The Adaptation and Transformation of Eurasian Animal Style Art in Qin Gold Ornaments

Li Jun

Li Jun is a professor at the Central Academy of Fine Arts， dean of the School of Humanities， a research scholar of Renaissance art history and a historian of cross-cultural art. He is a visiting scholar at the Florence Renaissance Research Center in Harvard University， and a visiting professor at the University of Bologna， Italy.

Annals of Transcultural History of Art， Volume III： The Images of Ancient History takes case studies and methodological innovation as the path and target. Through seventeen research articles by sixteen authors， it attempts to tell a series of stories of cross-cultural art history starting from China and a world perspective.

Annals of Transcultural History of Art， Volume III：

The Images of Ancient History

Lijun （editor-in-chief）

Shandong Fine Arts Publishing House

January 2022

298.00 （CNY）

Qin Gold Ornaments

The earliest known gold artifacts of the Qin are a batch of thin gold sheets in the form of stylized birds （figs. 1–2） and various geometric shapes （figs. 3–6）， which emerged during the 1990s in overseas markets and ended up in various collections. Datable to the early Spring and Autumn Period （770–476 BCE）， they are believed to be from the tombs of the Dukes of Qin at the necropolis on Mount Dabuzi， in Lixian， Gansu Province.

Mount Dabuzi， or Great Fort Mountain （named for a fort built on its summit in the Qing Dynasty）， is some eight miles east of present-day Lixian， in eastern Gansu Province. In the 1980s， a number of ancient tombs were accidentally opened when local farmers were digging for “dragon bones，” or fossils， which people believed could cure sickness. Theft and serious damage to the tombs ensued in 1992–1993. The mountain was torn open by grave robbers who stole numerous valuable cultural relics until security forces and archaeologists stepped in. The subsequent archaeological excavation from March to November 1994 revealed a graveyard extending some 250 meters east to west and 140 meters north to south. Further excavation within an area of about 35，000 square meters uncovered more than two hundred tombs of various sizes， all with east-west orientation. Most of them had been looted. Chinese archaeologists so far have excavated two large tombs （M2 and M3） in shape referred to as zhong， one of two chariot-and-horse pits （K1）， and nine medium-sized tombs.

The tomb structure suggests that the tomb occupants were persons of high status. It is also an indication of the Qin’s adherence to Western Zhou ritual customs， as such burial structures had become standard in aristocrats’ mortuary practice in the Central Plains since the late Shang Dynasty. Although Chinese archaeologists found few valuable objects in the looted large tombs， seven gold plaques excavated by archaeologists from Tomb M2 have a double-loop pattern almost identical to that on some plaques in the European private collections.

Within this group of gold artifacts in the European private collections， there are four gold tigers （41 cm long， 16 cm high） made of thick gold sheet， fixed to a wooden frame by nails （figs. 7–8）. "Each tiger is in a crouching pose， with its hind legs kneeling while the forelegs are missing， leaving only two openings where the legs were originally attached. Whereas the body of the tiger is stylized， the head is sculpted vividly， looking back with bulging eyes and large pointed ears. The entire torso and legs， as well as the nostrils， are decorated with a chevron pattern in cinnabar red， in a fashion echoing the motif seen on the bronze animals of the Eastern Zhou period. One good example is the open-work relief of tigers attached to the lid of a ding cauldron in the Tokyo National Museum （C0065431）， 26.3 cm high， datable to the Spring and Autumn period （figs. 9a–9b）.

These gold sheets were used to embellish coffins. Their sophistication and exquisiteness suggest that the Qin love for gold may have begun earlier than previously supposed. As proved by the recent archaeological finds， during the late Spring and

Autumn Period and the early Warring States Period， Qin rulers and aristocrats possessed large quantities of gold ornaments， and goldsmithing was more refined and advanced in Qin than in other contemporary states of the Central Plains. Gold artifacts have been

found in many tombs of Qin rulers and aristocrats. Particularly stunning and significant are

those discovered in Tomb 2 at Yimen Village， south of Baoji， excavated in 1992. Of more

than 200 relics from that tomb， 104 were made of gold. These included belt hooks and

buckles， chained ornaments， sword hilts， rosettes， and ornaments for horses， chariots， reins， and harnesses; the combined weight of all the gold was reported to be three kilograms. "The sheer quantity and quality of gold objects from this tomb testifies to the very high technical standards of Qin artisans.

Many of these gold objects were fabricated by means of casting， a technique that stemmed from the bronze tradition. The decorative designs employed include animal masks and serpentine patterns similar to those seen on contemporary bronzes and

jades. The Shang and Western Zhou tradition remained ubiquitous in those gold objects

unearthed from Yimen. Seven small gold rosettes were unearthed from Yimen Tomb 2 （fig.

10）. "Each of them takes the shape of an animal mask with almond-shaped eyes， a design modeled on earlier bronze vessels’ decorations. Stylized serpentine patterns punctuated by precious inlaid stones （perhaps representing the serpents’ eyes） decorate the surface， while a triangular serpent-head peeks out from the bottom edge of each ornament in a

surprisingly realistic way.

An excellent example of Qin work is an iron sword with an openwork gold hilt ornamented with inlaid turquoise . "Of three swords with gold hilts discovered at Yimen Tomb 2， this is the most impressive. When the sword was excavated， there were remnants of fabric around it， and seven small gold circular finials in a line were apparently part of the decayed scabbard. The blade features a cylindrical central ridge. The eye-catching hilt is of rare quality and craftsmanship. Its design of interlaced serpent- like motifs is consistent with the sophisticated carvings on contemporary bronzes and jades. A sword such as this， clearly not an effective weapon， was made for ceremonial and ritual use.

It is worth noting that the minute grain patterns used to suggest dragon scales are a typical feature of Qin gold ornaments during the Spring and Autumn Period. While the technique of true granulation consists of soldering tiny spheres of gold onto a thin foil that forms the structure of the ornament， the Qin type of minute grain pattern is a sort of pseudo-granulation. The oldest archeological findings of gold made with this technique

were found in the royal tombs of Ur， Mesopotamia， and date back to 2500 BCE. From this area， the technique spread to Anatolia， in Syria， Troy， Etruria， and Asia.

In China， the earliest examples of true granulation in gold are from the Western Han Dynasty， as exemplified by a small golden model of a stove decorated with small spheres of gold， which was unearthed from the Western Han tomb in Shapo Village， Xi’an.

Some scholars believe that the technique of pseudo-granulation in Qin goldsmiths may be an influence from the steppe region.

While the steppe influence in the examples of true granulation from the Western Han is indeed undeniable， the pseudo-granulation can be linked to the same pattern represented over the centuries in bronzes during the middle and late Spring and Autumn Period. Prototypes of such ornamentation can be found in earlier and contemporary bronze vessels， seen particularly in works excavated from Liyu and Jinsheng， Shanxi Province.

An unusual and humorous representation in gold is a diminutive tiger excavated in 1991 from a tomb at Weijiaya， Chencang， in Baoji， Shaanxi， now in the collection of the Chencang Administration for Cultural Relics. "Datable to the Warring States Period （475–221 BCE）， it is 2.3 cm high and 4.8 cm long. This tiger， which was cast from a mold， is vividly rendered with an open mouth， bared teeth， bulging eyes， and pricked-up ears. The herringbone motif seen on its body is a typical pattern favored by Qin artisans， as seen in the gold tigers from Mount Dabuzi discussed above and other artifacts in various mediums. Along the concave back is a horizontal bar through which a strap could be laced to tie it to other objects. A mirror image of a gold dog was found in 1979 at Fengxiang， Shaanxi， now in the collection of the Xi’an Municipal Museum， Shaanxi.

The unique characteristic of the gold tiger lies in its posture： when viewed in profile， its head turns to view the viewers en face. It is apparent that the form of the

golden tiger is derived from the early bronze tradition of the Qin itself. Qin bronze art was obviously established on the basis of imitating the bronze culture of the Western Zhou. However， from the middle of the Spring and Autumn Period， the Qin artisans began to shake off the shackles created by the Western Zhou bronze tradition and developed their own unique style of decoration. A large number of bronze vessels unearthed from the Qin aristocratic cemetery in， Mount Yuanding of Lixian， Gansu in

1998， show that the Qin artisans were keen to attach vivid animal decorations to ritual vessels， and the tiger image is one of them. For example， there are two square

fanghu vessels unearthed from the Tomb M1. The specimen 98LDM1 is 48.8 cm high. "The neck of the lid is decorated with a relief depicting serpents， and on the abdomen is a combination of phoenixes and serpents. There are many three-dimensional ornaments throughout. Four tigers are attached to each corner of the foot rim， serving as the stands. With its legs folding under its body at a right angle and its claws

clenched into fists， each tiger’s body is decorated with }} patterns. Each crouching tiger， when viewed in profile， turns its head to stare at the viewer. When comparing the shape and decoration of these tigers with the two golden tigers mentioned above， we can sincerely admire that the image of the tiger， cast in bronze a few hundred years before， gained new life when recreated as gold ornaments.

The prototype of such configurations can be traced even further back to the bronze tradition of the Western Zhou Dynasty. The evidence comes from a fragment of a clay model excavated from the site of a foundry at Lijia in Zhouyuan， Shaanxi. "Although the clay model only depicts the front part of a tiger， it is enough to prove its affinity to the tiger figure reflected in the fanghu stands and the gold tigers discussed previously.The characteristic posture of the crouching tiger in profile， turning its head to gaze at the viewer， shares an undeniable similarity to this group of works under discussion.

Gold and jade carving not only competed with each other， but also influenced one another. The result was the birth of a new type of ornament that used both materials： gilt bronze belt hooks were now sometimes inlaid with jade， and gold animal masks could hold jade rings. A pushou ring holder of the Warring States Period， excavated at Qianhe， Baoji， in 1972， is an outstanding example. In this tiny object， only 2.8 cm long， the symbolic and decorative vernacular of Chinese bronzes has been rendered in the precious materials of gold and jade. It consists of two taotie monster masks in gold， one above the other， the jaw of the lower one extending to hold a jade ring. This pushou would have been an appendage to a ritual or ceremonial object （a bar at the back allows suspension）.Such was the new fashion during this period. The juxtaposition of a very malleable metal and an extremely tough stone not only created a pleasing visual contrast but received praise for its increased durability.

The above discussion shows that， while the achievements of Qin bronzesmiths–with their extensive production of sophisticated ritual and ceremonial vessels–have defined the art of Qin during the period from the Spring and Autumn Period to the establishment of the Qin Dynasty， gold and silver were also employed， albeit more sparingly， for objects of special and often personal value， including ornaments， horse fittings， belt buckles， and ritual accouterments. In terms of style and ornament， these gold objects are consistent with the prevailing， contemporaneous Eastern Zhou bronze aesthetic， but have a heightened refinement and intricacy.