.
Gilt Walking Dragon, Tang Dynasty, Xi'an Museum Collection.
Green glazed dragon head dragon handle pot Tang Yangzhou Museum collection.
Molongtu Song Chen Rong Collection of Guangdong Provincial Museum.
Sanqing Palace, caisson closed dragon yuan, Shanxi Province Yongle Palace Mural Art Museum collection.
Rectangular box with red cloud dragon pattern dome Ming Palace Museum collection.
Three-color glazed dragon-shaped building components Ming Palace Museum collection.
Jingdezhen kiln colorful cloud dragon pattern jar Ming Shanghai Museum collection.
The Qing Dynasty, Hu Zhengsheng, Collection of the Palace Museum.
Emperor Yongzheng in December, the view of the dragon boat, partial, Qing Dynasty, collection of the Palace Museum.
Glaze red dragon pattern pen holder Qing Palace Museum collection.
Fengtian edict box Qing Confucius Museum collection.
Hundred sons full picture woodblock New Year painting Qing Wang Shucun collection.
Jingdezhen kiln blue and white red color kui dragon pattern plate Qing Shanghai Museum collection.
The golden silk dot cui four dragons play bead bracelet Qing Palace Museum collection.
Book of Flowers, Birds and Animals, Qing Dynasty, Shen Quan, Collection of Shanghai Museum.
February 4, 2024 China Culture Daily
Special reports are published in the 2nd and 3rd editions.
"Golden Dragon Dance to Celebrate the New Year".
Editor-in-charge: Chen Chen.