The present paper expounds the author’s three ideas. Firstly, the cattle depicted on the cattle zun vase unearthed from Tomb M54 at Locus East of Huayuanzhuang within the Yin Ruins must be a buffalo, and the design o...The present paper expounds the author’s three ideas. Firstly, the cattle depicted on the cattle zun vase unearthed from Tomb M54 at Locus East of Huayuanzhuang within the Yin Ruins must be a buffalo, and the design of the cattle’s head on ritual bronzes from the Yin Ruins depicts also the buffalo’s head. In the Yin people’s mind, the buffalo is more intelligent than the ox, so they often used it for sacrifice. Secondly, the most important, most distinct motif on this vessel is the tiger design on the buffalo’s belly. Among the bronzes from the Yin Ruins, the tiger design occurs only on important ritual vessels and weapons owned by members of the royal family and high-rank aristocracy. This motif was a symbol of the aristocratic status, position and privilege. Thirdly, the vessel under discussion is similar in shape, design and decorative style to the cattle zun vase unearthed from Hengyang, Henan in 1977, which goes back to the later second phase or earlier third phase of the Yinxu culture. The latter must have been cast at Yinxu and later entered the Hunan region through calculation.展开更多
文摘The present paper expounds the author’s three ideas. Firstly, the cattle depicted on the cattle zun vase unearthed from Tomb M54 at Locus East of Huayuanzhuang within the Yin Ruins must be a buffalo, and the design of the cattle’s head on ritual bronzes from the Yin Ruins depicts also the buffalo’s head. In the Yin people’s mind, the buffalo is more intelligent than the ox, so they often used it for sacrifice. Secondly, the most important, most distinct motif on this vessel is the tiger design on the buffalo’s belly. Among the bronzes from the Yin Ruins, the tiger design occurs only on important ritual vessels and weapons owned by members of the royal family and high-rank aristocracy. This motif was a symbol of the aristocratic status, position and privilege. Thirdly, the vessel under discussion is similar in shape, design and decorative style to the cattle zun vase unearthed from Hengyang, Henan in 1977, which goes back to the later second phase or earlier third phase of the Yinxu culture. The latter must have been cast at Yinxu and later entered the Hunan region through calculation.
