History of Chinese Sculpture (Part 1)

With the end of the Paleolithic Age, sculptures in an independent sense have appeared in the Yellow River basin and Northeast China in the Neolithic Age. Of course, it has gone through a quite long transition period. According to the existing archaeological research data, primitive humans appeared on the land of China more than one million years ago, and now we call them "ancient ape man". Such as "Peking ape man" in Zhoukoudian, "Yuanmou ape man" in Yunnan, and "Lantian ape man" in Shaanxi. They live in caves and live by gathering and hunting. About 200000 years ago, "ape-man" evolved into "ancients", transiting to matriarchal clan society, such as "Dingcun people" in Shanxi, "Changyang people" in Hubei, and so on. The "new people" period was about 50000 years ago, such as the "Hetao people" in Inner Mongolia and the "Ziyang people" in Sichuan. The prosperity period of matriarchal clan society is more than 7000 years ago. The most representative ones are "Yangshao Culture" and "Hemudu Culture". Since then, human beings have entered the patriarchal clan society, where there has been polarization between the rich and the poor, rule and being ruled, and then human beings have entered the slave society.

The difference between man and ape lies in the creation of tools of production - stone tools in labor. In the long process described above, the ancestors of human beings have evolved from the changes in labor practice, from simply making stone tools to polishing and classifying stone tools. At the same time, the decorations at the spiritual and cultural level also become more beautiful with the improvement of thinking ability and aesthetic consciousness. The earliest sculpture sprouts can be regarded as primitive stone tools, and a large number of fine stone tools have the nature of sculpture.

In the late Neolithic Age, pottery appeared. They have rich shapes and diverse patterns, which are not only necessary daily tools in life, but also works of art that can be appreciated. At this time, the pottery was not divorced from its practical purpose, but its impact on the later bronzes and pictographs was obvious.

The original form of Chinese primitive sculpture is pottery, which is inseparable from its practical value. From the perspective of technological means, it can be roughly divided into the following categories: First, the pottery eagle tripod unearthed at the Yangshao Cultural Site is 36 cm high, with the eagle body as the tripod body and two legs as the three fulcrums. The shape of the vessel is full, which is one of the representative works of the perfect combination of such sculpture and vessels. The second is the decorative sculpture, some of which appear in the form of accessories, such as cover buttons, handles, etc; Some appear in the form of surface relief. The themes include animals, plants, people, etc. The head portrait of the pottery bottle man unearthed in Dadiwan, Gansu Province, can be described as the beginning of early Chinese figure sculpture. The author skillfully molded the mouth of the pottery bottle into a person's head portrait, which is exquisite and vivid. Third, small animals or figures are molded. These small sculptures are made by ancient craftsmen without fake tools. They are small and have strong human feelings. The pottery pig unearthed at the Hemudu Cultural Site in Zhejiang Province is probably the oldest sculpture in the south of the Yangtze River in China, which is 7000 years old. Although the work is only 6.3 cm in size, its image is very vivid, which shows the sculptor's exquisite observation of life.

China's historical development has gone from slavery to feudal society, which experienced the Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties. Xia Yu was the ruler of the largest tribe in the Yellow River basin in the 21st century BC. Since then, he has determined the hereditary system of the throne. The span of the Shang Dynasty is about the 16th century BC to the 11th century BC, and it is still a tribal country. The capital of Anyang was moved in the late Shang Dynasty. Since the place name was called "Yin" at that time, history called the late Shang Dynasty "Shang". Then came the Zhou Dynasty near the capital of Xi'an, which was called the "Western Zhou" in history. The capital of Luoyang was moved to the late Zhou Dynasty, which was called the "Eastern Zhou" in history. The Eastern Zhou Dynasty included the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. This period spans from the 11th century BC to 221 BC.

The bronzes of the Shang and Zhou dynasties are the cultural phenomenon of Erlitou in Henan from the 21st century BC to the 17th century BC. Like the nature of the original pottery sculpture, the bronzes of the Shang and Zhou dynasties are not sculptures in the actual sense, but practical implements for sacrificial rites, life, musical instruments, weapons, tools, etc. Some historians refer to Xia, Shang and Zhou as the "Bronze Age". These large quantities of bronzes are owned by the slave owners and are also symbols of some kind of domination, authority and wealth.

In terms of form, the sculpture factors of bronze can be roughly divided into the following categories: ① bronzes with animal phenomena as the theme, such as the owl statue unearthed from the tomb of Fuhao in Anyang, the standing owl with round eyes, solid and powerful, and the appearance is decorated with other animal patterns; Another example is the elephant statue unearthed in Liling, Hunan, which has exaggerated deformation factors on the basis of basic realism, and the casting technology is fine. ② It is the decoration on the surface of bronzes. Common forms include relief, round carving, openwork, etc., such as the four sheep square statue unearthed in Ningxiang, Hunan Province, with a huge body, and a roll of horn sheep head cast at each corner, with a dignified shape; For example, the figure seat triplet lamp unearthed at the site of Zhongshan National Capital in Pingshan, Hebei Province, takes the figure shape as the main structure of the lamp and looks natural. ③ It is a relatively independent bronze statue. The standing figure unearthed in Sanxingdui, Guanghan, Sichuan is the most representative one, with a height of 172 cm and a base of 262 cm. The face image is simple and the overall sense is strong, and the overall appearance is more exquisite. According to textual research, this kind of statue is not a clear object, and may be related to the objects used for sacrifice. Another example is the statue of bird playing urchin unearthed in Luoyang, Henan Province. Its facial expression is vivid and very realistic. Although these bronzes are still handicrafts in nature (for practical purposes), they have initially possessed the attributes of sculpture art. Some exaggerated, deformed and strange patterns formed a majestic and mysterious atmosphere, reflecting the aesthetic views and understanding of the natural environment in that historical period.

In terms of the overall style, the bronze wares of the Shang Dynasty are dignified, heavy and magnificent; The works in the early and middle period of the Western Zhou Dynasty are gorgeous, ornate, and have strange images. There is a mysterious color over them; In the late Western Zhou Dynasty, it was more realistic, no longer aggressive, and the decoration was relatively simple.

In addition, there are sculptures made of stone, jade, pottery and other materials in this period. The purpose of this kind of sculpture is to sacrifice, daily necessities, clothing and other aspects. Among them, jade carving is the most prominent. According to historical and cultural records, people at that time liked to wear jade articles, which had both aesthetic and ethical implications. In Shang and Zhou tombs, there are often jade carvings, such as jade turtles, jade tigers, jade people, etc., which express the image characteristics of people and animals in a simple and lively way. For example, the jade figure unearthed from the Yin Ruins in Yin Xu in Anyang, Henan Province, is 8.5 cm high, decorated with taotie animal facial patterns, and drilled on the head to facilitate rope wearing. Another example is the jade carving in the shape of deer unearthed from the Western Zhou Tomb in Baoji, Shaanxi Province. It is lovely in posture. Although it is very small, its portrayal is very vivid. The capital of the Western Zhou Dynasty was in Chang'an, Shaanxi, where many similar cultural relics have been found in recent years.

In the tombs of the late Spring and Autumn Period, a large number of pottery figurines have been used to replace human burial. The unearthed pottery servant in Linzi, Shandong Province, is only about 10 cm long, with painted exterior. In addition, in the tombs of Chu in Hunan, Henan, Hubei and other places, there are also wooden figurines, which are simple and concise in shape and pay attention to the overall effect of fast body. This kind of sacrificial objects are all "bright objects", some of which are rough in production.

Other sculpture works in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period have been recorded sporadically in the literature, but the physical objects are nowhere to be seen. However, another important category of sculpture art is accessories or decoration used in architecture. The most common type of this kind of work is tile. Generally, there are reliefs of various patterns, with animals, clouds and geometric patterns as the main content. The group of sculptors in this period has begun to become clear. With the development of handicraft industry, the industry specialized in processing copper, jade, stone, antiques and wood is clearly more detailed than before, and there are personnel and institutions specialized in managing "100 workers".

In the Qin Dynasty, there were significant developments in sculpture. The most striking ones were the large pottery Terra Cotta Warriors and bronze chariots and horses. After the annexation of the six countries by Qin Shihuang, the Qin Dynasty was established to unify currency, characters, weights and measures, etc. The sculpture theme of the Qin Dynasty is more close to life, and from a functional point of view, it has gradually become independent. The Qin Dynasty inherited the simplicity of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, and its works tended to be realistic. The overall sculpture style of the Qin and Han Dynasties is relatively grand, emphasizing strength and momentum.

Although the Qin Dynasty only occupied a short period of 15 years in the entire history of sculpture, the emergence of only one Terra Cotta Warriors is enough to change the history of Chinese sculpture. It was unearthed from 1974 to 1976 and is mainly composed of terracotta warriors and horses. The body is as big as the real person, with a large number and different looks; There are standing, kneeling, drivers and archers; It is divided into officers and soldiers. The figure of the horse figurines is realistic and vigorous, which shows that the sculptors were meticulous in observing life and proficient in shaping technology at that time. The miniature of Qin Shihuang's millions of troops are all made of clay. Whether it is modeling, molding, firing and other aspects, it is a huge project. Generally, the technology of molding and manual molding is adopted, which is formed in sections and baked as a whole. Its clay is exquisite, the firing flame is uniform, the deformation is small in the process, and the surface is decorated with pigment after firing. The work focuses on facial image portrayal. It is said that the thousands of Terra Cotta Warriors are not full and similar, and can be described by the word "lifelike". From the perspective of character structure, the proportion is appropriate and dynamic and natural. The individual works of the Terracotta Warriors have strong movement personality. Some hold sharp swords, some stand and stare, and some are firm and resolute. However, on the whole, we don't care about the changes in details, and we don't copy the reality completely. There are strong body contrast, density changes, and dynamic and static differences on the square head and circle.

As a special cultural heritage, the unearthed Terra Cotta Warriors of the Qin Dynasty have inestimable value. It shows that China had a very high level of sculpture art more than 2000 years ago. It is the crystallization of the wisdom of the ancient working people, and has made a big step forward than any other era. In general, the Terra Cotta Warriors of the Qin Dynasty are indispensable valuable materials for us to study that period of history and promote the progress of sculpture art of future generations.

Another miracle in the history of sculpture art discovered at the same time with the Terracotta Warriors is the bronze chariot and horse. These bronze chariots and horses are smaller than the Qin Terracotta Warriors. They are made of copper and are more exquisite, that is, they are exquisite. The art of bronze sculpture began in the Shang and Zhou dynasties. Such bronze chariots and horses are unprecedented.

Similarly, due to the construction boom in the Qin Dynasty, I can understand the sculpture art at that time from many existing architectural components and relics. The tile art of the Qin Dynasty can be said to be the masterpiece of small relief art, which can be roughly divided into cloud patterns and animal patterns, with ingenious and changeable ideas. The animal pattern tile is full of sculpture interest. From the "child and female deer pattern" tile, it shows the lively and vigorous female deer with children all the time. In a space of only ten centimeters, it condenses the vibrant life and has a strong decorative interest.

As the saying goes, "Qin bricks and Han tiles" refer to the hollow ceramic tiles of the Qin Dynasty, which are mostly dragon, phoenix or hunting and farming patterns. This style feature can also be appreciated in the bronze mirror decoration of the Qin Dynasty. This art variety, which began in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, has become more and more exquisite since the Qin Dynasty. None of its relief decorative patterns is flying and active, which has a great influence on the later Wei, Jin and Six Dynasties.

The Han Dynasty was the most courageous period in China's feudal society. Since the Qin Dynasty unified China, it has been in the ups and downs for more than 400 years. The momentum of the Han Dynasty can be clearly seen from the existing sculptures. For example, the tomb of Huo Qubing in the Western Han Dynasty still has a number of outstanding stone sculptures, which were created to commemorate the famous general Huo Qubing in the Western Han Dynasty. The "horse treads on the Huns" is 190 cm high. The author uses the image of the war horse to reflect the majesty and outstanding fighting achievements of Huo Qubing, fully reflecting the generality of the memorial sculpture. The whole sculpture is integrated, and there is no space between the limbs, which enhances the heaviness of body and volume.

Among the Huo Qubing Tombstone Carvings, there are 123 complete pieces, which are rare in the history of sculpture at home and abroad for their large size and unique style. In the second century BC, Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty was in power. Guo Li was relatively powerful, and the level of technology and art was further enhanced. The artistic style of sculpture in this period also reflects the strong spirit at that time. The stone carving uses huge integral stones, and artistic treatment is made on its natural appearance. The expression methods of round carving, relief carving and line carving are flexibly used to make it completely subject to the overall shape of sculpture. For example, "Crouching Tiger" uses a few simple yin lines on its shape to express its inner spirit.

This group of stone carvings was excavated, sorted out and protected in the 1920s. It is a glorious page in the history of sculpture art in China. It brings people five poor artistic enjoyment and creative inspiration.

There were also a large number of pottery figurines buried in the Western Han Dynasty. Thousands of painted terracotta figurines have been unearthed in Yangjiawan, Shaanxi. Some people have horses, and the lineup is neat. However, these terracotta figures are small, mostly 50-60 cm high, which may be related to the identity of the tomb owner. Moreover, the craftsmanship of these terracotta figures is far less than that of most of the Qin terracotta figures. "The Han Dynasty inherited the Qin system". In contrast, the Han Dynasty's style of thick burial was weaker than that of the Qin Dynasty. In order to enable the dead to enjoy their living environment in the underworld, pottery granaries, pigstys, cooking stoves, houses, chickens, ducks, dogs, pigs and other things full of life interest began to appear in large numbers. On the other hand, we can also see the progress of pottery making technology at that time. There are many pottery wares with ochre glaze and green glaze. These bright objects also provided visual evidence for the study of agriculture, animal husbandry and social structure at that time.

The decorative sculptures in the Western Han Dynasty were also very developed, one of which was bronze mirror decoration. In this period, except for the cloud and thunder patterns and dragon patterns that are roughly the same as those of the previous generation, auspicious words such as "everlasting longing for each other, never forget each other, Changfu, Yueweiyang" are popular; Breast nail pattern is also a feature of this period, with figures, birds and animals between the breast nails. Second, the gold and silver inlaying technology in the Western Han Dynasty was also relatively developed. It is inlaid with different materials such as gold, silver and turquoise on copper utensils, and filled with black paint, which is called "wrong gold and silver". One of the most representative works is the "gold and silver inlaying" Boshan stove. Although it is a practical product for slight incense, its cover is carved into a layered shape, which is also very popular in the Han Dynasty.

Jade carving in the Western Han Dynasty is also one of the small carving arts that cannot be ignored. The common ones are the band hook, the printed ox, the headdress, the jade pendant and so on, and the jade cicada and the jade pig are buried. These small jade carvings are small in size, excellent in material selection and complete in shape.

We can also see the achievements of sculpture art from the architectural decoration components at that time. The building objects recorded in the historical records have disappeared, and the "Qin bricks and Han tiles" provide us with space for speculation. The tile of the Western Han Dynasty used auspicious words such as "prolong life" and "endless life" as decoration content on the spot, and the animal patterns mostly used "four gods" (green dragon, white tiger, rosefinch, and basalt).

In daily life, people are no longer satisfied and just practical, but tend to make daily necessities more artistic. For example, the copper-oil lamp was a common household article at that time. From the unearthed cultural relics now, the lamps used by people of various positions also vary greatly. The most famous is the "Changxin Palace Lantern", which was unearthed in Mancheng, Hebei Province. It takes the image of a quiet girl as the body of the lamp and holds the lamp shade with both hands; The structure is very ingenious, and the whole is hollow to prevent the candle smoke from scattering everywhere. For example, there are some waist ornaments, headwear or jade pendants that you can wear with you, all of which are small sculptures. The "dance for two" plaque unearthed in Jinning, Yunnan Province, shows two dancing figures in the form of carving, stepping on a twisted and rotating snake, the whole image is full and romantic, and the structure is compact.

During the Eastern Han Dynasty, the fighting between the powerful and the powerful was fierce, and social factors were very unstable. In the past two centuries, the custom of thick burial became popular, so many tombs left to future generations were well preserved. In order to make the tomb strong and durable, more stones with better materials are used to build its framework, and historical stories, plants and animals are embossed on the stone surface, or the life scenes of the tomb owner are carved and recorded. Among them, the most outstanding are a group of reliefs at the Wu's Temple in Jiaxiang County, Shandong Province, which reflect the identity and status of the tomb owner, as well as the scenes of riding, feasting and amusement, and some are myths and legends, ghosts and superstitions. Most of the carving techniques used are sun carving, which flattens and removes the part outside the figure image to make the object image stand out on the stone surface. Then there are the Xiaotang Mountain Temple and Feicheng Zhang's Tomb in Shandong Province, whose stone portraits are characterized by the use of intaglio and the use of concave lines to outline the outer edge of the image.

Nanyang, Henan Province, is the hometown of Liu Xiu, Emperor of the Eastern Han Dynasty. There are many local rich officials and relatives. From the stone carvings and portraits found later, we can see the luxurious life of the nobility when they were prominent officials. The current "Nanyang Han Portrait Museum" has more than 1000 well-preserved tomb stone murals. The relief of Nanyang Han Tomb can be roughly divided into three periods: early, middle and late. The early period is rough, the middle period is skilled, and the late style is not as good as the first two periods. Tends to weakness. Its techniques are mostly chiseling on the negative line, with a wide range of subjects. In addition, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province, Suide, Shaanxi Province, and the Minjiang River in Sichuan Province have abundant Han Dynasty gravestone carvings. There are many cliff tombs in Pengshan, Leshan, Chongqing and other places in Sichuan. The decoration on the wall of these tombs has been carved into high reliefs with a depth of 20 cm to 40 cm.

In terms of unearthed tomb figurines, Sichuan is far richer than other places (including Luoyang). A storyteller figurine unearthed near Chengdu, Sichuan, has a very vivid expression. It depicts the emotional moments and typical characteristics of the storyteller, and with exaggerated body movements, it strengthens the character's demeanor and momentum. In other regions, excellent sculptures of the Eastern Han Dynasty have also been found. For example, the "horse treads on a flying swallow" unearthed in Wuwei, Gansu Province in 1969 caused a sensation in the world. The galloping horse took off with three feet and landed on the support point with its feet. The sculptor skillfully designed the base as a flying swallow, symbolizing the natural and unrestrained nature of "flying horse". The whole work is made of cast copper. Although it is only 34.5 cm high, its momentum is extremely powerful.

During the Three Kingdoms, the Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties, China's sculpture art developed in an all-round way. The prevalence of Buddhism has promoted the vigorous development of the art of Buddha statues, changed the face of the history of Chinese sculpture, and made the figure sculpture more mature; Sculptures for the purpose of burial also took another road to prosperity.

After the unification of the Qin and Han dynasties for four centuries, China has returned to the state of separation. The so-called Three Kingdoms are the State of Wei (220-265), whose capital is Luoyang, the State of Wu (229-265), which is ruled by Sun Quan, and the State of Shu, which is ruled by Liu Bei, a descendant of the Han family. His title of emperor was in (221-263). During this period, it has existed for 40 years, with frequent wars, but their geographical positions are relatively superior, and the threat of survival has also stimulated the development of productivity, so the artistic achievements seem not to be greatly affected.

The construction of Buddhist temples has been recorded in official history in the Eastern Han Dynasty, and the statue activities have also been carried out. Since the Jin Dynasty, statue activities have been rampant, and even the authorities have had to intervene to limit their uncontrolled consumption of human and material resources.

The sculptures of the Three Kingdoms period that can be seen now are mostly tombs. For example, there are precious brick carving art in Cao Wei's royal tomb in the area of Hao County, Anhui Province. Its simple and lively shape and skillful knife technique show the talent of carving artists. After the Kingdom of Shu and the State of Wu were destroyed by Wei, the Sima family of the State of Wei seized power and established a unified and short-lived Western Jin Dynasty (265-316). However, due to the decadent and incompetent rule of the Western Jin Dynasty, which was broken by the northern minorities, these minorities were ruled as "five Hu". Then there was great chaos in the world. In addition to the national struggle of the "five Hu" and "sixteen countries", the Western Jin regime immediately collapsed and the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420) took advantage of the chaos and established in Jiankang (now Nanjing). The ruler was Sima Rui, the royal family of the Western Jin Dynasty. After that, the situation became more complicated, with Song, Qi, Liang and Chen, collectively known as the "Southern Dynasty"; At the same time, the Northern Wei Dynasty, the Eastern Wei Dynasty, the Western Wei Dynasty, the Northern Qi Dynasty and the Northern Zhou Dynasty in the north were established respectively after the "Sixteen Kingdoms" and became the "Northern Dynasty". The period until the sixth century AD was the era of the Northern and Southern Dynasties.

Social unrest has created a broad social basis for foreign Buddhism. In addition to the leadership of the rulers, the city's Buddhist sculpture art has been greatly developed. Indian Buddha incense is "Gandhara style", with the shadow of late Greek art and Persian art. Its characteristics are that its shape is relatively beautiful, and the wrinkles of the clothes are close to the body. After it was introduced into China, it was integrated by Chinese sculptors and formed a unique style of Chinese Buddhist statues, which gradually made this kind of Bolai art with national characteristics.

The first type of Buddha art is the form of grottoes, mainly in the northern region, which was introduced into the mainland by the Silk Road. Dunhuang Grottoes in Gansu, Bingling Temple Grottoes, Baicheng Kizil Grottoes in Xinjiang, and so on, all have clear year titles; Along the way, there are also Maijishan Grottoes in Tianshui, Gansu, Maxi Temple Grottoes in Zhangye, Xumishan Grottoes in Guyuan, Ningxia, Yungang Grottoes in Datong, Shanxi, Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang, Henan, Xiangtangshan Grottoes in the north and south of Handan, Hebei, and Qixia Mountain Grottoes in Nanjing, Jiangsu.

The geographical location of Dunhuang in Gansu Province is relatively remote and has not been greatly affected by the war, so the construction of the Thousand-Buddha Cave has basically not been disturbed. However, the local soil is loose, so it is not suitable for sculpture, and can only be replaced by clay sculpture. This is also one of the characteristics of Chinese Buddha art. The construction scale of the Mogao Grottoes of Dunhuang is huge. From the statues of the Sixteen Kingdoms to the Northern Dynasty, the craftsmen have gradually sinicized the image of the characters, and tend to the popular form at that time in the aesthetic scale of modeling, which is consistent with the characteristics of "showing bones and clear images" in the paintings of the same period. Its later works began to show signs of style in the Tang Dynasty, and more and more factors were affected by the mainland, such as clothing, accessories, etc; In terms of color, the technique of expression is becoming more and more mature.

Maijishan Grottoes got its name because it looks like a wheat pile and is located in Tianshui, Gansu Province. Similarly, due to the problem of stone quality, Maiji Mountain is not suitable for carving Buddha statues. There are many works in the Northern Qi Dynasty. Relatively speaking, the sculptures in Maiji Mountain Grottoes are more vivid and secular. Among the many sculptures, there are beautiful Buddha statues, providers with whispers, lively monks, pious old monks and ferocious and glaring Vajra. The manufacturing process of these clay sculptures is very exquisite and the materials are selected carefully. Although they have not been baked, they have not been damaged for more than 1000 years.

The Yungang Grottoes Group is located in Datong, Shanxi Province. The grottoes stretch for one kilometer. There are more than 1000 grottoes (niches) of different sizes, and the scale is huge. The Yungang Grottoes were excavated in the Northern Wei Dynasty, making full use of the characteristics of local stones; The body is huge, the image is solemn, and it has a soul-taking sense of volume and space. The main Buddha is 13.7 meters high, standing in the main position of the grottoes, and is the first work of the Yungang Grottoes Group; The size of the statue in the second phase is obviously smaller than that in the first phase, but it pays more attention to image portrayal and the dynamic of the characters is also more lively; The third issue is nearing the end, and it has been postponed to the beginning of the sixth century. At that time, large-scale excavation work has stopped. During this period, the image of characters and clothing have been completely Chinese, and the clothing form of the Central Plains, which is characterized by "commendable clothing and extensive clothing", has become popular.

The Longmen Grottoes in the south of Luoyang, Henan Province, have been excavated by the Eastern Wei, Northern Qi, Sui and Tang dynasties, with numerous works and many works left behind. Unfortunately, many statues, heads, arms and other parts were removed by foreign bandits before liberation, causing irreparable losses. Binyang Middle Cave is an important part of the Longmen Grottoes, which has historical facts in the Northern Dynasty. Its shape and structure are similar to those of the Yungang Tanyao Five Grottoes. The interior of the cave has lotus, flying sky, clouds and other patterns. The atmosphere is mysterious and ornate, but there is no sense of triviality; The stone lotus in the Lotus Cave is particularly prominent. The main Buddha in the cave is in a standing position, and the carving of the arm is particularly moving, which seems to have a soft and elastic feeling; Guyang Cave is the largest of the Longmen Grottoes, with an early history. The most representative is that the wall of the cave is carved with small Buddhist niches, and almost every niche has a statue inscription. Among the famous Chinese calligraphy inscription "20 Longmen", there are 19 in Guyang Cave.

The Xiangtangshan Grottoes in the north and south are located in Cixian County, Hebei Province, and can be proved to be excavated in the Northern Qi Dynasty according to the epigraph of later generations. In addition to the Northern Qi Dynasty, the later generations of the Sui, Tang, Song, and Ming dynasties of Ye stayed and wrote works. There are many places where the grottoes have been destroyed or rebuilt by later generations. The style of the grottoes obviously bears the original style of the Northern Qi Dynasty, which is a large number of reliefs. The second largest category of sculpture works during the Wei, Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties should be tomb sculpture. In the period of the Cao and Wei Dynasties, especially in tombs, simplicity was highly respected, so no statue was found in the tombs of this period.

During the Northern and Southern Dynasties, the statue in front of the tomb was restored. Generally, one or more pairs of stone animals were set in front of the tomb. This imaginary animal image, which is often called "divine beast", is called "unicorn". Some are like lions and tigers, but the right wing is called "avoiding evil". These stone carvings are generally large, magnificent, and have a strong sense of integrity. They also have a strong legacy of the Han Dynasty. The existing relics are mostly works of the Northern and Southern Dynasties, and are more common around Nanjing, Jiangsu Province. Among them, the most outstanding is the stone carving group in front of the tomb of Liang Nankang Jian Wang Xiao Ji, Shishi Village, Jurong, Jiangsu Province. It is simple in shape and has a strong sense of volume, which can best represent the artistic style at that time.

During the Jin and Northern and Southern Dynasties, Buddhism was popular everywhere, and Buddhist temples were widely built, and Buddhist statues and related statues were produced in large quantities. The single movable Buddha statue has a "backlight", one for decoration and the other for its firmness. The Shaanxi Museum has a collection of many works of the Northern Wei Dynasty. The reverse side of the backlight is also the story of the Buddha Sutra that has been embossed in the province. Shandong Museum, Beijing Museum, Shanxi, Hebei and other places also have well-preserved single Buddha statues. In addition, in order to provide for convenience and easy to carry, a large number of small gilded bronze statues were produced at that time, which were exquisite in production and exquisite in carving, no less than the grandeur of large sculptures.

In ancient China, plastic artists such as architects, craftsmen and sculptors were generally equal to craftsmen, and few were recorded in historical records. Like Dai Kui and Dai Yong, few of them have been recorded by sculpture artists. Dai's father and son were active from the fourth century to the fifth century and were famous for a time. They are also good at painting, and together with famous sculptors such as Sang You and Jiang Shaoyou, they have made significant contributions to the development of plastic arts.

The ruling history of the Sui Dynasty is only more than 30 years (581-618). It was established by Yang Jian, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, after seizing the power of the Northern Dynasty, and then eliminating the Chen Dynasty of the Southern Dynasty. In this dynasty, the centralization of power was restored, and the prosperity of agriculture, industry and commerce appeared in a short time. Buddhism is also the main tool of ideological rule, and vigorously restored the Buddhist temples and statues destroyed by Emperor Wu of the Northern Zhou Dynasty. After Emperor Yang ascended the throne, the wind of statues became stronger. In addition to hundreds of thousands of small Buddhist statues, early grottoes continue to be opened, almost all over the country. The main achievements of the sculpture art of the Sui Dynasty are concentrated in the grotto statues, among which the most representative are the Mogao Grottoes of Dunhuang, Maijishan Grottoes, Jinan Yuhanshan Grottoes, etc. The main feature of its shape is that it is generally more robust and plump than the previous generation. However, another characteristic of this period, which can be said to be a weakness, is the imbalance in proportion. Some works are obviously unreasonable in structure and proportion, such as the Sui Dynasty Bodhisattva in the 427 library of Mogao Grottoes, with a large head. This is a transitional period of development. After the reunification of the country, various cultures are integrated with each other, and social development has changed dramatically. It is the turning point from the Sui Dynasty to the prosperous Tang Dynasty at the end of the Northern and Southern Dynasties. It can be said that China's sculpture art has opened a more brilliant prelude from the Sui Dynasty.

The sculpture art of the Tang Dynasty is almost the same as that of the previous generation, mainly reflected in religious statues and tombs. However, in this period, with the development of technology, the use of materials was more abundant. In addition to stone carving, wood carving and ceramic porcelain, a large number of process materials such as ramie clip and cast copper were also used.

The Tang Dynasty ruled for three centuries and was the most powerful country in the world at that time. After Li Yuan, the founder of the country, Emperor Taizong of the Ming Dynasty, Li Shimin took various measures to revitalize the country, resulting in a good situation of "the rule of Zhenguan", which is rare in history; When Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty reached the peak of the prosperous Tang Dynasty, its developed economy, politics and culture were widely spread overseas and absorbed some excellent foreign influences; After the "Anshi Rebellion", the Tang Dynasty began to decline, and in 907 AD there was a state of separatism. The emergence of five dynasties and ten countries ended the rule of the Tang Dynasty.

Since the Tang Dynasty lasted for a long time, its artistic development also experienced a long process from prosperity to decline, so when later generations studied the culture of the Tang Dynasty, they often divided it into four stages: early, prosperous, middle and late. The sculpture style of the early Tang Dynasty still basically remains the traces of the previous dynasties (the Northern and Sui Dynasties). The signs of prosperity began to appear in the early and late Tang Dynasty, but the shaping of women is still not as lively and moving as in the prosperous Tang Dynasty. The vigorous development of social economy has also led to changes in people's religious concepts. The overall social outlook in the prosperous Tang Dynasty was optimistic and open-minded. Buddhist art also showed a tendency of secularization. The figure images in paintings and sculptures are close to those in real life.

The number of Buddhist statues in the Tang Dynasty was very large, mainly reflected in the display of grottoes and cliff stone carvings. The existing relics are mostly concentrated in Kizil Grottoes in Xinjiang, the Mogao Grottoes of Dunhuang in Gansu, Maiji Mountain in Tianshui, Tianlong Mountain Grottoes in Shanxi, Big Buddha Temple in Bin County, Shaanxi, Xiangtangshan Grottoes in Hebei, Longmen Grottoes in Henan, Yunmen Mountain Grottoes in Shandong, Qianfo Cliff in Guangyuan, Sichuan, Leshan Cliff Carvings, Jianchuan Grottoes in Yunnan, etc.

Among them, Dunhuang is the first one with the largest scale and the most obvious artistic characteristics. The cave niches dug in the Tang Dynasty accounted for half of all the Dunhuang grottoes. In terms of image and dressing, the statue of Bodhisattva is basically based on the typical image of the beauty at that time, and its sitting posture is a semi-reclining posture with one leg up and one push down. The secularized beauty has broken the atmosphere of religious imprisonment, and more emphasis is placed on the artistic effect, like a dialogue with worshipers. We can compare the works of famous figure painters of the same era, such as Zhang Xuan and Zhou Fang, and we can see that there are similarities and differences between them, and they are more dynamic in body proportion and appearance. Compared with the solemnity and birth of the religious sculpture art of the previous generation, the Buddhist statues of the Tang Dynasty well combined the ideal with the reality, with both the broad and dignified side and the elegant and lively side; In addition to the powerful side, there is also the soft and delicate side. The figure sculpture in the Tang Dynasty pays great attention to the character, especially when dealing with the relationship between the figures in the group sculpture, it has a good grasp of the internal emotional exchange between the characters. For example, there are many image changes in the portrayal of the Buddha and his disciples Kaya and Ananda. The two characters are old and young, one is Han, and the other is Indian. Although they all show a pious attitude, we can still see their different moods. Another example is the statue of the Dharmapala, whose position determines their powerful and powerful image. The facial expression is fierce and the limbs are muscular, which further reflects the kindness of the bodhisattva. The figures with different personalities are the combination of the dynamic and static relationship of the group figures, highlighting the center, and conforming to the formal rules of sculpture beauty.

Longmen Grottoes are mostly carved in the Tang Dynasty. Its advantage is that it basically maintains the original appearance of the original works of the Tang Dynasty, while many of the Dunhuang works have been renovated by artists of later generations. The statues in this period are generally magnificent and full. Represented by the Fengxian Temple completed in the prosperous Tang Dynasty, the central Buddha (Lushena Buddha) is 17.14 meters high, and the other eight statues are also more than 10 meters high. The Buddha has a clear chronological inscription (672). It is said that the Buddha's face was carved with reference to the image of Empress Wu Zetian. This legend is not entirely impossible. The inscription on the pedestal of the statue of the Buddha records: "... Empress Wu's Lipid powder money is 20000 yuan." There are many grotto works in the middle and late Tang Dynasty that are obviously inferior to their predecessors. There are many signs of deterioration in color, scale, volume and spirit.

The Tang Dynasty Grottoes in Shaanxi include the Tianling Mountain Grottoes near Taiyuan. Unfortunately, in the old society, they were looted and almost empty, and are now collected in major museums in Europe and America. Judging from the fact that there is only one remains of the Bodhisattva in the 14 caves, ancient Chinese sculptors have accurately grasped the proportion and structure of the human body, and the realistic carving ability of clothes pleats and ornaments is also very high.

Shandong was an economically underdeveloped area at that time, so the rules of grotto excavation were limited. Mainly some small cave niches near Jinan, such as Qianfo Mountain and Fohui Mountain. Thousand-Buddha Cliff has the inscription of the 18th year of Zhenguan (644), but the overall damage is relatively serious. From the only remains of the statue, we can still see the rich, detailed and beautiful style at that time.

Guangyuan, Bazhong and Tongjiang in Sichuan and Qionglai, Leshan and Jiajiang in southern Sichuan are scattered with many cliff stone carvings. Sichuan has been known as the "Land of Abundance" since the Qin and Han Dynasties. Buddhism is particularly prosperous here. There are more than 20 large and small cliff stone carvings in the province. According to the textual research, the earliest excavation time of Guangyuan Thousand-Buddha Cliff was in the Kaiyuan period of the Tang Dynasty. Although its size was small, it was all carved on the steep cliff, with complex forms and numerous figures, with nearly 20000 bodies of large and small statues. From the perspective of sculpture style, these works are good materials for studying the evolution of sculpture art in the Tang Dynasty. The most remarkable figure is the Leshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area Cliff Statue, which is 18 meters higher than the Bamiyan Giant Buddha (53 meters high, now destroyed) in Afghanistan. It took 90 years to carve from 713 AD to 803. The Leshan Giant Buddha Scenic Area was built by borrowing the whole mountain. At its foot is the torrent of the three surging rivers. It is the largest Buddha statue in the world. Such a huge statue, with proper proportion, sitting posture, wearing cassocks, has a calm and calm facial expression. Dazu Rock Carvings are not only famous for the statues of the Southern Song Dynasty, but also representative of the stone carvings from the late Tang Dynasty to the Five Dynasties. Some of the Dazu Rock Carvings are interlaced by the late Tang Dynasty, the Five Dynasties and the Song Dynasty, which is difficult to distinguish. Among them, the niches with clear inscriptions in the third year of Qianning in the late Tang Dynasty (896) are the most exquisite. In addition to three or four hundred Buddhist scripture characters, pavilions and pavilions, mountains and trees, flowers, and music flying in the sky, there are also dozens of secular donors.