Study On Textile Technology From Fine Art In Ancient China

There is so much image information on textile technology in Chinese ancient art. From the perspective of the history of technology, a history of Chinese ancient art is a history of textile technology in ancient China. Based on image information on textile technology in Chinese ancient art, many books,dissertations and articles involved the definition of dynasty history of textile technology and textual research on the history of textile technology in ancient China. However, sometimes these books,dissertations and articles didn’t reflect true history of textile technology in ancient China because of their lack of screening for image information on textile technology in ancient art. Based on image information on textile technology in Chinese ancient art and applying some methods, such as field archaeology, historical document and folklore survey, this dissertation arranges and researches systematically on primitive textile technology, fiber treating techniques, spinning techniques and weaving techniques in order to reflect the true of textile technology in ancient China.This dissertation is mainly divided into ten chapters.The first chapter is a introduction of study background as well as the research methods employed in the dissertation. Firstly, based on the perspective of the history of technology, the significance of the dissertation is described. Secondly, domestic and foreign research progress on the relative topic is introduced through the analysis of relevant literature on some databases. At the same time, some important research results at home and abroad have also been introduced and reviewed in this chapter. At last, the research methods and range are briefly showed.The second chapter presents the origin of textile technology in ancient China. Based on "primitive hunting drawing with stone balls" which was consistently used on the history of textile technology in China by some researchers, this chapter researchs the hunting posture and creation theory of primitive men, queries the authenticity of the drawing. And it studies the textile factors in application process of stone balls in the time, offer new views about the origin of Chinese textile technology.The third chapter provides information on the fiber treating techniques before spinning. Based on image information on the fiber treating techniques before spinning in Chinese ancient art, firstly this chapter re-examines and inspects the origin of silk production, the treatment techniques of silkworm cocoon, silk reeling techniques, silkwinding techniques and paralledyarn techniques in ancient China. Secondly, it elaborates on the application time and preliminary processing of bast fiber. Thirdly, it discusses the standardization of cotton terms in Chinese, and introduces the treatment techniques before cotton spinning in ancient China. Then, it analyzes the causes why cotton spread to inland districts so slowly in ancient China.The main contents from the fourth chapter to the seventh chapter are some research on spinning techniques in Chinese ancient art. Based on image information on spinning techniques in Chinese ancient art, these four chapters involve some reseach on the organization frames, the techniques and the time division of spindle wheel,hand spinning wheel,multi-spinning wheel driven by treadle and grand spinning wheel in ancient China. At last, they hold that the development of spinning in ancient China isn’t linear.The main contents from the eighth chapter to the tenth chapter present some research on weaving techniques in Chinese art. Based on image information on weaving techniques in Chinese ancient art, the basic frame and the developing pedigree of original breast loom, two-bar loom, inclined loom with picking sticks or heddle rods by hands, heald-treadle loom, draw loom with minor pattern sheets and draw loom with a major pattern sheet are illustrated in these three chapters. They hold that the loom in ancient China developed along two path, civilian path and aristocratic path.The conclusion of the dissertation are as follow:1、Textile technology played a important role in human evolution and social development. Man didn’t evolve from ape to man without the invention and the application of the primitive textile technology. The papermaking and printing didn’t emerge or world cultural development without the respleadence and unique natures of textile technology in ancient China. The women’s social status in Shanghai isn’t higer without Huang Daopo’s renovation for cotton textile industry.2、This dissertation puts forward some new views on the periodization of textile technology in ancient China. Based on the inspection of a Yan shape of "壬" during the Shang and Zhou dynasty and relevant records in chapter "Ji Yi" of "The Book of Rites", we believe that cocoon cooking wasn’t used fo silk in Western Zhou dynasty.We think that cocoon cooking in ancient China developed as follow: silk reeling by cool water(before the Warring States Period)�'the emergence of cocoon cooking(the Warring States Period)�'the popularity of cocoon cooking(the Former Han Dynasty)�'cocoon cooking and temperature controlling, the emergence of silk reeling in the hot pot(the Northern Song Dynasty)�'the emergence of silk reeling in the warm pot (the Yuan Dynasty)�'the emergence of silk reeling in order of the hot pot and the warm pot(the Ming Dynasty);The silk reeling techniques in ancient China evolved as follow: the shelf for winding silk and the spindle wheel for paralledyarn(before the Warring States Period)�'the shelf for winding silk and the hand spinning wheel for paralledyarn(the Former Han Dynasty)�'the hand spinning wheel for winding silk and paralledyarn(the Tang Dynasty, the Northern Song Dynasty)�'multi-spinning wheel driven by treadle for winding silk and paralledyarn(the Southern Song Dynasty);We disgree that ash treatment for silk was applied in the Western Zhou Dynasty. According to some information on ash treatment for silk in "The Book of Rites", " Yi Ji" and "Kao Gong Ji", we believe that ash treatment for silk was firstly applied at the turn of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.3、This dissertation reassesses some relative fine arts and books in ancient China at their true value involoving textile technology in ancient China. According to some research on the spread of cotton in ancient China, we conclude that the interpretation of "Minsun’s clothes filled with spike of reed" on the network and in some book is wrong because cotton wasn’t used fo clothes of the Han nationality in the Spring and Autumn Period; The vivid descriptions of the loom are not true in "A Miscellany of the Western Capital", Chapter "Tang Wen"of " Lie Zi" and "Jifufu"; The mural painting about hand spinning wheel, which was collected by Xianzhou Liu, may be a forged painting.4、This dissertation investigates the development pedigrees of spinning machines and looms in ancient China. The development pedigree of spinning machines in ancient China is different from the traditional point of view, which held that the spinning machines in ancient China evolved from spindle wheel, hand spinning wheel, multi-spinning wheel driven by treadle to grand spinning wheel. We think spinning machines in ancient China developed along a multidimensional direction as follow: The development pedigree of the looms in ancient China were not also linear. According to some relative information on the looms in ancient China, we believe that the looms developed along two paths in ancient China. The first path was the development path of nobility, which focused on the draw looms. The second path was the development path of civilian, which focused on the plain looms. The pedigree of the looms in ancient China developed as follow:The civilian path of Chinese ancient looms: Original breast loom(Neolithic Age)�'two-bar loom(the Spring and Autumn Period)�'inclined loom with picking sticks or heddle rods by hands(the Former Han Dynasty)�'single heald-single treadle loom, single heald-two treadles loom(the Later Han Dynasty)�'ertical treadle loom(the Tang Dynasty)�'lever two healds-two treadles loom(the Southern Song Dynasty)�'balance two healds-two treadles loom(the Qing Dynasty).The nobility path of Chinese ancient looms: Jacquard techniques on original breast loom by rods(Neolithic Age)�'multi-heald and multi-treadle loom(the Later Han Dynasty)�'draw loom with minor pattern sheets(the Tang Dynasty)�'draw loom with a major pattern sheet.