Study On The Ritual Jades In The Erlitou Cultural

The Ritual Jades of Erlitou Culture are important materials for exploring the Xia culture,which is in a key transitional position in the cultural dissemination from east to west and from prehistoric to Shang Dynasty.The systematic collation and study of it can further explore the rich connotation of Erlitou culture in space and time.In recent years,the research on the Erlitou cultural ritual jades has mainly focused on the relationship between ritual and artifacts,the classification,individual artifact,and the texture,but has not formed a systematic understanding.This paper uses archaeological typology,stratigraphy,cultural factor analysis and other methods,combined with the existing research results of the academic community,through the reclassification of types,analyze the characteristics of specific artifacts from different aspects,summarize the morphological characteristics of ritual jades and the ritual system they reflect,and then reveal the important value and significance of Erlitou cultural ritual jades in the process of Chinese civilization.According to the published data,this paper counts the number of jade excavated from the Erlitou culture,and analyzes its typical vessels by comparing the number of different types of ritual jades unearthed;from the Erlitou site and other sites of the Erlitou culture,tombs and other ruins,burial levels and burial objects specifications,etc.,the number of ritual jades unearthed is counted,and it is found that the ritual jades are concentrated in the Erlitou site,the main excavation unit is the tomb,and the largest number of ritual jades unearthed is the weapon class.The ritual jades of the Erlitou culture are mainly the weapons that symbolize military power,and are obviously larger than that of the tool and ornamental jades,which belongs to the typical type of the Erlitou cultural ritual jades.Ritual jades are the material carriers of the ceremonial system,which reflects the etiquette ideology of the upper echelons of society,so it can be seen that the Erlitou cultural ritual jades are closely related to the social conditions of consolidating political power with war.On the basis of analyzing the number of ritual jades unearthed,combined with the relevant research results,several of them are selected in terms of the characteristics of the vessel shape,the excavation environment,the cultural origin,the ornamentation,the production process and the function,and the specific artifacts are discussed.The research on weapon ritual jades in this article includes porous knives,tooth zhangs,jade ge,jade pendants,jade pendants,turquoise bronze medallions and turquoise dragon-shaped vessels.Tool-based jade ceremonial vessels include jade handle-shaped vessels,bell tongues and jade shovels,and ornamental ritual jades are mainly eagle-headed vessels.Among them,the source of the porous jade knife is clear,and the information on its flow is relatively sufficient,which is the key discussion chapter of the weapon jade ceremonial ware.The jade handle shaped ware is the largest number of jade ceremonial ware excavated in the Erlitou cultural sites,and its related research results and controversies are many,which is the focus of the discussion of the tool-type ritual jades in this article.Although the number of eagle-headed pipes unearthed in the sites is small,its distribution time range and geographical location have certain regularities,which plays an important role in discussing the exchange between the Erlitou culture and other cultures,so this article discusses it as the focus of the ornamental ritual jades.On the basis of a more systematic collation and research on the Erlitou cultural ritual jades,through the comparative analysis of several important relics of cultural exchange,including the remains of the Xinzhan period,the Wangwan phase III culture,the Longshan culture in the Haidai area,the Taosi culture and the Shaanxi Longshan culture,the Shijiahe culture,the Liangzhu culture,and the Erligang culture,etc.,especially in the in-depth comparison of the shape characteristics,production technology,excavation environment,etc.,the direct and indirect sources of the formation of the Erlitou cultural jades are sorted out.,and the influence on the shang dynasty ritual jades is explored.During the Erlitou culture period,the strengthening of royal power led to an increase in the number of weapon jades,and they appeared concentrated in the Erlitou ruins."Carrying etiquette with jade" became a prominent feature of this period.At this time,the bronze casting technology was not yet developed,and the spirit of the ceremony was mainly carried by jade.The Erlitou cultural ritual jade system also incorporates the diversified jade system of the Longshan era,which is the precursor of ritual jades used in Xia Shang and Zhou Dynasties and becoming an important part of Chinese civilization.