Placed at the entrance of the Stone Carving Hall of the Luoyang Museum, these tomb beasts are doing when they have been doing for centuries – warding off evil.
Tomb Beast Stone Bi Xie 镇墓神兽石辟邪1
Stone | Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220) | Dimensions – (L) H: 114cm, L: 172cm, (R) H: 109cm, L: 166cm | Luoyang Museum Collection, (L) Excavated from Donggao Village, Yichuan County, Luoyang in 1963, (R) Excavated from Sunqitun Village, Luoyang in 1955. 石雕｜东汉（公元25-220年）｜（左）高114厘米、长172厘米，（右）高109厘米，长166厘米｜洛阳博物馆藏，（左）1963年伊川县东高村出土、（右）1955年洛阳孙旗屯出土
An early subject of Chinese monumental imperial tomb sculpture of the Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 AD) is a winged leonine creature, designated in Chinese as a bixie 辟邪, meaning “to ward off evil spirits”. Lions are not native to China, but as fanciful supernatural creatures the Chinese adapted them into varied auspicious forms. Carved out of a single block of stone, the huge beast boasts a head resembling that of a lion, with a body akin to that of a tiger or leopard.
The tomb beast 镇墓兽 is a mythical creature that the ancients buried with the deceased. It is generally placed at the entrance of the tomb and is believed to have the magical power of guarding the tomb and protecting the dead.
During the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 AD), sculptures of mythical beasts were set beside ancient buildings and mausoleums to safeguard them. Bixie is the entitlement for Dukes and Marquises, and it is usually found as a pair or with a tianlu 天禄.
With mouth open, the bixie shows a fierce gaze, adorned with two wings sprouting from its shoulders. It displays an imposing posture as it stands firmly on its four legs with its tail curved, as if ready to spring forth into flight, epitomising the extravagant romanticism of Eastern Han sculpture.
Inscription “缑氏蒿聚成奴作” incised on the back of the bixie on right suggests that it was made by a craftsman named Cheng Nu from Goushi (present-day Yanshi, Henan Province). Its sister stone beast, the tianlu 天禄, is now housed in China National Museum.2
Stone Tianlu (Mythical Beast) 石天禄
Stone | Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220 AD) | Dimensions – H: 122cm, L: 165cm | National Museum of China Collection, Unearthed at Luoyang, Henan Province 石雕｜东汉（公元25年一220年）｜高122厘米、长165厘米｜中国国家博物院藏，河南洛阳西郊出土
Tianlu 天禄 was a mythical beast that usually appeared as tomb guardian in a pair with bixie in the Eastern Han. The difference between a bixie and tianlu is the number of horns – the tianlu has one horn, the bixie has two. And this the missing tianlu that was found together with the bixie above – they both have the inscription “缑氏蒿聚成奴作” incised on the back.
Some scholars have suggested that images of these monsters, which were considered to be auspicious animals in China, may in fact have been based the art of the Eurasian steppe or central and even western Asia. The image of the bixie has evolved over time3 from the Persian griffins to become more “Chinese” like.
The griffin-like monster was very popular in China in the period following the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty and can be found in stone sculptures at mausoleums during the period of the Six Dynasties.
About Chinese National Treasure Series
中華國寶系列 Chinese National Treasure series feature specific artefacts and relics from museums all around the world that are historically significant to be considered a National Treasure. The series covers the 5,000 years of Chinese civilisation from Neolithic periods before the Xia dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BC) to modern day.
Footnotes:
- 东汉石辟邪二，孟康曰：二角为辟邪（《古玉图谱》：双角曰天禄。朱偰曰：双角天禄）。两像非出自一地。
孙机据出土汉镜题字，辨一角为辟邪，二角为天禄，无角为简化。又以孟康说为神兽泛称，无定则。
杨泓《束禾集》认为东汉墓道前的神兽渊源有自，呈行走状是沿自先秦时的辟邪神兽，如战国时中山王陵出土的错金银有翼神兽。
图右双角辟邪，即留名的第一位汉代石刻石匠（据洛阳志书），“缑氏蒿聚成奴作”，《汉碑全集》第六册收录拓片。缑氏，汉县名，属京畿。
《美术考古半世纪》：河南地区出土的石辟邪中，以此为刻工最精，表明当时工匠已经熟练掌握了镂雕技法，其造型开南朝陵墓石像先河。
据《汉代物质文化资料图说》，曾出土一对，另一只在国博，单角，有收录图像。誉之为“汉代雕塑中的杰作”。
又山东省博物馆有一对题刻为“洛阳中东门外刘汉所作狮子一双”的石狮子，或以为是汉物。http://www.360doc.com/content/23/0527/08/9305059_1082302314.shtml ↩︎ - 1955年，在洛阳孙旗屯一带修建洛河防洪渠时，发现了一对石兽。
独角者被命名为了“天䘵”，高122、长165厘米。此石兽后被调进北京，成为了当时的中国历史博物馆的馆藏珍品，后博物馆升级为中国国家博物馆，而此件天䘵石兽则成为现在地下一层“中国古代”基本陈列中东汉展厅的重品。
双角者被命名为了“辟邪”，高109厘米，长166厘米。相对国博的天䘵而言，这件辟邪略小，雕刻手法虽然相同，但可能是埋藏风化所致，其花纹的精细程度略有欠缺。这件石刻辟邪现藏洛阳博物馆中的石刻艺术馆。
此两件石刻均在背颈部阴刻隶书“缑氏蒿聚成奴作”七字，说明它们均是由东汉时期缑氏镇（今天洛阳偃师缑氏镇） “蒿聚”村落中一位名叫“成奴”的匠人所制作。因此，它们之间的纹路与风格完全相似，而且如果立于道路两侧，则好两首相望，明显是成对制作而成。1963年得于当时伊川县彭婆镇东高屯村，高114厘米、长172厘米。今天这尊石兽也同样被陈列在洛阳博物馆中，与“成奴作”中的辟邪共处同一展台之上。它除具有与“成奴作”石兽相同的特点外，不同之外在于双角高竖，羽翼翘起，似欲飞扑，尾部卷须粗壮，躯干如虎，身高腰细臀宽，形象更为雄健凶悍。雕刻技法是圆雕与浮雕相结合，使雕塑在艺术形象上更加完美。
从“成奴作”石刻及伊川县辟邪的制作手法来看，工匠更加注重以形写神，着力于刻画石兽的头与矫健的身躯，尤其以弧形的长尾撑住地面，再结合四条腿的形成五个支点的支撑；羽翼的浮雕之处稚拙古朴，虽然也有圆雕表现，但承转还显稚嫩并不圆润，从雕刻手法上来看显得苍劲有力、简单而洗练。http://www.360doc.com/content/24/0618/17/72594646_1126537439.shtml ↩︎ - 辟邪 石辟邪为安置于古代陵墓前的一种祛邪神兽，形似带翼的狮虎，头上有角。在崇尚仙术的东汉陵墓前被广泛发现。魏晋行薄葬，鲜有发现招摇豪华的石刻。衣冠南渡的东晋灭亡后，随之建立的宋、齐、梁、陈四朝代合成南北朝时期的“南朝”，南朝安置石辟邪之风再度兴起，且都集中在江苏省。隋唐以后，石辟邪被石狮、翼马等其他神兽取代。 p2.南朝梁·萧绩墓石辟邪，位于江苏省句容市石狮乡。萧绩是南梁开国皇帝梁武帝萧衍的第四子，25岁去世。其墓前的石辟邪是现存最为雄伟的南朝石刻之一。 p3.南朝梁·安宁陵石辟邪，位于江苏省南京市栖霞区狮子冲。安宁陵是南朝梁武帝长子萧统“安陵”与其母丁贵嫔“宁陵”的合称。其辟邪是南京保存最好、最具艺术价值的南朝石刻。 p4.南朝齐·修安陵石辟邪，位于江苏省丹阳市胡桥镇鹤仙坳。修安陵是南齐景帝萧道生的陵寝，萧道生生前并未称帝，其帝号由其子继任皇帝后追封。 p5.东汉石辟邪，现藏于洛阳市博物馆。1992年发现于东汉光武帝陵南一公里处。高190cm，长297cm，重8吨，为中国现存最大的石辟邪。 p6.东汉石辟邪，现藏于中国国家博物馆。https://www.xiaohongshu.com/explore/6166c241000000002103ae36?xsec_token=ABevDUPvvNFty_2lorcBYjrDgEctzyVzZKG0rw79qBez4=&xsec_source=pc_search&source=web_explore_feed ↩︎
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