A Study On The Bronze Belts Of The Han Dyna Sty Unearthed In The Northern Great Wall Area

A large number of archaeological materials of belt hooks,buckles and animal-embellished plates from the East and West dynasties have been unearthed from tombs in the Northern Great Wall area.This paper presents a taxonomic study of the bronze belt-wares consisting of hooks,buckles and animal-embellished plates.252 pieces of bronze belt-wares were collected through extensive collection and statistical collation of archaeological briefs from the East and West dynasties excavated in the Great Wall area in the north.On this basis,a systematic study of the bronze belt-wares of the East and West dynasties excavated from the Great Wall area in the north was carried out by applying typological and graphical methods and combining them with relevant literature and canonical texts.Firstly,based on the archaeological briefs and literary texts,the distribution and characteristics of the burials’ excavated belt hooks,buckles and animal-embellished plates are analysed using diagrams and tables to summarise the overall condition of the bronze belt wares from the Northern Great Wall area during the East and West dynasties;secondly,the classification of the bronze belt wares is studied,and a typological classification of the excavated belt hooks,buckles and animal-embellished plates is made to analyse the temporal and spatial distribution characteristics and the evolution of the various types of bronze belt wares.A comparative study of the bronze belt wares from the Northern Great Wall area was also undertaken to summarise the development and evolution of the bronze belt wares and their phased characteristics,as well as to explore the links between regions.The characteristics of the bronze beltwares from the Northern Great Wall area are related to their geographical location at the intersection of the Middle Kingdom culture and the nomadic grassland culture,and there is a close connection between the bronze beltwares from the East and West dynasties and the northern grassland culture and Xiongnu tombs,with similarities in their tomb forms and excavated artefacts.At the same time,this is a reflection of the mutual influence between the agricultural culture of the Middle Kingdom and the nomadic culture of the grasslands in the process of exchange.This paper therefore attempts to collect the unearthed objects from the belt hooks,buckles and animal-embellished plaques to analyse their geographical distribution and the cultural characteristics they embody,in order to gain a more comprehensive understanding of the bronze belts of the East and West dynasties excavated from the Great Wall area in the north.