China Original Sculpture Portrait Sculpture

Gansu and Qinghai provinces found in the upper reaches of the Yellow River are basically accessories of pottery. In the early period of Majiayao culture (including Shilingxia type and Majiayao type), most of the pottery figurines were women, and only a few were men.

The head-shaped red pottery bottle unearthed from Qin 'an Temple 1975 in Gansu Province belongs to the relic of Shilingxia type 5 100 years ago. The bottle is 26 cm high, the surface is orange pottery, the bottle mouth looks like a figure, there is short hair on the forehead, and the earlobe is perforated. The eye socket is made of mud strips and looks very nervous. 1978 A portrait clay pot was unearthed from Majiayao cemetery in Houzihe, Datong County, Qinghai Province. The earthen urn, with sand and yellow pottery, is damaged. There is a bas-relief portrait of a girl on the shoulder of the urn, which is 1 1.5 cm high. The figure is drawn by a five-sense cone. It is thin, with a sad expression, braids hanging from its head and waving its arms all over. This portrait of a clay pot may have been specially made for a girl who died young. In addition, it is said to be Majiayao-style painted pottery spoon unearthed in Gansu. The handle end is molded into a human head, and a black circle is drawn beside the mouth, which looks like a bearded head. The existence of this kind of male and female statues shows that in the early period of Majiayao culture in Gansu and Qinghai, the clan commune was still in the stage of radical change from matriarchal to paternal.

In the later period of Majiayao culture (including middle-level and Machang), with the establishment of patriarchy, almost all the figures decorated on pottery were men. Three half-mountain skulls unearthed in Dongxiang, Ding Ning and other places in Gansu Province, with beards painted on the mouth and cheeks, or black straight lines and serrated lines painted on the face, are ferocious and fierce in appearance, which critics call a portrayal of ancient tattoo customs, or a hunter's head dressed as a beast. According to the social division of labor at that time, hunting was a man's occupation. In addition, a painted pottery pot with a head-shaped mouth was unearthed in the cemetery of Liuwan Racecourse in Ledu, Qinghai, which shaped the appearance of a middle-aged man with his eyes closed.

In the mid-1970s, a striking portrait painted pottery pot was unearthed in Liuwan, Ledu, Qinghai Province, which belonged to a Machang-style relic more than 4,000 years ago. By combining relief with painting, the author piled up a nude portrait standing in front of the neck and upper part of the pot. Many researchers have analyzed the characteristics of the portrait with black mouth and small chest, and think that it is a man's image, reflecting the popular male worship custom at that time. However, according to the shape of the depicted sex organs, some researchers think it is a female image or a combination of both male and female characteristics. Two pieces have been found in the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River. First, it was unearthed in Qilipu, Shan County, Henan Province in 1958. On a piece of sand-mixed gray pottery, a face with clear facial features was shaped by plastic pile and cone carving. The eyes are tapered, the right face is slightly disabled, and the purpose is unknown. Belongs to Longshan cultural relics in Henan. Followed by 1960 unearthed in Yaoguanzhuang, Weifang, Shandong. It is a typical relic of Longshan culture about 4200 years ago. About 4 cm high, dark gray pottery. Made by relief technology, the lip has fallen off. However, its nose, eyes and eyebrow arch are clearly depicted and handled properly, which seems to have male facial features.

Female Sculptures in Hongshan Culture

1963, a small female pottery figurine was unearthed at the Hongshan Culture site of Xishuiquan in Chifeng, Inner Mongolia. The head is incomplete, with a residual height of 3.8 cm. It is molded by argillaceous brown pottery, with prominent breasts on the chest, thin waist and a boxy lower body. In the early 1980s, a number of nude female pottery sculptures were unearthed at the Hongshan Culture Sacrifice Site in Dongshanzui, Kazuo, Liaoning, about 5,400 years ago. The small statue is 5-5.8 cm high, and the big sitting statue is true 1/2, with all broken heads and the body with the characteristics of pregnant women. 1983 10 In Niuheliang at the junction of Jianping and Lingyuan counties in Liaoning Province, another Hongshan Culture sacrificial site was discovered. It was supposed to be a goddess temple, and a clay sculpture goddess painted red was unearthed, with a head height of 22.5 cm and a face width of 16.5 cm. The figure is similar to that of a real person, with a raised hoop on his forehead. The whole head is in the shape of raised eyebrows and upturned lips, with a somewhat mysterious style, and the sculptor is exquisite and vivid (see the head of the clay sculpture (Hongshan Culture) goddess unearthed in Niuheliang, Liaoning). Clay sculptures such as shoulders, hands, arms and female breasts were also found nearby. There are signs that in the center of the main room of the temple, there was originally a larger statue of goddess. According to the preliminary study, they are the symbols of fertility god and agricultural god (mother earth god), and also the embodiment of matriarchal heritage. The head of the cow goddess has a strong artistic expression ability, which opens a new chapter in the glory of sculpture in primitive society in China. So far, not many have been found, including round stone carvings and embossed stone faces.

1, round stone statue

Two batches have been found: ① 1983 ~ 1984. In the low cultural level of Houwatun site in Majiadian Township, Donggou County, Liaoning Province, several small round carved heads carved with talc were unearthed, which were rough and simple and vivid, belonging to the early Neolithic stone carvings in Liaodong area 6000 years ago. ② A number of stone carvings of different sizes and postures were unearthed at Jingoutun site in Luanping, Hebei Province, of which the largest one was upright, 0.334 meters high, with exquisite facial features, hands attached to the chest, feet connected, and conical soles for soil exploration; The youngest is 6 cm tall, with a cross-legged posture and vague facial features and expressions; Judging from the accompanying serrated pottery, these stone statues may be relics of the late Hongshan Culture.

2. Relief stone surface

* * * Found 2 pieces. 1959 A piece unearthed from Tomb No.64, Daxi, Wushan, Sichuan, was carved from fine black volcanic rocks. Its plane is oval, 6 cm high, 3.6 cm wide and 1 cm thick. Both sides are embossed with plump cheeks and an open mouth, and there are two perforations at the top. It belongs to the late Daxi culture from 6000 to 5000 years ago. The other one was unearthed at 1973 Tomb No.51Yuanyangchi, Yongchang, Gansu Province. It is carved with white clouds, 3.8 cm high and 2.5 cm wide, and its plane is also oval. On the protruding front, white bone beads are bonded with black glue, showing the facial features of a human face. The expression is similar to that unearthed in Daxi, Wushan, with a 1 tooth hole at the top, which belongs to 4300 ~ 5000 years ago.

In addition, two jade carving faces were found:

① 1976 comes from Longshan cultural tomb in Shenmu, Shaanxi. Carved with chalcedony, it is 4.5 cm high and 4 cm wide. Used as a profile head, a bun on the top of the head, an aquiline nose and a slightly open mouth. The eyes carved by the negative line are huge and striking, and a round hole is carved on the cheek. ② It was collected in Shang Gang Village, tengxian, Shandong Province in the mid-1970s and belongs to the jade carving works in the middle period of Dawenkou culture. Its face is 3 cm high and 3.6 cm wide, its front is polished and slightly bulging, its facial features and contours are engraved with yin lines, its eyes are full of spirits, and its back has a perforated ridge.

The above four stone carvings and jade carvings are all in the shape of eyes and mouths, and they all have holes for tethers to hang. It is speculated that they were used as amulets to ward off evil spirits in witchcraft activities in primitive society. More ceramic animal sculptures were found in cultural sites in the middle and late Neolithic period. A pottery handle with a dog's head and a bird's tail was unearthed at Banpo site of Yangshao culture. There are a large number of pottery sculptures of people and animals unearthed in Tianmen, Hubei Province, including sheep, dogs, chickens, elephants and turtles. These hand-made small pottery sculptures can show the attitude of animals in activities. For example, the movements of dogs and birds change greatly. Some stand with their heads twisted, some look back, some bow their heads for food, and some dogs have a bird perched on their backs. In the Neolithic age, under the environment of settled agriculture, pigs, sheep, cattle, dogs, horses, chickens and other six livestock were generally raised in the north and south. Sculptors are familiar with the characteristics and habits of various animals through long-term observation in hunting and raising livestock. Therefore, although these works are simple in form, they are distinctive and dynamic.

Some large animal-shaped pottery has reached a high artistic level in modeling. The tomb of a pottery woman unearthed in the bottom ditch of Yangshao Cultural Temple in hua county, Shaanxi Province, is 36 cm high, with folded wings, upturned mouth, powerful beak, wide eyes, simple structure, strong sense of volume, feet and tails firmly supporting the ground, and the overall shape is full of fierce potential. The skull of a pottery owl unearthed in hua county has rows of feathers on the rim of the eye and the top of the head, round eyes and strong beak contour, which also shows the characteristics of a raptor well. The Liangzhu culture pottery waterfowl pot unearthed from the Meinian site in Wujiang, Jiangsu Province, has a smooth and slender body, small and alert eyes, and a spout with a slightly upturned tail, which is not only convenient for water injection, but also shows the feeling of waterfowl flying by the water. The shapes of several animal-shaped objects unearthed in Shandong are also very vivid. The animal from Dawenkou and the dog from Sanlihe in Jiaoxian raised their heads and barked, but their expressions were different. The former has a wide mouth and a cocked tail, as if seeing food and making an urgent cry; The latter stretches its head and neck, narrows its eyes, and rolls up its tail as a handle, as if it were random stubborn bark, and its buttocks are shaped into cavities and genitals, which are both practical instruments and real and concrete. A pig unearthed in Sanlihe River has lost its foot, its shape is round and muddy, and its head is bent like a forager, which also shows its morphological and habit characteristics well. These bird-and-beast-shaped objects may have religious or ritual significance in the social life at that time, and the bronze bird-and-beast-shaped ritual vessels in Shang and Western Zhou dynasties have obvious inheritance relations with these pottery in shape.

Some pottery containers have been divorced from the realistic animal form, but still retain some characteristics of their life prototype. For example, the Qingliangang pottery unearthed in Beiyinyingying, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, has a bird's head with a wide mouth, three duckbill-shaped flat feet at the bottom open outwards, and the tubular flow in the abdomen and the bird's tail-shaped flat handle flap like wings. The whole vessel is shaped like a fat bird, calling for the feeling of running. Another example is the white pottery of Dawenkou culture in Shandong Province, which has various modeling details, but it is reminiscent of the rooster's action of announcing the dawn. The tip of the pot mouth is as long as a bird's mouth, and some add two eye-like round mud nails to the back of the long stream; Some have long necks and bend back; Some will enlarge the leg of the coupler, like the belly of a bird. The shapes of these objects are vivid and interesting, which can arouse the association of viewers and have the significance of abstract sculpture. Bird's head patterns have been found in Miaodigou, Shan County, Henan Province, Liu Zi Town, hua county, Shaanxi Province, and Huangniangtai, Wuwei City, Gansu Province. Some are more real and concrete, like the handle of an object. Some of them are very simple, with only a pair of sunken big eye sockets and sharp beaks, which are mostly used as earrings or decorations on the stove. Some pottery is decorated with small animals, which is also very vivid. The gecko on the three pieces of residual pottery of Miaodigou culture in Shanxian county, Henan province, one is fine mud black pottery, and the parallel diagonal lines and long straight tail on the gecko create a sense of forward movement; The other two pieces are molded by sand on the mouth of red pottery, and many small dots are poked on the body of gecko, which vividly shows the action of gecko jumping and peeping device. The double frog-head-shaped red pottery baskets and frog-shaped pottery pots unearthed in Linxia, Gansu Province are exaggerated in shape and full of life flavor.

Clay sculptures of large animals, including mythical animals such as pigs, dragons and birds, were found at the site of the Hongshan Culture Goddess Temple in Niuheliang, Liaoning. Pig dragon also has a head, ears, nose and mouth, its predecessor and lower limbs. The nose and mouth are flat and round, with fangs between the upper and lower jaws, and hoofs and claws in the lower body. The bird has only two claws left, each toe has three knots, and the toes are sharp and pointed so that they can catch them. A complete stone carving of pig dragon image was found in the stone pile in the same area. This is a □-shaped Yu Pei with plump ears, round eyes, prominent nose, many wrinkles, curled body and tail connected to the nose. Jade ornaments of the same shape were also found in Liaoning, Inner Mongolia, Hebei and other places. Some people think that it evolved from the deification of pigs and is the early form of the dragon image in mythology. The jade dragons unearthed in Sanxingtala Village and Huanggutun, Wengniute Banner, Inner Mongolia, are a further development of the jade ornaments of pig dragons. Samsung Tara Jade Dragon is 26 cm high, dark green, with prominent snout, flush nose, slender eyes, and a long flat collar hanging from the top of its head on its back. The collar and tail are wide and bulging, balanced with the protruding head, and the tail is bent upward. The body is C-shaped, and there is a round hole in the middle of the back, which can be hung with a tether. The whole body is smooth and moist, and the outline is rigid and beautiful. It is a jade in primitive society. Three groups of dragon and tiger patterns made of clam shells were found in Yangshao cultural tombs in Puyang, Henan Province. The largest group, Long Chang1.78m and Hu Chang1.39m, all turned their backs to their owners. Strangely, the image of the dragon is very close to the popular dragon style in later generations. Small animal images such as birds, turtles, tiger-shaped and fish-shaped stone pendants carved with jade and turquoise have also been unearthed in Hongshan Culture site. Jade birds, jade cicadas and turtles were also found in Neolithic cultural sites south of the Yangtze River. The animal face pattern found in Liangzhu cultural sites in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai is an early style animal face pattern popular in Shang Dynasty and Western Zhou Dynasty. Among them, the most exquisite sculpture is the pier from Wujin Temple in Jiangsu Province, which is a rectangular cylinder with a height of 7.2 cm. There are 8 groups of animal faces combined with relief and line carving, which are divided into upper and lower layers. The four groups in the lower layer are symmetrically arranged with four corners as the central axis. The eyes are round, wrapped in oval eyes, the nose is fan-shaped and the mouth is horizontal. The facial features and borders are engraved with fine and symmetrical patterns, and the thinnest line is only 0.7 silk meters. The four groups of patterns on the upper layer are all simplified forms of the same animal face pattern. These jade articles have the nature of religion and ceremony. The image of dragon and the relief of animal face show the primitive relationship between primitive social art and slave social art.