The bronze horse is 34.5cm high, 45cm long,13cm wide and weighs 7.15kg ... This horse has a strong trunk, slender limbs and flexible legs and hooves. The horse leans slightly to one side and brays with its head held high. A bird looking back was stepped on the right hind hoof, and the other three legs were in the air, showing a posture of galloping forward and running at a high speed.
"Tongbenma" was identified as a tourist symbol of China by the National Tourism Administration in June 5438+0983+00, as a national treasure in June 5438+0986, and as the first batch of cultural relics prohibited from going abroad in June 5438+00, 2002.
Although "Swallow on horseback" is famous all over the world, many scholars do not recognize it as "Swallow on horseback" for the simple reason that before Mr. Guo Moruo named it "Swallow on horseback", scholars could not find the phrase "Swallow on horseback" and related allusions in all books. Therefore, archaeologists gave it a more honest, frank and scientific name, that is, "Copper Running Horse" on the signboard of the museum.
As a result, the name "Copper Running Horse" is still disappointing, because this name always makes people feel that the meaning is still unfinished, and there is a feeling that a good horse is not worthy of a good saddle.
I think that such a good horse, which is the crystallization of ancestors' wisdom and the inheritance of skills, should have a more extraordinary, louder and more worthy name.
Unwilling and curious, I still can't find it after reading many books. I asked the teacher why I couldn't find it. The teacher said you read too little. With the psychology of hating less, I have studied for another ten years, but I still can't find it … I can't help asking the teacher, have you found it? The teacher replied that I read too little!
Ten years later, I understand a truth: if I am a book-based person and my teacher is a book-based person, all the books in the world are not life-oriented. A few years later, I finally found a clue to its reputation and creative source:
This horse is called Tianma. If you don't want to give this bronze sculpture a name, I think "unconstrained style" is more appropriate!
Why is it called Tianma? ※?
First of all, the angle on the head
A horse with horns must be no ordinary horse.
(1) The first volume of yan danzi: "The quality of Yan Taizi Dan is in Qin, and the king of Qin is rude and dissatisfied, and wants to return. The king of Qin refused to listen, but said absurdly,' You can be a bald wildebeest.' Dan heaved a sigh, bald when it was dark, and horse had horns. The king of Qin had to send him away. "
(2) "Historical Records Biography of Jing Ke Taishigong" said: "On Jing Ke, it is called the life of Taizi Dan, and Xia Su and Ma Sheng taught."
Cape Ma Sheng is regarded as impossible. The unearthed bronze horse shows that it does have horns, which at least shows that the producer wants to shape it into an extraordinary and special horse.
Second, hoofed birds.
In ancient times, the horse was a military and transportation tool, which had an important position for people to ride. A good pony must be strong, agile, fast and durable. The unearthed bronze horse shows the majestic, graceful and agile spirit. It runs forward quickly with the contralateral footwork ("contralateral footwork" is commonly known as "walking", that is, the two feet on the same side advance and retreat together, and the two sides alternate, so that the horse's center of gravity swings left and right in the movement, thus buffering the upward reaction force on the ground and reducing the sense of bumps), which is exactly in line with the description in the sacrifice song of Tianma.
The producer even fixed the galloping horse, which came from behind and surpassed, from the dynamic moment of flying with three feet and sweeping birds with one foot into an immortal bronze artistic statue, marveling at the exquisite craftsmanship and leaving the world with endless reverie.
How to express a magical and extraordinary horse with a static statue? If mortal horses run on the ground, then something from heaven should be able to fly in the air. To our disappointment, the unearthed bronze horse is indeed a flying horse, which can hoof a bird, indicating that this Sergio Maffettone is average.
Third, the heavenly horse descended to the Han Dynasty
(1) Tianma is the product of the imperial power of the Han Dynasty.
The man who enthusiastically pursued extraordinary horses in the Han Dynasty was Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. At the beginning of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Wu Sunma was given a long official position of profiteering, and he also replied, "Where does the northwest come from?" He thought that this horse was given by Taiyi, and he was overjoyed and excited, so he imitated the Yuefu genre and made one or two songs of his own.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty heard that Jiao Shan in the Western Regions produced a fine pony. This kind of horse has good endurance, strong anti-fatigue ability and hard hooves. It is said that the horseshoe steps on the stone, and the stone will leave hoof prints. Its running speed can be said to be "a thousand miles a day", and the sweat it shed looks as red as blood, which is regarded as a treasure by Dawan people.
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty did not hesitate to send troops to Dawan Kingdom for the sake of "Tianma". First, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty sent an envoy to Dawan, asking for a thousand dollars for a horse in Dawan. After the ambassador was robbed and killed, he sent troops to Dawanguo, and the first battle was unfavorable. Later, Li Guangli was sent to conquer again, and finally defeated Dawanguo and brought back a swift horse called Pushou.
Because Dawan's swift horse is superior to Wusun's horse, Emperor Wu changed Wusun's horse to Xijima, and Ma Pushou of Dawan was named "Tianma" separately, and made the third and fourth songs of "Tianma". ) and the song "Tianma" as a sacrificial song of the ancestral hall.
"Captain Ji An said," When a king has fun, he can inherit his ancestors from his ancestors and turn them into symbols of the people. Now your majesty has a horse, poetry is a song, and it is related to the ancestral temple. How can the people of the first emperor know the evil sound? "(The emperor was silent and looked very unhappy. )
The prime minister said, "I slandered the holy system and became a family." 」
This shows that the degree of Emperor Wu's infatuation with BMW. With his urine, he dared to worship his ancestors with the song Tianma. If he doesn't make the standard image of Tianma, it's meaningless.
(2) Tianma is a characteristic of the Han Dynasty.
This means that this bronze horse unearthed is not unique, because Tianma was a symbol in the Han Dynasty.
(1) Biography of Historical Records Funny: The Golden Horse Gate is the official gate. There is a bronze horse by the door, so it is called "Golden Horse Gate".
Many signs of Golden Horse (Tianma) appeared in the Western Han Dynasty and the Eastern Han Dynasty.
(2) Zhang Heng in the Eastern Han Dynasty: the dragon and the bird are winding, and the horse is half-han.
(3) The background and unearthed environment of bronze horses.
When bronze horses were unearthed, exquisite bronze chariots and horses honor guards were also unearthed. Tianma, whose horseshoes are flying birds, walks in the front and leads the ceremonial procession behind. Its posture is uncontrollable and higher than that of believers, including people. Therefore, this ceremonial procession should be a commemorative ceremony to welcome Tianma back.
The rank of cavalry in the tomb is obviously higher than that of the officials of the Three Kingdoms, two thousand stones and the guard of honor of the general. This kind of ceremony can only be used on sacred objects from the sky (such as the welcoming ceremony called "Tianma"), and the welcoming Tianma meets this characteristic and requirement.
To sum up, "Copper Running Horse" should be Tianma style. Even if it can be proved that the tomb was in the Eastern Han Dynasty or Jin Dynasty, the ceremony of welcoming back to Tianma in the period of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty was still adopted.
Fourth, a review of the warp and weft.
What bird steps under the flying horseshoe? Mr. Guo Moruo said it was a swallow, and some people said it was an eagle ... I think it was Wei.
(1) Suppose it is a swallow.
What are the characteristics of swallows? Swallow is a kind of low-flying bird, which lives by catching mosquitoes, flies and other insects, building nests in tree holes (cracks), making holes in sand dikes or building nests under roofs where people live. The most special appearance of swallows is the bifurcated tail like scissors, while the unearthed bird under the bronze horseshoe has a flush tail (pictured). Because horses have both form and spirit, birds' expressions of surprise and worry are also shown. There is no reason not to distinguish the basic features of birds' appearance.
In addition, if you want to use birds to set off the wonders of horses, such as flying high, fast, and having good endurance … would you choose swallows? Swallows are famous for their flexibility, flying at low altitude, usually catching insects around their nests and flying to feed their offspring. If such an image is used as a reference for the comparison of flying horses, if you want to create a horse with incomparable strength, the effect will definitely be discounted.
(2) It should be a falcon.
① Shuowen: Wei, the short tail of a bird.
② Cui Bao's Notes on Ancient and Modern Times: Yue Wei, Shi Zhe.
Wei and Falcon are both knowing words. Falcon, a carnivorous bird of prey, is small, strong, with wide and round wings, short tail feathers and strong flying ability. It is at the top of the bird food chain, can fly against the wind at high altitude and feed on prey, and can fly for a long time. It is considered a brave and decisive bird.
The bird under the horseshoe fits the characteristics of a falcon.
If it's a falcon under the horseshoe, that's easy to explain. Tianma is not an ordinary thing. It is not surprising that it flies high in the sky. With its quick action and lightning speed, it steps on the bird from behind. Similarly, the flying falcon, as a proud bird, flies high in Wan Li, but it is no wonder that when its back is suddenly crushed, it will turn back in surprise.
It is a veritable "unconstrained style". ※
"Fantastic" is a creative idea in the period of Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty, and its creativity and allusions should come from the sacrificial songs formulated by Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty. According to Ban Gu's Records of Rites and Music in the History of Han Dynasty II, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty decided to offer sacrifices, thinking that he was the captain of Xielv, and led dozens of people to compose poems and fu. On the law, he composed a 19-chapter song with eight tones as the key.
1. The Song of Sacrifice written by Liang Wudi consists of 19 chapters, of which the ninth chapter "Day in and out" and the tenth chapter "Ma Tian" all describe the unconstrained style.
The two sentences in the poem "The body is swaying forever" and "The wings are back" are tailor-made for the galloping scene, and the object and the poem are integrated.
Shuowen Jiezi is a collection, and the last three provinces are one.
2, the Eastern Han Dynasty Ban Gu's "Hanshu Biography of the Western Regions": "Tianma came from the West Pole and returned to Germany after ten thousand; It is an obstacle to the outside world and involves quicksand. "
3. Liu Yuan Tingzhen's Preface to Satya West Poetry: "The reason why it is deified is beyond the public; It borders on arrogance and has an extraordinary pace. "This idiom was first seen in ancient books.
The creative prototype of "Fantastic" is the beautiful little Ma Rufei, who travels thousands of miles every day. After the author's exaggerated production techniques, it has become a fantasy.
Therefore, "Wild and unconstrained style" is more in line with history than "Copper Running Horse". Perhaps, as Ma Yuan said in the Eastern Han Dynasty, "If you walk in the sky, you will walk underground." Liang Ju galloped so fast that the bronze statue shaped a horse and a bird together to better highlight the word "bi" instead of just riding on a bird.