There is a manuscript, the first sentence is "I am a bronze sword, and I come from wuyue in the Spring and Autumn Period, which is rich in famous swords".

In the legend system of China's ancient history, Chiyou was regarded as the god of soldiers and the creator of weapons. Shan Hai Jing Huang Da Bei Jing said that Chi You was a soldier who attacked the Yellow Emperor, and Shi Ben Zuo Pian also recorded that Chi You was a five-soldier. Some people think that Chiyou's five soldiers, including the sword. Because the sword is the most typical personal weapon in later generations, the human god on the stone relief in Han Dynasty is the image of holding the sword. So far, the earliest sword in China is a circular dagger found in Dadunzi, Pixian County, Jiangsu Province in the late Neolithic period, made of xiuyan jade.

From the 2nd/Kloc-0th century BC, China entered the Bronze Age. The bronze Ge unearthed from Erlitou site in Yanshi, Henan Province is the earliest bronze weapon unearthed at present. However, bronze swords have not been unearthed from Erlitou culture and early Shang Dynasty sites. It was not until the late Shang Dynasty that bronze swords appeared. Due to the differences in environment and cultural traditions, the bronze swords in the north and south of China are different in style and colorful, and gradually formed several lineages, such as Zhongyuan style, Bashu style, Yunnan style and wuyue style.

The shape of the early bronze sword was relatively simple, such as a bronze sword unearthed from the tomb of Zhangjiapo in Chang 'an, Shaanxi Province in the early Western Zhou Dynasty. It is only 27 cm long, with flat stems, sloping shoulders and no grid. There are two rows of round holes on the stem, which should be used to clamp the wooden handles on both sides. A bronze sword unearthed from Liu Lihe River in Fangshan, Beijing at the beginning of the week, with a length of only17.5cm.. These swords, except the grip part, have short effective parts. At the beginning of the Zhou Dynasty or later, a bronze sword with thorns appeared in the Central Plains. If subdivided, there can be two kinds: straight edge and curved edge. The former appeared earlier and the latter appeared later.

During or after the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, a dagger with local characteristics appeared in western Sichuan, and its blade was willow-shaped, commonly known as "willow sword". In the past, the willow sword was mainly unearthed in Chongqing and other places in eastern Sichuan where Cuba was located, so it was also called "Bashi Sword". Later, the willow sword was unearthed in the Chengdu Plain where the ancient Shu kingdom was located, and the common palmprint on the bronze sword was also found in the bronze portrait of Sanxingdui, indicating that the willow sword is a cultural feature of Bashu area.

Today's southern Sichuan, Guizhou and Yunnan regions are southwest regions centered on Yunnan culture in ancient times, and bronze culture appeared late. It was not until the Central Plains entered the Warring States period that the bronze culture here began to flourish. There are many forms of Yunnan sword, the most typical of which is trident sword. In addition, the bronze sword with gold sheath and iron handle is made of gold, iron and copper, which is quite distinctive.

Jianyue Wu's styles are mainly divided into two types: short sword with round handle and ring sword with round handle. It was the most advanced sword system at that time, with scientific design, sharp blade and noble sword phase, and its overall level was far above that of neighboring countries, which was imitated by all countries. The popular double-ring sword and empty-handle sword in the Warring States period originated in wuyue. Mr. Gu Jiegang, a famous historian, once pointed out that China's bronze sword originated in wuyue, which is very reasonable.

"Xunzi Powerful Country" mentioned that casting a good sword should meet the following conditions: "The punishment (type) is gold, the industry is skillful, the fire is neat, and the punishment (type) is myself." It means that the model of sword should be correct, the quality of gold (copper) and tin should be good, the technology should be skillful and the alloy formula should be just right. If you cast it like this, you can cut the model to get the sword of Mo Xie. The sword of five mountains has all the conditions mentioned in Xunzi. Among them, "Golden Messi" is particularly important, because the bronze sword is an alloy of gold (copper is called "gold" in pre-Qin) and tin, and the quality of Suk Kim determines the quality of the sword. In the pre-Qin period, South China was rich in copper and tin with exquisite materials. For example, Ruichang, Jiangxi Province began to mine large-scale copper mines from Shang Dynasty, and Xishan, Wuxi, Jiangsu Province was once a world-famous tin mine producing area. "Preface to Examination" said: "The beauty of Wu and Yue (Yue) also lies in this material." Visible, in people's minds at that time, wuyue is the golden world. In addition, the geographical and climatic environment also plays a special role in the casting of bronze swords, which may include water quality and trace elements contained in water. The ancients called it "local gas". "Preface to Examination" said: "The sword (Yue) moves to its position, but it is natural that it cannot be good." Jin Xi and the local atmosphere are a godsend for wuyue, and with the extraordinary wisdom of skilled craftsmen, it is only natural that wuyue's sword is outstanding.

During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, all kings of wuyue had world-famous swords. According to the legend about swords in Yue Jue Shu, "Yue Wang has five swords and is famous all over the world." The five famous swords of the sentence refer to Zhan Lu, Chun Jun, Sheng Xie, Fish Intestine and the Great Abyss; Among them, the junior and junior are extremely sharp. "The wind is picky and the iron is like mud." Later, wuyue went to war, and Ju Jian was defeated. Fu Cha's three swords of reducing evil, fish intestines and Zhan Lu were obtained by He Lv, the king of Wu.

Jianyue Wu's sharpness is described in detail in pre-Qin literature. "Warring States Policy Zhao Ce San" Ma Fujun Zhao She said to Tian Dan: "My sword of Gan, the meat test will break the cow and horse, and the gold test will cut the plate." Not only can the bodies of cattle and horses be cut off, but also the copper plates can be cut off. Really invincible.

The appearance of Wuyue Sword was also praised by people at that time. Xue Zhu, a famous swordsman, said in The Spring and Autumn Period of Wu Yue: "Light is like a flower of Quyang, like a lotus flower, born in the middle of Hunan. Look at its text, such as the mountain of stars; Look at its light, like overflowing water; Look at its color, it will be like ice and see the sun. " Wuyue's sword casting technology is world-famous, representing the highest level of sword casting technology in the Eastern Zhou Dynasty.

The original bronze sword shape was relatively simple, but now the willow-shaped sword unearthed in Sichuan has a flat handle, no case and no head, and there is no obvious boundary between the body and the handle. Since the late Spring and Autumn Period, with the widespread popularity of swords, the sword system has gradually become consistent, and a sword must have elements such as head, hoop, grid, ridge, blade and end. There is a sheath outside the sword, and some parts of the sheath have jade ornaments, such as the jade ornaments on the mouth are called Yi, and the small square jade on the opposite side is called Yi.

Second, sword and pre-Qin society

In the history and culture of wuyue area, it has become more vivid because of the appearance of sword. The craftsman's lifelong wish is to forge a famous sword that is unparalleled in the world, and he can die generously for this purpose. According to Lu Zhuan of Wu Yuehe in the Spring and Autumn Period, the generals of the State of Wu and their wives were good at casting swords, and the king of Wu ordered them to cast swords for men and women, but they could not for a long time. So both of them jumped into the boiling copper liquid and forged a world-famous sword with their own lives.

Kings of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty fought for a famous sword of wuyue for several years. Zhanlujian, one of the five famous swords owned by the King of Yue, later fell into the hands of the King of Chu. The king of Qin heard the news and asked the king of Chu to hand it over, but the king of Chu refused. The king of Qin is attacking Chu, and the king of Chu would rather fight against each other than hand in a knife. It is not difficult to imagine the degree of cherish and love. According to Yue Jueshu, the King of Chu sent Feng Beard to Wu to invite Ou Yezi to cast iron swords. Ou Yezi and his generals made three swords, namely Longyuan, Artest and Kampot. When the King of Jin and Zheng heard about it, they made a request, but the King of Chu refused, so they sent troops to surround Chu for three years. Anyone who owns the sword of Wuyue Mountain is regarded as a rare treasure. "Zhuangzi Deliberately" said: "Whoever has a sword (martial arts) will hide it and dare not use it." It can be seen that the sword of the Five Mountains is precious.