Day3 （7/17/16）Study
Day4 （7/18/16）
1. Terracotta Army The Terracotta Army (Chinese: 兵马俑; literally: "Soldier-and-horse funerary statues") is a collection of terracotta sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. It is a form of funerary art buried with the emperor in 210–209 BCE and whose purpose was to protect the emperor in his afterlife.
The figures, dating from approximately the late third century BCE,[1] were discovered in 1974 by local farmers in Lintong District, Xi'an, Shaanxi province. The figures vary in height according to their roles, with the tallest being the generals. The figures include warriors, chariots and horses. Estimates from 2007 were that the three pits containing the Terracotta Army held more than 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses, the majority of which remained buried in the pits nearby Qin Shi Huang's mausoleum.[2] Other terracotta non-military figures were found in other pits, including officials, acrobats, strongmen and musicians.
Contents
[hide]
Discovery
The Terracotta Army was discovered on 29 March 1974[3] to the east of Xi'an in Shaanxi province by farmers digging a water well approximately 1.6 kilometres (0.99 mi) east of the Qin Emperor's tomb mound at Mount Li (Lishan),[4][5] a region riddled with underground springs and watercourses. For centuries, occasional reports mentioned pieces of terracotta figures and fragments of the Qin necropolis – roofing tiles, bricks and chunks of masonry.[6] This discovery prompted Chinese archaeologists to investigate, revealing the largest pottery figurine group ever found in China.
History
The mound where the tomb is located
The construction of the tomb was described by historian Sima Qian (145–90 BCE) in his most noted work Shiji, written a century after the mausoleum's completion. Work on the mausoleum began in 246 BCE soon after Emperor Qin (then aged 13) ascended the throne, and the project eventually involved 700,000 workers.[7] Geographer Li Daoyuan, writing six centuries after the First Emperor's death, recorded in Shui Jing Zhu that Mount Li was a favoured location due to its auspicious geology, "famed for its jade mines, its northern side was rich in gold, and its southern side rich in beautiful jade; the First Emperor, covetous of its fine reputation, therefore chose to be buried there".[8][9] Sima Qian wrote that the First Emperor was buried with palaces, towers, officials, valuable artifacts and wondrous objects. According to this account, 100 flowing rivers were simulated using mercury, and above them the ceiling was decorated with heavenly bodies below which were the features of the land. Some translations of this passage refer to "models" or "imitations;" however, those words were not used in the original text, which makes no mention of the terracotta army.[7][10]
High levels of mercury were found in the soil of the tomb mound, giving credence to Sima Qian's account.[11]
Later historical accounts suggested that the tomb had been looted by Xiang Yu, a contender for the throne after the death of the first emperor.[12][13][14] However, there are indications that the tomb may not have been plundered.[15]
Necropolis
View of the Terracotta Army
The Terracotta Army is part of a much larger necropolis. The entire necropolis built for the emperor covering a large area was found surrounding the first emperor's tomb mound. The earthen tomb mound is located at the foot of Mount Li and built in a pyramidal shape with Qin Shi Huang’s necropolis complex constructed as a microcosm of his imperial palace or compound.[16] The warriors stood guard to the east of the tomb.
It consists of several offices, halls, stables, and other structures placed around the tomb mound, which is surrounded by two solidly built rammed earth walls with gateway entrances. Up to 5 metres (16 ft) of reddish, sandy soil had accumulated over the site in the two millennia following its construction, but archaeologists found evidence of earlier disturbances at the site. During the excavations near the Mount Li burial mound, archaeologists found several graves dating from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, where diggers had apparently struck terracotta fragments. These were discarded as worthless and used along with soil to back fill the excavations.[17]
The tomb
Main article: Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor
The tomb appears to be a hermetically-sealed space the size of a football pitch.[18][19] The tomb remains unopened, possibly due to concerns about preservation of its artifacts.[18] For example, after the excavation of the Terracotta Army, the painted surface present on some terracotta figures began to flake and fade.[20] The lacquer covering the paint can curl in fifteen seconds once exposed to Xi'an's dry air and can flake off in just four minutes.[21] Excavation site
The museum complex containing the excavation sites
Pits
View of Pit 1, the largest excavation pit of the Terracotta Army
Four main pits approximately 7 metres (23 ft) deep have been excavated.[22][23] These are located approximately 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) east of the burial mound. The soldiers within were laid out as if to protect the tomb from the east, where all the Qin Emperor's conquered states lay.
Pit one
Pit one, which is 230 metres (750 ft) long and 62 metres (203 ft) wide,[24] contains the main army of more than 6,000 figures.[25] Pit one has 11 corridors, most of which are more than 3 metres (9.8 ft) wide and paved with small bricks with a wooden ceiling supported by large beams and posts. This design was also used for the tombs of nobles and would have resembled palace hallways when built. The wooden ceilings were covered with reed mats and layers of clay for waterproofing, and then mounded with more soil raising them about 2 to 3 metres (6 ft 7 in to 9 ft 10 in) above the surrounding ground level when completed.[26]
Others
Pit two has cavalry and infantry units as well as war chariots and is thought to represent a military guard. Pit three is the command post, with high-ranking officers and a war chariot. Pit four is empty, perhaps left unfinished by its builders.
Some of the figures in pit one and two show fire damage, while remains of burnt ceiling rafters have also been found.[27] These, together with the missing weapons, have been taken as evidence of the reported looting by Xiang Yu and the subsequent burning of the site, which is thought to have caused the roof to collapse and crush the army figures below. The terracotta figures currently on display have been restored from the fragments.
Other pits that formed the necropolis also have been excavated.[28] These pits lie within and outside the walls surrounding the tomb mound. They variously contain bronze carriages, terracotta figures of entertainers such as acrobats and strongmen, officials, stone armour suits, burials sites of horses, rare animals and labourers, as well as bronze cranes and ducks set in an underground park.[29]
Warrior figures
A terracotta soldier with his horse
Construction
The terracotta army figures were manufactured in workshops by government laborers and local craftsmen using local materials. Heads, arms, legs, and torsos were created separately and then assembled.[30] Eight face moulds were most likely used, with clay added after assembly to provide individual facial features.[31] It is believed that the warriors' legs were made in much the same way that terracotta drainage pipes were manufactured at the time. This would classify the process as assembly line production, with specific parts manufactured and assembled after being fired, as opposed to crafting one solid piece and subsequently firing it. In those times of tight imperial control, each workshop was required to inscribe its name on items produced to ensure quality control. This has aided modern historians in verifying which workshops were commandeered to make tiles and other mundane items for the terracotta army. Upon completion, the terracotta figures were placed in the pits in precise military formation according to rank and duty.
Stone armor suit on display in the National Geographic Museum, USA.
The terracotta figures are life-sized. They vary in height, uniform, and hairstyle in accordance with rank. Originally, the figures were also painted with bright pigments, variously coloured pink, red, green, blue, black, brown, white and lilac.[32][33] The coloured lacquer finish and individual facial features would have given the figures a realistic feel. However, much of the colour coating had flaked off or become greatly faded.
There is speculation of a possible Hellenistic link to these sculptures, due to the lack of life-sized and realistic sculptures prior to the Qin dynasty according to some scholars.[34][35]
Weaponry
Most of the figures originally held real weapons such as spears, swords, or crossbows, and the use of actual weapons would have increased the figures' realism. Most of the original weapons, however, were looted shortly after the creation of the army, or have rotted away. Nevertheless, many weapons such as swords, spears, battle-axes, scimitars, shields, crossbows, and arrowheads were found in the pits.[22][36] Some of these weapons, such as the swords are sharp and were coated with a 10–15 micrometre layer of chromium dioxide that kept the swords rust-free for 2,000 years.[37][38][39] The swords contain an alloy of copper, tin, and other elements including nickel, magnesium, and cobalt.[40] Some carry inscriptions that date manufacture between 245 and 228 BCE, indicating they were used as weapons before their burials.[41]
An important element of the army is the chariot, of which four types were found. In battle the fighting chariots formed pairs at the head of a unit of infantry. The principal weapon 2。Huaqing Pool (Chinese: 华清池) or the Huaqing Hot Springs Huaqing Pool (Chinese: 华清池) or the Huaqing Hot Springs are a complex of hot springs located in an area characterized by mild weather and scenic views at the northern foot of Mount Li, one of the three major peaks of the Qin Mountains. The Huaqing Hot Springs are located approximately 25 km east of Xi'an (formerly Chang'an, the western capital of the Tang dynasty), now in the province of Shaanxi, China. It was built in 723 by Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang dynasty as part of the Huaqing Palace (華清宮), using the locally-occurring geothermal heating, and is famous as the supposed scene of Xuanzong's romance with his consort Yang Guifei.[1] This site was also the scene of the 1936 Xi'an Incident, when Chiang Kai-shek was kidnapped by former warlord Zhang Xueliang and forced to participate in a United Front with the Chinese Communist Party to oppose Japanese encroachment on China.[2]
Huaqing Pool is now an important tourist spot, classified as a AAAAA scenic area by the China National Tourism Administration.[3]
History[edit]
The site features a long documented history of almost three millennia, having served as the location for several palaces built during the reigns of past Chinese dynastic rulers, including King You of the Zhou dynasty, Qin Shi Huang of the Qin dynasty, and an expanded version by Wu Han of the Han dynasty. Under the Tang emperors Taizong and Xuanzong, the palace structure was rebuilt and renamed the Huaqing Palace. However, during the events associated with the An Lushan rebellion, considerable damage was done to the site. Nevertheless, the historical legacy of the Huaqing pools has received lasting commemoration, such as in the following mention of Emperor Xuanzong and Yang in Bai Juyi's poem "Song of Everlasting Regret":
On a cold spring day, he bestowed upon her the honor of bathing with him at the Huaqing pools,
According to legend, this is the pool that was used by Yang Guifei and the emperor.
The waters of the hot springs were smooth, and washed over her pale white skin.
The palace maids helped her to leave the pool, because she was too delicate and lacked strength.
This was when she began to receive the emperor's advances. 3。 Chang hen ge (poem) Chang hen ge (poem)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Modern statue of Yang Guifei
The Chang hen ge (长恨歌; lit. "The Song of Everlasting Regret/Sorrow") is a Tang dynasty poem by Bai Juyi (772-846) retelling the story of Yang Guifei (719-756), concubine of the Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. The poem is dated from 809.[1]
Influence[edit]
A long list of literary, political, visual, musical and film works have been based on or referenced the Chang hen ge. Influence started almost immediately the poem had been written. Bai Juyi's friend Chen Hong (fl. 810s) created a dramatic version, Chang hen zhuan, which later inspired Rain on the Paulownia Tree (Wutong yu) by Bai Pu (1226-after 1306) and The Palace of Eternal Youth (Changsheng dian) by Hong Sheng (洪升, 1645-1704).[2]
Painter Li Yishi (李毅士, 1886-1942) illustrated the poem with a series of thirty paintings.[3] In classical music the poem has been set as a cantata by Huang Zi (1933) and as an orchestral song by Mo Fan (1991).[4] The poem is referenced in the writings of Mao Zedong.[5]
References[edit]
Jump up ^ Berry, p. 437.
Jump up ^ Colin MacKerras Chinese Theater: From Its Origins to the Present Day 1983 Page 18 "... The Story of Eternal Bitter Regrets (Changhen zhuan) by Chen Hong (fl. c. 813) and the earlier poem on the same topic by his friend Bai Juyi (772-846) were the prime inspirations of the famous drama Rain on the Paulownia Tree (Wutong yu) by Bai Pu (1226-post-1306) and of The Palace of Eternal Youth (Changsheng dian), the celebrated play of the Qing dynasty by Hong Sheng (1645-1704), discussed in chapter IV..."
Jump up ^ Art and Artists of 20th Century China - Page 50 Michael Sullivan, Franklin D. Murphy - 1996 "There was a good deal of conventional painting, both Chinese and Western; Li Yishi's series of thirty paintings illustrating the tragic poem Changhen ge, the story of the Tang emperor Minghuang's infatuation with Yang Guifei,"
Jump up ^ Chinese music and translated modernity in Shanghai, 1918--1937 - Page 202 Joys Hoi Yan Cheung, University of Michigan - 2008 "The title and text of his monumental cantata Song of Everlasting Remorse (1932-33) , for example, was based on, and named after, his favorite Tang-dynasty poem, "Changhen ge" 长恨歌 by Bo Juyi fiig^ (772-846). Between 1932 and 1935, ..."
Jump up ^ The Writings of Mao Zedong, 1949-1976: January 1956-December 1957 - Volume 2 - Page 540 Zedong Mao, Michael Y. M. Kau, John K. Leung - 1992 "They thereby make this poem by Mao a true "reply to Li Shuyi." 4. ... literary allusion to this legend was the poem "Chang hen ge" (Ballad of the Eternal Remorse) by the Tang-dynasty poet Bai Juyi, written about Yang the Imperial Concubine. 8."
Berry, Michael (2008). "Afterword". The Song of Everlasting Sorrow: A Novel of Shanghai. Columbia University Press. ISBN 0-231-14342-7.