KOSHI SHUNJŪ

Early China ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 213-226
Author(s):  
Lothar von Falkenhausen
Keyword(s):  
Historical Records ◽  
Warring States Period ◽  
Warring States ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Sima Qian ◽  
Western Zhou ◽  
Extensive Damage

The Fuyang bamboo-strip “Annals” was compiled prior to 165 B.C., at least sixty or seventy years earlier than Sima Qian edited the various chronological tables in the Shiji. The “Annals,” which begins about the time of the Gong He interregnum of the Western Zhou and continues through the time of Qin Shi huangdi, seems to be incompatible with the “Qin Records” and was perhaps compiled using the “Historical Records” of some state other than Qin. It possibly includes two different types of tables: one in which years denominate the vertical columns and statenames the horizontal rows, with events recorded therein horizontally; and one that records the number of years that the feudal lords reigned. Although extensive damage makes it impossible to reconstitute the “Annals,” it can still provide useful information regarding some historical questions, such as the Warring States-period states of “East Zhou” and “West Zhou,” the appellations “Current King” and “Current Duke,” etc.

Some Notes on the Organization of the Han Dynasty Bamboo “Annals” Found at Fuyang

Early China ◽  
1989 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 1-25 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hu Pingsheng
Keyword(s):  
Han Dynasty ◽  
Historical Records ◽  
Warring States Period ◽  
Warring States ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Sima Qian ◽  
Western Zhou ◽  
Extensive Damage

The Fuyang bamboo-strip “Annals” was compiled prior to 165 B.C., at least sixty or seventy years earlier than Sima Qian edited the various chronological tables in the Shiji. The “Annals,” which begins about the time of the Gong He interregnum of the Western Zhou and continues through the time of Qin Shi huangdi, seems to be incompatible with the “Qin Records” and was perhaps compiled using the “Historical Records” of some state other than Qin. It possibly includes two different types of tables: one in which years denominate the vertical columns and statenames the horizontal rows, with events recorded therein horizontally; and one that records the number of years that the feudal lords reigned. Although extensive damage makes it impossible to reconstitute the “Annals,” it can still provide useful information regarding some historical questions, such as the Warring States-period states of “East Zhou” and “West Zhou,” the appellations “Current King” and “Current Duke,” etc.

WRITING BEFORE INSCRIBING: ON THE USE OF MANUSCRIPTS IN THE PRODUCTION OF WESTERN ZHOU BRONZE INSCRIPTIONS

Early China ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 42 ◽  
pp. 273-332
Author(s):  
Ondřej Škrabal
Keyword(s):  
Division Of Labor ◽  
Chinese History ◽  
Word Count ◽  
Technical Process ◽  
Warring States ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Display Function ◽  
Western Zhou ◽  
Bronze Inscriptions ◽  
Material Evidence

AbstractWhile research on Warring States, Qin, and Han manuscripts is flourishing, much less is known about the use of manuscripts during the earlier stages of Chinese history, for which material evidence has not been preserved. Based on the layout features and textual anomalies in the Western Zhou bronze inscriptions, this article explores the traces of use of perishable writing supports in the process of the production of bronze inscriptions in this period and reconstructs their functions and physical qualities. Based on the surveyed evidence, the article posits that two distinct exemplar manuscripts were used in the inscription-making process: an original “master copy” that was kept aside for proofreading purposes and a secondary “blueprint” that was employed directly in the technical process of inscription-making. A single blueprint would be used consecutively by several craftsmen to produce a set of inscriptions on different types of vessels. The word count and layout of many inscriptions were already carefully planned during the process of their composition, and any study of a bronze text should therefore begin with the evaluation of its visual qualities. Moreover, this probe provides unambiguous evidence for the use of tube-lining in the inscription-making process and reconstructs the complete chaîne opératoire of bronze inscription production in the Late Western Zhou period. The article also offers insights into the level of literacy and the division of labor in bronze workshops, and touches upon the display function of bronze epigraphy during the Western Zhou period.

Restoration of two great auk (Pinguinus impennis) eggs: Bourman Labrey's egg and the Scarborough egg

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 392-401
Author(s):  
T. R. Birkhead ◽  
G. Axon ◽  
J. R. Middleton
Keyword(s):  
Black Light ◽  
Private Collection ◽  
Different Types ◽  
The Media ◽  
Media Reports ◽  
Public Museums ◽  
Private Collections ◽  
Time Of Collection ◽  
Extensive Damage

Most of the approximately 75 known eggs of the extinct great auk ( Pinguinus impennis) are in public museums, with a few in private collections. A small number of these eggs has sustained damage, either at the time of collection or subsequently, and two of these eggs are known to have been repaired. The two eggs suffered rather different types of damage and were subsequently restored using different techniques. The first, known as Bourman Labrey's egg, sustained extensive damage sometime prior to the 1840s, when the shell was broken into numerous pieces. This egg was repaired by William Yarrell in the 1840s, and when it was restored again in 2018, it was discovered that Yarrell's restoration had involved the use of an elaborate cardboard armature. This egg is currently in a private collection. The second egg, known as the Scarborough egg, bequeathed to the Scarborough Museum in 1877, was damaged (by unknown causes) and repaired, probably by the then curator at Scarborough, W. J. Clarke, in 1906. This egg was damaged when one or more pieces were broken adjacent to the blowhole at the narrow end (where there was some pre-existing damage). The media reports at the time exaggerated the extent of the damage, suggesting that the egg was broken almost in two. Possible reasons for this exaggeration are discussed. Recent examination using a black light and ultraviolet (UV) revealed that the eggshell had once borne the words, “a Penguin's Egg”, that were subsequently removed by scraping.

Study of Colored Lacquerwares from Zenghou Yi Tomb in early Warring States

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meng Wu ◽  
Yunfan Zhang ◽  
Bingjian Zhang ◽  
Lan Li
Keyword(s):  
Warring States Period ◽  
Warring States

Zenghou Yi Tomb (433 B.C) in the early Warring States Period of China is a very important archaeological discovery. Lots of lacquerware was unearthed here, typically representative of that from...

Nondestructive Analysis of Dragonfly Eye Beads from the Warring States Period, Excavated from a Chu Tomb at the Shenmingpu Site, Henan Province, China

2013 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 335-343 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yimin Yang ◽  
Lihua Wang ◽  
Shuya Wei ◽  
Guoding Song ◽  
Jonathan Mark Kenoyer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Inner Core ◽  
Nondestructive Method ◽  
Henan Province ◽  
Manufacturing Technology ◽  
Warring States Period ◽  
Warring States ◽  
Time Period ◽  
Mold Casting ◽  
Warring State Period ◽  
Manufacturing Features

AbstractDragonfly eye beads are considered to be the earliest types of glass objects in China, and in the past have been considered as evidence of culture interaction or trade between West and East Asia. In this article, synchrotron radiation microcomputed tomography and μ-probe energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence were used to determine the chemical composition, microstructure, and manufacturing technology of four dragonfly eye beads, excavated from a Chu tomb at the Shenmingpu site, Henan Province, China, dated stylistically to the Middle and Late Warring State Period (475 bc–221 bc). First, a nondestructive method was used to differentiate the material types including faience (glazed quartz), frit, glazed pottery (clay ceramic), and glass. Three beads were identified as faience and one bead as glazed pottery. The glaze recipe includes quartz, saltpeter, plant ash, and various copper, and is classified as belonging to the K2O-CaO-SiO2 glass system, which indicates that these beads were not imported from the West. Based on computed tomography slices, the manufacturing technology of the faience eye beads appears to include the use of an inner core, molding technology, and the direct application glazing method. These manufacturing features are consistent with the techniques used in China during this same time period for bronze mold-casting, proto-porcelain, and glass.

Worth Vs. Power: Han Fei’s “Objection to Positional Power” Revisited

2020 ◽  
Vol 0 (0) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuri Pines
Keyword(s):  
Political Thought ◽  
Warring States Period ◽  
Warring States ◽  
Political Debates ◽  
Han Feizi ◽  
Positional Power ◽  
Political Message ◽  
Chinese Political Thought

AbstractThis article discusses the chapter “Objection to Positional Power” (Nan shi 難勢) of Han Feizi 韓非子. It provides a full translation cum analysis of the text and explores systematically the chapter’s structure, rhetoric, and its political message. The discussion, which contextualizes the chapter’s message within broader trends of the Warring States-period political debates, demonstrates that beneath the surface of debates about “positional power” (shi 勢) versus “worth” (xian 賢), the chapter addresses one of the touchiest issues in Chinese political thought: that of the intrinsic weakness of hereditary monarchy. Furthermore, “Objection to Positional Power” also addresses problems of the meritocratic system of rule and elucidates some of the reasons for Han Fei’s dislike of meritocratic discourse. By highlighting some of the chapter’s intellectual gems I hope to attract further attention to the immense richness of Han Feizi as one of the most sophisticated products of China’s political thought.

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