The Study of the Animal Decoration And Myths of the Bronze Wares During Shang And Zhou Dynasties

• Main Authors: Byron Wang, 王百榮
• Other Authors: Wu Zhe Fu
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2007
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/t55xhz

碩士 === 淡江大學 === 中國文學系碩士在職專班 === 95 === Bronze wares are the only one kind of things that involve in all human’s important activities, such as politics, economics, armies, religions, technologies and cultures. In manufacturing and utilizing of bronze wares, Shang and Zhou Dynasties are undoubtedly at the climax of all the time. Bronze wares are not only everyday utensils but also ceremonial representations. The appearance of the bronze wares is surely a charming attraction, but their inner meanings are much more important. The animal decoration of the bronze wares is exactly to the point of those meanings. Studying that can help us understand the religious believes and living styles of the ancient people. China didn’t have characters until Shang Dynasty while the bronzes wares first showed up. That is, it is the beginning of civilization. Some bronze wares don’t have any inscription, others only have few ones, but almost each of them has animal decoration that works as a language, which describes the development of time and culture. The appearance of the animal decoration has changed from heavy into light, from complex into simple, from strange into common, from immortal into mortal; and the spirit of the animal decoration has changed from blind natural worship into human self-respected conscience, from barbaric slavery into cultivated feudalism. Both the appearance and the spirit reflect the rich life styles of the ancient society. Myths are natural phenomena, the fighting against mother nature, and the reflection of living in a rich art society. They are produced from real lives, not novelties. They are not equal to history, but they are maybe the shadow of history. Myths can also represent the unique characters of a tribe. To worship the success of the original creation of the bronze wares and the hardship of the long-term reservation of the bronze wares, we should make an effort to preserve these cultural relics forever.