Differences between bricks and tiles in different dynasties

Distinguishing bricks and tiles of different dynasties mainly depends on styles, figures and patterns. These different characteristics have become an important basis for identifying the age of ancient bricks and tiles. Every generation is different.

Ancient bricks are mainly used for burial, and are engraved with exquisite decorative pictures, so they are generally called portrait bricks. Among them, the artistic achievements of portrait bricks in Han Dynasty and Southern and Northern Dynasties are the highest.

The portrait bricks in Qin dynasty are hollow rectangular, solid in texture, blue-gray, and regular in production.

Decorative patterns are mostly animals with moire and palindrome. There are many kinds of animals, including dragons, phoenixes, tigers, geese, suzaku and Xuanwu.

Han Dynasty portrait brick is a solid rectangle, on which rich pictures are depicted by means of positive engraving, negative engraving and bas-relief. Its themes include farming, salt making, lotus picking and hunting, reflecting agricultural production and labor; There are banquets, songs and dances, making friends and seeing off, and traveling by car and horse that reflect the life of the tomb owner; There are Fuxi, Nu Wa, Wang Mu and all kinds of beasts and ghosts that reflect fairy stories; There are also various auspicious patterns and decorative patterns.

Most of the Eastern Han Dynasty portrait bricks were found in Chengdu Plain.

Before the Han Dynasty, the portrait brick was generally a brick and a picture. After the Jin Dynasty, a large area of mosaic paintings appeared. In terms of subject matter, with the prevalence of Buddhism, many Buddhist stories and figures have appeared. The picture is exquisitely carved, the lines are smooth, the decorative patterns tend to be simplified, and there is a simple style.

Influenced by Buddhism, the decorative style in Tang Dynasty tends to be complicated.

In Xi, Shaanxi, Dunhuang, Gansu and other places, there are various complicated and magnificent "tiles" in the Tang Dynasty.

Portrait bricks in the Song Dynasty tend to be artistic, and each brick is carefully portrayed with a character image and made into various shapes to show various activities in daily life.

The whole picture is symmetrical, fresh, vivid and beautiful.

Ceramic tiles become cultural relics and antiques because of the significance and value of their exquisite patterns and words.

Most of the tiles in the Western Zhou Dynasty were half tiles, and the decorative patterns were similar to those of bronzes. During the Warring States period, tiles were mostly used, with simple faces, patterns and characters.

The patterns are gluttonous, tree-shaped, cirrus and mountain-shaped. In the late Warring States period, round tiles appeared. During the Qin and Han dynasties, there were mostly round tiles with patterns and characters, such as deer patterns, moire patterns and sunflower patterns. The rolling cloud pattern is the most common round tile in the Western Han Dynasty. Generally, the surface of ceramic tile is divided into four parts with a cross-shaped double-line grid with a round button in the middle.

There are few animal patterns, but there are many words. Common auspicious words such as "Long live", "Changle is not over", "Long life is not over" and "Promise to heaven". During the Qin and Han Dynasties, there were also special tiles for palace money, such as the "Millennium Yang Map" in the Qin Dynasty, the "Western Gods of Changling" (tiles for Changling Palace) and "tiles for Palace" (tiles for Hall) in the Western Han Dynasty.

In the Han Dynasty, there were also recorded tiles, such as "Han and the World", "Khan and Qin" in the Western Han Dynasty, and "The First Year of Western Sea Stability and Yuan Xing" in the Eastern Han Dynasty.

During this period, the characters on the tile were mostly seal script.

During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, ceramic tiles were mostly round with moire patterns.

Characters include seal script and characters between official script and regular script. Lotus patterns occupy a considerable proportion because of the popularity of Buddhism.

In Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties and the early Northern Song Dynasty, a large number of lotus patterns were still the main decorative tiles, but the lotus petals gradually became long petals and single petals. Not many words were found during this period.

After the Song Dynasty, lotus tiles gradually decreased, and animal tiles gradually occupied the main position. This style continued until the Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. The animal face pattern of tile in Song and Yuan Dynasties was more complicated, while the palace buildings in Ming and Qing Dynasties mostly used dragon tile.