Introduction to the Statue of Migratory Birds in the Western Zhou and Jin Dynasties in Qucun, Quwo County

Bird statues of Jin Hou in the Western Zhou Dynasty were unearthed in the tomb of Jin Hou at the junction of Quwo County and Yicheng County in Linfen City, Shanxi Province. The bird statue is now collected in Shanxi Provincial Museum, and is known as the "treasure of the town hall" of Shanxi Museum.

The bird statue of Jin Hou is 39 cm high, 30.5 cm long and 17.5 cm wide. The whole bird statue takes the phoenix as the main shape, with its head slightly raised and its crown erect. The bird is plump and its wings are rolled up. On the back of the phoenix bird, a bird quietly depends on each other and becomes the watcher on the cover of the bird image. There is an elephant head under the phoenix tail, and its trunk is rolled in, forming a stable three-point support with its legs, and the whole body is covered with patterns. The modeling is vivid and vivid, and the conception is strange and ingenious. The inscription "Emperor Xiang Zuo Tai Shi Bao Zun Yi" was cast on the cover and belly of the bird statue, which can prove to be a ritual vessel of the ancestral hall.

Judging from the characteristics such as the structural proportion of the vessel, the symmetry of the overall modeling and the modeling characteristics of the phoenix bird were not considered in the modeling. From this perspective, the time is in the early Western Zhou Dynasty.

The high crown stands upright. The bird is plump, its wings are rolled up, and it is covered on the back of the bird according to the shape, and the cover buckle is bird-shaped. Strong legs and slightly bent claws. There is an elephant head under the phoenix tail, and its trunk is incomplete. According to the curve analysis of the elephant's head, the trunk rises like this, forming a stable three-point support with its legs. The perfect combination of birds and elephants, the two most popular Xiao-shaped decorations in the Western Zhou Dynasty, is a rare treasure in China bronze art, with vivid modeling, ingenious conception and exquisite decoration. Phoenix bird's neck, abdomen and back are decorated with feather patterns, wings and legs are decorated with moire patterns, wings and eyelids are decorated with vertical feather patterns, the ground is lined with lightning patterns, and the tail is decorated with gorgeous feather patterns. In order to respect history, there is no design decoration on the restored elephant trunk.

In the Zhou Dynasty, people advocated sacrificial activities, and ritual vessels of the Yi people were often seen in the sacrificial activities. All kinds of animal-shaped sacrificial vessels of the Yi people are designed for ancestors to enjoy all kinds of animal meat in the underworld. It is considered as the general name of vessels for holding wine and offering sacrifices, or * * *. Respect "small is precious", "below is precious" and "plain is precious". The basic shape is: big mouth, large capacity and solid foot. The order of honorifics is: sacrifice, elephant image (including bird image), text image, pot image, big image and mountain image, from small to large. Bird statues in the Jin Dynasty were sacrifices made by the first generation of fathers in the Jin Dynasty to their ancestors.

There are two lines on the inner cover and belly bottom of the bird statue of the marquis of Jin Dynasty, which read: "The marquis of Jin Dynasty worshiped Yi at first sight in the big room". The word "fragrance" in the inscription is interpreted as "enjoyment" and means "contribution". The monarch of the state of Jin made treasures to worship the gods. It can be proved that it is a sacrificial vessel of the ancestral temple. The owner of this bird statue is a high-standard ritual vessel of Jin Houxie, the son of Tang Shuyu. Birds are the totems of the Jin State in the Western Zhou Dynasty, and they are sacred objects that connect people and gods.

National Cultural Heritage Administration recently released the third batch of cultural relics prohibited from going abroad for exhibitions, and three cultural relics were selected in Shanxi Province, namely, the dragon pattern of Shang Dynasty, the bird statue of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and the Yu Pei of the Western Zhou Dynasty. These three cultural relics are all hidden in Shanxi Museum. The bronze bird statues unearthed in the father's cemetery of the marquis of Jin Dynasty are the "treasures of the town" of Shanxi Museum. From the beginning of its establishment, the provincial museum took the bird statue of the marquis of Jin Dynasty as the symbol of the museum.