Interpreting On The Art Of The Carved Stones In The Stone Memorial At Mount Xao Tang And Analysis On Its Cultural And Artistic Value

The carved stones left from Han Dynasty are very important for us today to understand the societies and lives of Han Dynasty. Among them, the stone memorial of Guo's cemetery at Mount Xiao Tang has very high research and historical value. The images on the stones amaze all of us even today with their smooth flow of lines and special artistic impressions. They are not only carved tomb stones but more of a history book, it contains arts, architectures as well as spirits and cultures, and we could learn what ancient Chinese societies looked like some 2000 years ago.This thesis is the direct result of my research of the stone memorial of Guo's cemetery at Mount Xiao Tang in Chang Qing; it focuses on the history of the stone memorial and the image contents on the tomb stones. By analyzing the physical evidences as well as the historical origins and backgrounds of the stone memorial, along with referencing and applying the selected theories from arts, architectures, histories and folks cultures, this thesis presents us a better understanding of this very special form of art of Han Dynasty. The main ideas talking in this paper are: 1 .On the origin of the background of the carved stones in the stone memorial; 2.Study and explain the main information we can read from the carved stones; 3.Research and analyse the cultural and artistic value of the carved stones.In this thesis, the research methods of combining theoretical study, historical materials collection, literature reading and field investigation will be adopted. It tries to study and discuss the cultural and artistic value of the stone memorial of Guo's cemetery at Mount Xiao Tang from art analysis standpoint, combining the analysis of its background and details, in order to have a better understanding of creation intension and value.