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Shaanxi Museum of History Qin and Han Pavilion and “Big Dipper”

Xi’an Evening News

The seven main buildings of the Shaanxi History Museum are arranged in a “Big Dipper” layout. Photo by chief reporter Li Ming

Jingbian Qushuhao Mural Tomb Astrology Picture

“Celestial Map of the Ground” from the Tomb of King Qin of the Tang Dynasty

Han Chang’an City Ruins

Schematic diagram of the “Fighting City” in Chang’an of the Han Dynasty

Western Zhou Dynasty Dragon Pattern Dou

Jingbian Qushuhao Mural Tomb Astrology Picture

Rubbings of Kuixingdian Doubu

The Qin and Han Pavilion of the Shaanxi History Museum (hereinafter referred to as the “Qin Han Pavilion”), which has been opened on a trial basis, has been attracting the attention of countless audiences since its opening. Since its debut, it has topped the list of the most popular new exhibitions in the country on the Zhongbo hot search list. It can be said to be “top-notch since its debut. “.

Why is the Qin and Han Pavilion called the “Qin and Han Pavilion”? Is it just because of its geographical location? What is the difference between the new museum and the main building of the Shaanxi History Museum? The architectural design of the exhibition hall uses the Big Dipper as a combination method, so what is the “Big Dipper” and the new museum? Is it just a simple seven houses? From satellites in the sky to buildings on the ground and underground mausoleums, where does the “Beidou” complex in the Chinese people’s bones come from? Whose tombs are here, and what stories are hidden? There are other unearthed objects on this land What precious cultural relics?

In this issue, let us bring these curiosity and questions and invite experts to answer them one by one——

“Natural History Museum”

The Qin and Han cultural belt connecting ancient and modern times

The Qin and Han Museum of the Shaanxi History Museum is built adjacent to the core palace area of the Qin Xianyang City ruins and the Western Han Dynasty Imperial Mausoleum ruins, a national key cultural relic protection unit. It is also the “Qin and Han Cultural Belt Connecting Ancient and Modern Times” and “Qin Creation” built by the Qin and Han New Town in Xixian New District. The core area of the original Weihe Science and Technology Innovation Belt.

The Qinhan New Town area is known as a “natural history museum” with cultural relics and historic sites dotted everywhere. According to statistics, there are 70 square kilometers of heritage protection areas, 10 national key cultural relics protection units, 2 Shaanxi provincial-level cultural relics protection units, 7 Xixian New District district-level cultural relics protection units, and 63 general immovable cultural relics sites within the Qinhan New City. . The large number of cultural relics, the grand scale, the rich connotation, and the complete sequence of times are all amazing. The historical information preserved on this land reflects the strong national spirit and traditional cohesion of the Chinese nation.

The Qin and Han Dynasties were a period of great change and development in ancient Chinese society. It was an era when China’s territory and China’s world identity were established. It was an era when the unique charm of Chinese characters and Chinese culture was revealed. It was also an era when China’s institutional civilization was finalized and the foundation of Chinese academic thought was laid. , it was also the era when a unified multi-ethnic centralized state system with Han as the main body was formed.

At that time, Xianyang City, as the first unified capital of a multi-ethnic country in ancient China, played an important role in Chinese history.

Hou Ningbin, director of the Shaanxi History Museum, introduced that the grand theme of Qin and Han civilization is unique and can be distinguished from the relevant exhibitions of the Shaanxi History Museum, so as to avoid the homogenization of displayed cultural relics in its own exhibitions. Qin and Han The basic exhibition open to the museum, “The World is Unified – Theme Exhibition of Qin and Han Civilizations”, does not display cultural relics in chronological order as is well known to the public. Instead, it breaks the convention and uses the systems of the Qin and Han dynasties as the entry point to explore the political, economic, and ideological aspects. The achievements and contributions of the Qin and Han civilizations are sorted out in six aspects: culture, science and technology, and exchanges.

In addition to the main line showing Qin and Han civilizations, the curatorial team designed auxiliary lines listing ancient civilizations in other regions of the world, placing the changes in China’s territory during the Qin and Han Dynasties within the world’s territory at that time. In this regard, Hou Ningbin explained: “We want the audience to be able to open the window of China to see the world when viewing the exhibition in the Qin and Han Pavilion.” See the world, see culture, and see what other civilizations in the world did during the Qin and Han Dynasties. What. At the same time, this comparison also illustrates the importance of the Qin and Han dynasties as the founding era of various systems in China.

Based on this, the name of the new museum “Qin and Han Pavilion” is not only due to its geographical location, but also because it displays the development history and outstanding achievements of Qin and Han civilization, as well as the contribution of this period to Chinese civilization and even world civilization.

The Big Dipper is “like the sky and the earth”

It condenses the romantic ideas of the palaces of the Qin Dynasty

When we were in the Qin and Han Hall of Shaanxi History Museum and looked up at the top of the towering hall, we were already shrouded in the “halo” of the “Big Dipper”.

If viewed from the air, the seven buildings in the main area of the Qin and Han Pavilion of the Shaanxi History Museum are relatively independently arranged in the shape of the Big Dipper. They are connected to each other through overhead corridors, which condenses the Qin Dynasty palace’s “like heaven and earth” Romantic thought. The so-called “Big Dipper” means that the overall layout of the exhibition hall building is composed of Yaoguang, Kaiyang, Yuheng, Tianquan, Tianji, etc. in the Big Dipper. The axis is determined with Yuheng as the midpoint and is set in the No. 1 Palace of Qin Xianyang Palace. On the extension line of the central axis of the site, a “Big Dipper” pattern is formed. This layout gives the Qinhan Pavilion both the grandeur of axial symmetry and the freedom of an asymmetrical layout.

The architectural style of the Qin and Han Dynasties with “high pavilions and beautiful palaces” is simple, coupled with the overlapping elements of the Qin and Han civilizations here, the unique geographical location and the rich history, the Qin and Han Pavilion buildings have a bold and ancient charm that is natural and has become a very unique building complex. Ornamental “exhibits”.

Beidou is an important star in the northern hemisphere starry sky, and it is also a star name that every Chinese is familiar with. In the vast night sky, the Big Dipper points the way to the world with its unique shape and bright light. In the long history, the Big Dipper has also been remembered by many historical relics and sites because of its mysterious and symbolic significance.

Throughout ancient and modern times, the city of Chang’an in the Han Dynasty was modeled on the Big Dipper. China’s independently developed global satellite navigation system was named “Beidou”. People’s Daily Online wrote when collecting new satellite names: “When the Chinese develop their own satellite navigation system , its name is undoubtedly determined to be ‘Beidou’…” They bear witness to the deep connection between the Big Dipper and Chinese civilization, and hide the “Beidou” complex belonging to the Chinese nation.

The Qin and Han Pavilion, built based on the Big Dipper, is not just seven pavilions, it also contains China’s long-standing Beidou culture. Belief in the Big Dipper is one of the earliest star beliefs of the Chinese people. It connects the starry sky with the human world. Because the seven stars are arranged in a zigzag shape, resembling eating utensils and spoons, and are located in the north sky, “living in the yin and yang, so it is called the Big Dipper.” “Spring and Autumn Movement Dou Shu” records: “The first Tianshu, the second (Tian) Xuan, the third (Tian) Ji, the fourth (Tian) Quan, the fifth (Tian) Heng, the sixth Kaiyang, the seventh The ancients named the Big Dipper. From spoon to spoon handle, they are Tianshu, Tianxuan, Tianji, Tianquan, Yuheng, Kaiyang, and Yaoguang. They are also called Greedy Wolf, Jumen, Lucun, Wen Qu, Lian Zhen, Wu Qu, Po Jun. It means light and direction, and has been used to guide the direction, distinguish the four seasons, and mark the time since ancient times.

During the Warring States Period, “He Guanzi: Circulation Pian” records that the ancients distinguished the four seasons this way: “When the bucket handle points to the east, the world is spring; when the bucket handle points to the south, the world is summer; when the bucket handle points to the west, the world is autumn; when the bucket handle points to the north, the world is autumn. Winter.” Li Bai wrote the famous line in “The Revenge of the Nagato”: “The sky returns to the Beidou and hangs on the west tower, and there is no one in the golden house, and the fireflies are streaming.” The “Heaven returns to the Beidou” here refers to the season that has entered autumn.

In the eyes of the ancients, the Seven Stars of the Big Dipper are the makers of the order of heaven and earth. Spring birth, summer growth, autumn harvest, and winter storage all come according to the direction of the handle of the Big Dipper. For example, my country’s earliest calendar, the Summer Calendar “Xia Xiaozheng”, is based on the Big Dipper to determine the seasonal climate.

With the development of history, the ancients gradually endowed the Big Dipper with the divinity to control the wealth, longevity, and destiny of all living beings in the world. They also used the “Big Dipper” as a metaphor for the emperor, giving rise to the saying that “the stars are competing against the Big Dipper.” “Historical Records of Justice” records that “the fighting stars are bright, the king’s way is peaceful, and the nobles and nobles are prosperous, otherwise, on the contrary…”, “Kaiyuan Divination” writes: “If the seven political stars are bright, the country will be prosperous; if the stars are unclear, the country will be prosperous. Disaster…” The changes in light and dark of the Big Dipper in the sky can be used as a symbol of the world’s judgment of the monarch’s virtue, as well as a foreshadowing of the rise and fall of a country’s chaos. The architectural layout of the capital, where the emperor is located, often imitates the shape of the Big Dipper, so that the capital can be located in the sky and earth and thus demonstrate the authority of the emperor.

Looking around us, the same is true of Chang’an City in the Western Han Dynasty, the largest and most prosperous international metropolis in the world at that time. It took more than 90 years to build Chang’an City in the Han Dynasty. It is large in scale and exquisitely laid out. It is the capital city with the most capital dynasties and the longest duration in Chinese history. However, it is not as neat and rigorous as the later capital buildings. If you look at the ruins of today’s Han Chang’an City from the air, you will find that the overall shape of the city wall is an irregular square, with twists and turns on the other three sides except the east wall, which is vertical from north to south. This is because the Han Chang’an City was not completed in one construction. Its city wall was built after the Changle Palace and Weiyang Palace were completed. During the construction, the northwest corner was missing to accommodate the location of the Second Palace and the flow of the Wei River in the north of the city. This made the Han Chang’an City The northwest section of the North City Wall becomes winding and zigzag like the Big Dipper, while the central protruding part and the eastern section of the South City Wall become winding and zigzag like the South Dipper. From this, “Sanfu Huangtu” says, “The south of the city (Chang’an) is in the shape of a south dipper and the north is in the shape of a beidou. This is why people still call the capital of Han Dynasty the ‘Dou City'”, so Chang’an City is also known as the “Dou City”. name. Later scholars believed that this architectural shape is also a simulation of the Beidou star diagram, which “fights in the sky and controls the four directions”.

From determining the four seasons to guiding direction and navigation, from controlling life’s destiny to deifying and limiting imperial power, from planning the shape of the capital to changing the enemy’s victory, the Big Dipper has widely affected the production and life of the Chinese ancestors, and has deeply participated in the development of Chinese belief culture. , and eventually became the guiding light for Chinese people’s secular life and spiritual world.

Qinhan Pavilion Multimedia Exhibition Hall

Cultural relics related to the “Big Dipper”

If you have visited the “One World” exhibition, you will find that many cultural relics and various materials related to the Big Dipper are presented in the multimedia exhibition hall of the Qin and Han Pavilion. As one of the most eye-catching star clusters in the night sky, the Big Dipper is the source of inspiration for the creation of many cultural relics. From ancient bronzes and pottery to later calligraphy, paintings, and stone carvings, you can see the shadow of the Big Dipper. These cultural relics not only record the ancients’ observations and understanding of astronomical phenomena, but also reflect their awe of the universe and nature.

For example, the famous cultural relics in the Xi’an Forest of Steles Museum – the rubbings of the Kuixing Diandou Stele. The Kuixing Diandou Stele is an interesting stone stele that involves “looking at pictures and guessing words”. It was created around the Tongzhi period of the Qing Dynasty. The ancients collectively called the four stars of Tianshu, Tianxuan, Tianji and Tianquan in the Big Dipper as Kuixing. It is one of the twenty-eight stars. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, it evolved into the “Kui” star. People built pavilions in various places to offer sacrifices. Pray that students will be on the gold list and ranked first when they take the exam. The belief in Kuixing flourished during the Song Dynasty and has been enduring ever since. The “Yanshan Waiji” in the Ming Dynasty also recorded anecdotes about students posting pictures of Kuixing next to their seats and selling Kuixing statues outside the examination room. Among the cultural relics handed down today, there are many Kuixing ornaments carved from different materials such as copper, porcelain or tooth bone. However, this stele in the collection of Xi’an Forest of Steles Museum is different. Its originality lies in the fact that it uses the dynamic lines of running script to express the image of Kuixing and at the same time, it also hides the words of Confucian classics in the picture. Looking at the body of the stele, the stele is rectangular in shape with a round head and a square foot. On the top of the stele is engraved a picture of Kuixing. The image of Kuixing is composed of eight running script characters: “Restrain oneself and return to rituals, cultivate one’s mind and cultivate one’s morality.” It is also accompanied by the running script on the right side ” The character “Dou” is written in cursive script below, and the character “ao” is written in running script below, showing Kuixing standing independently on the head of “Ao” in a dancing posture of holding a pen and holding an inkstone. Among them, “denying oneself and restoring etiquette” comes from “Restraining oneself and restoring etiquette, which is benevolence” in “The Analects of Confucius”, and “correcting one’s mind and cultivating one’s body” comes from “investigating things, seeking knowledge, sincerity, uprightness of mind, self-cultivation, ordering the family, governing the country,” in “The Great Learning”. Peaceful world”. The overall picture of the stele expresses the auspicious meaning of “the most powerful star in the fight to win the first place”. It is vivid and exquisite in spelling, symbolizing the circle of names of the scholars who were named on the gold list, which means that they have passed the examination and are famous on the list.

Among the many cultural relics and historical documents, there are some that directly depict the shape of the Beidou, and some that contain profound connotations. For example, there are many representations of Beidou in literary works or daily utensils, which not only demonstrate the ancients’ accurate depiction of astronomical phenomena, but also reflect their superb mastery of craftsmanship.

Du Fu, a poet of the Tang Dynasty, wrote in the poem “Admonishment to Han”: “The sun and the moon are white as the sky flies, and the sky is red with green maple leaves and rain and frost. The emperors in Yujing gather in the Beidou, or ride on the Qiqi and fly under the phoenix.” The use of words such as “emperors”, “unicorn” and “phoenix” reflects that Beidou often represented nobility and power in ancient times. Scenes such as red maple leaves and falling frost and rain also show that it was autumn at that time. The drinking utensils in the bronze wine vessels are called buckets. “The Book of Songs·Xiaoya·Dadong” describes its appearance like this: “There is a dustpan in the south of Weinan, which cannot be winnowed. There is a bucket in the north of Weiwei, and the wine slurry cannot be scooped out.” It can be seen that the shape of the bucket is similar to the Big Dipper. The Western Zhou Dynasty Dragon Pattern Dou unearthed in Fufeng, Shaanxi Province in 1976 is exactly such an instrument shaped like the Big Dipper. It has a total length of 22.6 cm, a bucket height of 3.9 cm, a diameter of 2.3 cm, and a bucket depth of 3.7 cm. The bucket head is cylindrical, with a slightly convergent mouth and a round bottom. The crank protrudes from the bottom of the bucket head, and the handle rises in the middle. It is in the shape of a sparrow’s tail. The joint between the handle and the head is decorated with a relief animal face, and the handle is decorated with a triangular Gu Shou Kui pattern. The simple lines and vivid images show the awe and curiosity of the ancients towards the starry sky. It is not only a practical vessel, but also an artistic representation of the ancients’ astronomical knowledge. This daily utensil also reflects the close connection between Beidou culture and social life.

Among the cultural relics in the collection of the Forest of Steles Museum in Xi’an, there is a “Seven Pan Dance” Eastern Han Dynasty portrait stone, which represents a dance that was often performed at court banquets or private banquets in the Han Dynasty. During the performance, the drum is placed on the ground, and the dancers dance on the drum according to the rhythm. The number of drums varies, but the seven pans are named after them, symbolizing the seven stars of the Big Dipper, hence the name “Qi Pan Dance”.

The Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archeology discovered a mural depicting a constellation in a Han Dynasty tomb in Haotan Township, Dingbian County. In ancient times when technology was underdeveloped, people believed that the soul would be immortal after death and that the soul could ascend to the fairyland in heaven. Therefore, the ancients arranged the heavenly world in their minds in their tombs, and the stars in the sky were the most direct display. The ancient tombs buried underground and the vast universe met with the “help” of the ancients.

The star chart found on the top of the Han Dynasty brick mural tomb in Qushuhao, Yangqiao Bank, Jingbian, northern Shaanxi Province, is the first twenty-eight star chart discovered by archeology in my country with four elements: star shape, star number, image, and title. You can see the Big Dipper, Fuxi, Nuwa, Cowherd and Weaver Girl, etc. The map is centered on the Beidou and bounded by the Twenty-Eight Constellations. It mainly depicts the main star officials in the sky area within the Twenty-Eight Constellations, including the Beidou, Tianshi, Tianlao and other constellations. The overall structure belongs to the early “Twenty-Eight Constellations” system, in which there are 33 other constellations. There are inscriptions on the stars and constellations in Chinese ink, and most of the stars and constellations are painted with images of people or animals. It is an astronomical map of the Han Dynasty that has both artistic and scientific value.

In the Tang Qin Dynasty Mausoleum Museum, many people will marvel at the rare “terrestrial celestial phenomena map”. According to experts, the celestial images in the tombs of ancient emperors are usually built above the domes of the tombs. The underground palace of Liu’s tomb of the King of Qin in the Tang Dynasty is a rare “terrestrial celestial image”. At first glance, the ground is wide in the north and narrow in the south, like the shape of a coffin lid. If you look closely, it has a bulge in the middle and upturned corners, like the top of a sedan. There are various strange marks and uneven shapes on the tiled green bricks, forming a Big Dipper. If you open the blue bricks according to the position of the Big Dipper, you can see the spoon-shaped “terrestrial astronomical picture”. This form can enhance the effect of far-reaching perspective and create a situation of overlooking the world.

In the inheritance, development and transformation of history and culture, the existence form of Beidou is also constantly evolving and innovating. It lives in many historical relics, sites and museums in different forms. It lives around us and has become a link between the past and the present, astronomy and humanities. bridge. Today, with advanced science and technology, people have been able to observe and explain astronomical phenomena more accurately, but those ancient cultural relics still attract people with their unique charm and value, and are an irreplaceable part of the world’s exploration of history.

Except for the signature, the pictures in this edition are provided by Shaanxi History Museum

Source: Xi’an Evening News