Tianjin Museum – Story Recorded on Wood 简述中国

Bamboo and wooden slips were once an important writing medium in Chinese history. They hold an important historical position and unique academic value in the development and inheritance of Chinese civilisation and are a treasure of human cultural heritage.¹

The exhibition was jointly organised by Tianjin Museum and Gansu Bamboo Slips Museum. Based on the basic exhibition of Gansu Bamboo Slips Museum, which won the 2023 National Top Ten Museum Exhibition Award.

The exhibition was divided into four sections: “The Bamboo Slips Era”, “History of the Silk Road Recorded on Bamboo”, “Frontier Life”, and “The Charm of Bamboo Slips”. Through more than 260 pieces/sets of exhibits, it tells the history of the discovery of bamboo slips, the magnificent Silk Road stories in bamboo slips, the daily life of frontier residents in the Han Dynasty, and the calligraphy art contained in Han Dynasty bamboo slips.²

The Bamboo Slips Era 简牍时代

The oldest find of Han-period bamboo slips (Dunhuang Hanjian 敦煌漢簡) was made in 1907 by Aurel Stein (1862-1943) in the ruins of the relay watchtowers (fengsui 烽燧) of Dunhuang. It included 705 different documents. Six further finds were made in the following decades. There are 2,190 documents held by the British Museum, the Palace Museum in Taipei and the Provincial Museum of Gansu. And yes, this is the same Aurel Stein that brought back the Dunhuang books and manuscripts.

Since 1907, nearly 70,000 bamboo and wooden slips from the Qin, Han, Wei, and Jin dynasties have been unearthed along the ancient Silk Road at various sites including the Qin tombs at Fangmatan in Tianshui City, the Han and Jin tombs in Wuwei, and the Han beacon towers in Hexi Corridor. The majority of these are Han slips. Starting with the discovery and research of Han slips in Gansu Province, and through the tireless efforts of generations of Chinese and foreign scholars, bamboo and wooden slip studies have become a prominent field of study.³

Ancient bamboo slips varied in length, but there were also standardised lengths, generally about 23 cm in modern measurement. Official documents from border regions and general books were all copied onto these slips. During the Han Dynasty, there were specific regulations for copying scriptures and official edicts.⁴

The du 牍, in the form of a wooden segment, is the same length as a regular bamboo slip, but wider than a “two-line” slip 两行, with varying widths, approximately 4 to 6 cm. The Shuowen Jiezi defines it as a “book board,” hence the characters it typically records are usually less than a hundred. It was generally used for copying contracts, medical prescriptions, lists of goods, and household registers, hence the names “籍” “ji” or “簿” “bu.” ⁵

Gu 觚 is a long, multi-faceted wooden stick shaped like a triangle or square. It is simple to prepare, as it can be made by scraping it directly from a tree branch. A gu can be written on three or four sides and is used for practicing writing, drafting notes, or copying official documents and elementary school dictionaries.⁶

Fengjian 封检, or wooden seal, is used to seal documents, usually made of wood. It has serrated edges, and hemp rope is attached to it. The knot is tied into the groove of the seal, then sealed with clay and stamped to achieve a tight seal. Finally, information such as the sender/recipient and method of delivery is inscribed on it.⁷ The recipient will know that the bamboo slips had been tempered if the seal clay is broken.

He 褐 (lit. “brown”), or labels, are hung on documents, files, and items, with the name of the file or item written on it, including the month and year, the institution, and the quantity.⁸ Remember that the bamboo slips are rolled up and stacked together on the shelf, making it difficult to reference to if there are no labels like these.

During the excavation, many thin pieces with inscriptions were also discovered, almost all of which were cut off from bamboo slips. Archaeologists call this type of material xiaoyi 削衣, or “shavings”.⁹

History of the Silk Road Recorded on Bamboo 简述丝路

The Silk Road was a vital transportation artery for long-distance trade and cultural exchange, using silk as the primary commodity. It served as a route for the integration, exchange, and dialogue between Eastern and Western civilisations and cultures. In 138 BC, Zhang Qian pioneered the Western Regions. Since the opening of the Silk Road, the Hexi Corridor has been a major channel for cultural exchange between East and West during the pre-medieval period. The bamboo and wooden slips of Gansu are daily records of the countless stories and interactions along the Silk Road, serving as historical evidence of the exchange and mutual learning among human civilisations.¹¹

In 138 BC, Zhang Qian was sent on a mission to the Western Regions, marking the beginning of westward exploration. Following the Battle of Hexi in 121 BC, the Han Dynasty controlled the Hexi Corridor. From 121 BC to 111 BC, Emperor Wu successively established Jiuquan Commandery, Wuwei Commandery, Zhangye Commandery, and Dunhuang Commandery, and established the Yumen Pass and Yang Pass, effectively “establishing four commanderies and controlling two passes.” Simultaneously, he constructed a continuous network of beacon towers along the Han border. In 60 BC, the Protectorate of the Western Regions was established.¹³ The four commanderies established by the Han Dynasty implemented a system of capital-county-township-village based on the inner commanderies, and resettled people to populate the border areas, resulting in a well-developed administrative system.¹⁴

Dunhuang 敦煌 was the westernmost commandery (jun 郡) of the Han empire. It was therefore a vital border post on the Silk Road and for the administration of the Chinese colonies in the Western Regions 西域. In 121 BC, the territory was seized from the control of the Xiongnu 匈奴 khan Hun-ya 渾邪, and the commandery of Jiuquan 酒泉 was created, only to be divided up ten years later into Jiuquan and the commandery of Dunhuang farther to the west.¹⁵

Dunhuang Commandery 敦煌郡 was situated at a crucial point of east-west transportation, and the Prefect of Dunhuang 敦煌太守, as the highest local administrative and military official, bore and played a special mission and role. The army under the Prefect of Dunhuang was not only responsible for peacetime border defence but also for centralised deployment and military operations during wartime. A typical example from the Western Han Dynasty was the rebellion of the Western Qiang. The court not only dispatched General Zhao Chongguo to Jincheng to suppress the rebellion but also ordered General Xin Wuxian, who had defeated the Qiang, to lead 6,100 troops, the Prefect of Dunhuang to lead 1,000 troops, and Marquis Feng Fengshi of Jiuquan to lead 4,000 troops to cooperate in the battle. Records of this participation can be found in the Xuanquan Han bamboo slips.¹⁶

The Xuanquan Post Station Site 悬泉置遗址 is an important cultural heritage site on the Silk Road. The site is located 2 km south of the 60-km mark of the Guadun Highway, at the border of Guazhou County and Dunhuang City. During the Han and Wei dynasties, the site served as a post station. Excavations conducted by the Gansu Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology from 1990 to 1992 unearthed over 23,000 inscribed Han Dynasty bamboo slips. The slips are characterised by their content on Central Asia and the Western Regions, postal transportation, ethnic relations, the Silk Road, and the historical geography and economic development of the Hexi Corridor region.¹⁷

After the Silk Road was opened, the Han Dynasty had close exchanges with various countries in the Western Regions, such as Jingjue¹⁸, Qule, Yutian, Shache, Shule, Weitou, Weili, and Quli.¹⁹ The Xuanquan Han bamboo slips record the historical fact that the kings, envoys, and hostages of the Western Regions traveled east to Chang’an.²⁰

Post stations (relay stations, zhanyi, or caravanserais) were essential infrastructure along the Silk Road, enabling communication, trade, and diplomatic travel across thousands of miles. These stations provided horses, lodging, food, and security for travelers, merchants, and officials. The bamboo slips recorded the deployment of carriages and horses to ensure the travel of messengers, officials, and other personnel.

The most direct manifestation of exchange was in terms of material exchanges. According to Han Dynasty bamboo slips unearthed in Northwest China, animals from the Western Regions included not only Ferghana horses, domesticated dogs, and donkeys, but also lions. Emperor Wu of Han referred to the Ferghana horses from the Western Regions as “celestial horses,” and there are records of welcoming these horses in the Xuanquan Han bamboo slips.²¹

Alfalfa, or clover, was introduced from Central Asia. It belongs to the legume family and is an annual or perennial herb. Originally from Iran and other regions, it later spread to Central Asia. The Book of Han, Records of the Western Regions states: “Each year, two heavenly horses were presented as tribute. Han envoys collected puro and muxu seeds to bring back. Because the emperor had many heavenly horses and many foreign envoys, he planted more puro and muxu near the palace, creating a great spectacle.”

Yan Shigu of the Tang Dynasty annotated: “The northern prefectures were formerly stable, and muxi is often found in the northern border regions; these were all planted during the Han Dynasty.”

Life on the Western Frontier 边塞生活

It is not called the Silk Road for nothing. There were specimens of silk fragments excavated in Xuanquan site.

The border regions of the Han Dynasty had an extremely comprehensive system for managing supplies, which mainly involved the management of agricultural production, food supplies, and clothing and equipment.

Headwear, commonly known as head coverings, has been broadly categorised into four types since the Han Dynasty: crowns 冠, ceremonial caps 冕, headscarves 巾, and turbans 幘. Crowns and ceremonial caps were worn by the scholar-official class and royalty, while headscarves and turbans were commonly worn by commoners. The headwear worn by the garrison officers and soldiers in the Juyan border region primarily consisted of headscarves and turbans.²²

Multiple records in these bamboo slips excavated from these regions shared stories of everyday lifestyles, like this story of the missing pants. The letter was written by Chang, and received by Ziyi. 绔; Han Dynasty overcoat. “非急不敢说; 不意事不敢告诉您.”

The Juyan Han bamboo slips contain a wealth of records on clothing, especially from the mid-to-late Western Han Dynasty to the early Jianwu period of the Eastern Han Dynasty. From these records, we can learn about the types, names, colours, and accessories of clothing worn by the garrison officers and soldiers in the Juyan area.

Besides clothings and animals that were brought from elsewhere, it was also discovered that residents of these locations had adapted and performed different level of agricultural activities despite harsh conditions. Unearthed in 1992, the chives measure approximately 0.2 cm in diameter. Based on Han Dynasty bamboo slips from Xuanquan and Juyan, it is speculated that chives were a relatively common vegetable in Northwest China at that time. The Xuanquan site contains records of chives.

The Charm of Bamboo Slips 简牍墨韵

From the Shang Dynasty to the Wei and Jin Dynasties, ancient China, with bamboo and wooden slips as its primary writing medium, spanned nearly 2,000 years. This period was crucial for the formation and development of traditional Chinese thought, culture, and institutions. Classic texts, shining with the wisdom of the Chinese nation, were written on bamboo and wooden slips; the unified national system and civilisation established during the Qin and Han Dynasties were recorded on bamboo and wooden slips. Almost all the civilisational creations and accumulations of the Chinese ancestors during this period were recorded and passed down on bamboo and wooden slips.²⁴

During the Qin and Han dynasties, the evolution of Chinese characters from seal script to clerical script, as well as the emergence of cursive, running, and regular scripts, are best exemplified by the bamboo and wooden slips from Gansu, such as the Fangmatan Qin slips, Juyan Han slips, and Xuanquan Han slips. These slips truthfully record and present to later generations the process of the evolution of Chinese characters during this period.²⁸

The Qin bamboo slips from Fangmatan in Tianshui are among the most important bamboo and wooden slips unearthed in Northwest China. They still retain traces of the ancient form of seal script and are important evidence that clerical script evolved from seal script. At the same time, they also reflect the aesthetic characteristics of early clerical script.²⁹

The Tianshui Fangmatan Rishu bamboo slips can be divided into three parts and are written in ancient clerical script, but with slight variations in style in each part. Version A contains 73 slips. The content includes eight chapters such as “Yuejian” (月建), with slightly fan-shaped characters, heavy strokes beginning and light lifts, and lines that occasionally show the silkworm head and wild goose tail of clerical script, sometimes with short, rapid strokes. This is an ancient clerical script form even earlier than the “Qingchuan Wooden Slips” unearthed in Sichuan. Version B and the Tomb Owner’s Record slips total 379 slips. Besides the seven chapters including “Yuejian” in Version A, they also contain 20 chapters about taboos: the Tomb Owner’s Record slips (8 slips) are dated documents. All are copies from the eighth year of Qin King Zheng’s reign (aka Shi Huangdi who unified China under Qin dynasty).³⁰

During the Han Dynasty, clerical script was the dominant script, while seal script was still used in official documents, important ceremonies, and inscriptions. Compared to Qin seal script, Han seal script was more square in shape and its brushstrokes were closer to those of clerical script. Therefore, later generations referred to this type of seal script from the Han Dynasty, which incorporated variations of clerical script, as the “Han style.” The Zhangye Duwei Qixin is one of the few surviving examples of seal script.

In some of the Gansu Han bamboo slips, the strokes of running script and regular script appeared, which demonstrate intentional features in the evolution and development of the calligraphic script.³¹ The “Hou Su Jun’s accusations against Kou Si” bamboo slips scroll was unearthed in August 1974 at the Jiaqu Houguan site, No. F22. It consists of 36 pieces and is the case file material of an economic dispute case between Hou Su Jun, the official of Jiaqu, and Kou En, a guest, in the early years of Jianwu reign of Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han Dynasty.³²

The “Memorial of the Death of Suichang Jiaoshui” 《燧长焦水死驹劾状》is a representative work of Zhangcao (cursive script) from the third year of Jianwu in the Eastern Han Dynasty (27 AD), and it holds significant artistic value in the history of Chinese calligraphy. Its brushwork still retains traces of clerical script, and its refined strokes reveal the fluid beauty produced by the high degree of coordination between the wrist and fingers during the writing process. Unlike modern cursive script, the characters in this work are still relatively independent, and the clear interplay between them is not yet apparent.³³

Conclusion

As a vital textual carrier of Chinese civilisation, bamboo and wooden slips have ensured the continuity and enduring vitality of Chinese culture. Each slip, like a sage from a thousand years ago, tells a captivating story that transcends time, continuously providing evidence of China’s glorious past.³⁴

As someone of Chinese descent, I am inspired by the continuous evolution of the Chinese civilisation that is recorded in these strips of bamboo and wood. It is so coincidental that they were preserved either in the dry desert heat of Gansu or embalmed in the moist, acidic terroir of Sichuan. Now it is left to us to continue to uncover and preserve these cultural heritage.

Footnotes :

1. 简牍曾是我国历史上重要的书写载体，在中华文明的发展与传承中具有重要的历史地位和独特的学术价值，是人类文化遗产中的瑰宝。https://www.tjbwg.cn/cn/exhibitionInfo.aspx?id=21114 ↩︎
2. “简述中国——甘肃出土汉简精品展”由天津博物馆和甘肃简牍博物馆联合举办，以荣获2023年度全国博物馆十大陈列展览精品奖的甘肃简牍博物馆基本陈列为基础，分“简牍时代”“简述丝路”“边塞生活”和“简牍墨韵”四个单元，通过260余件/套展品，讲述简牍发现的历史、简牍中壮阔的丝路故事、汉代边塞居民的日常生活和汉简中蕴含的书法艺术。 https://www.tjbwg.cn/cn/exhibitionInfo.aspx?id=21114  ↩︎
3. 自1907年至今，沿古丝绸之路，在今天水市放马滩秦墓、武威汉晋墓，河西汉塞烽燧各类遗址中先后出土了近7万余枚秦汉、魏晋时期简牍，其中汉简数量占绝大部分。以甘肃地区汉简的发现和研究为启端，经几代中外学者的不懈努力，简牍学已成为一门显学。Museum information card, Oct 2025 ↩︎
4. 简，即简牍的最基本形式，用竹或木制成。古简长短不一，但也有定制，一般长约等于现在的23厘米。所获的边郡公牍和一般书籍，都是用这种简抄写成册。在汉代对抄写经书和正式诏令文书有具体规定。《后汉书》卷六十九载“编二尺四寸简，写《尧典》一篇，并刀笔各一，以置棺前，云不忘圣道。”武威所获的《仪礼》简，长55.5至56.5 厘米，相当于汉尺2尺4寸。最长的竹简是居延出土的诏书目录简，长达67.5厘米，合汉尺3尺，此即《汉书》上所谓的“三尺律令”。简的宽度也不均等，书写字行按宽度而有不同。一般宽0.5至1厘米的简，抄字一行，宽2厘米的简可抄写两行。https://chiculture.org.hk/sc/china-five-thousand-years/4426 ↩︎
5. 牍，形制为木段，长度与普通简相同，是一种比“两行”还宽的简，其宽度不等，大约4至6厘米，《说文解字》释为“书版”，所以记文字多数不上百字。一般用来抄写契约、医方、物品名目、户口，因此又有“籍”、“簿”之称。牍的另一用途是通信，边郡公牍中均有发现，一般均用一尺见方的牍来书写，所以信件又称“尺牍”。https://chiculture.org.hk/sc/china-five-thousand-years/4426 ↩︎
6. 觚（音孤 )，即呈三角形或方形的多棱形长木棍，整治过程简单，可直接用树枝刮削而成。觚可分三四面书写，用于练习写字、记事起草，或抄写檄书和小学字书。 ↩︎
7. 检是用以封缄文书之物，多以木板为之。检上有刻齿，检上麻绳，绳结打于封检凹槽内，然后封泥、盖印，以达到密封的目的。最后題着上收发人、传递方式等信息。 ↩︎
8. 褐，即标签，悬挂在文书卷宗和物品上，上面书写上卷宗或物品名
   称，包括年月、机构、数量等。 ↩︎
9. 另在发掘过程中发现很多带字的薄片，几乎都是从简上削下来的，考古学者称这种载体为“削衣”。https://chiculture.org.hk/sc/china-five-thousand-years/4426 ↩︎
10. Bronze Camel-Shaped Seal Commemorating the Victory over the Xiongnu 铜驼钮汉匈奴破虜长印
    Bronze | Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220) | Collection of Gansu Bamboo Slips Museum 铜｜东汉 (25-220)｜甘肃简牍博物馆藏
    印面边长2.3厘米，通高2.9厘米，铜质铸造，驼钮，右上起顺读。匈奴，两汉时期北疆最强大的少数民资，东汉时分裂成南北两部。破虏，给予助汉政权征伐有功的匈奴贵族的赐号。长，为其族中官吏。此为东汉政权赐少数民族的官印。
    The seal face measures 2.3 cm on each side and 2.9 cm in height. It is cast in bronze, with a camel-shaped knob, and reads from right to left. The inscription reads: “Xiongnu,” the most powerful minority group in the northern frontier during the Han Dynasty, splitting into northern and southern factions during the Eastern Han Dynasty. “Po Lu” was a title bestowed upon Xiongnu nobles who assisted the Han regime in its conquests. “Zhang” referred to officials within their tribe. This is an official seal bestowed upon a minority group by the Eastern Han regime. https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/374824553, accessed 10 Mar 2026 ↩︎
11. 丝绸之路是以丝绸为大宗贸易、开展长距离贸易与文化交流的交通大动脉，是东西方文明与文化融合、交流和对话之路。公元前138年，张骞“凿空”西域。丝绸之路开通以来，河西走廊一直是中古时期中西文化交流的主要通道。甘肃简牍是丝绸之路你来我往、万千故事的日常书写，是人类文明交流互鉴的历史见证。Museum information card, Oct 2025 ↩︎
12. 肩水金关遗址，位于中国甘肃省酒泉市金塔县航天镇大湾村，为一个省级文物保护单位，类型为古遗址。为汉代张掖郡肩水都尉肩水候官辖地。
    肩水金关遗址的历史年代为汉代^[1]。出土有汉代竹简^[2]。 ↩︎
13. 公元前138年，张骞奉命出使西域，开启了向西探索的序幕。公元前121年河西之战后，汉王朝据有河西。公元前121年至前111年，武帝先后设立酒泉都、武威邵、张液郡和敦煌都，置玉门关和阳关，即“列四郡，据两关”。同时修筑绵垣不绝的汉塞烽燧。公元前60年，设西域都护府。 ↩︎
14. 汉朝设置的四郡，依内郡实行都-县-乡-里之制、移民实边，行政管理体制完善。 ↩︎
15. http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Terms/dunhuang.html ↩︎
16. 敦煌郡处在东西交通关键点上，作为地方最高行政军事长官的敦煌太守，承担和发挥了特殊的使命和作用。敦煌太守统辖的军队不仅要负责平时的边塞防守，战时还要集中调派，出征打仗。西汉时典型的事件就是西羌反叛时，朝廷不仅派后将军赵充国前往金城弹压，还命令破羌将军辛武贤率兵六千一百人，敦煌太守快率兵一千人，酒泉侯冯奉世等率兵四干人配合作战。悬泉汉简中就有这次参战的记录。 ↩︎
17. 悬泉置遗址是“丝绸之路：长安—天山廊道的路网”世界遗产名录中的重要文化遗产。遗址位于今敦煌瓜州县和敦煌市交界处瓜敦公路60千米以南2千米处。该遗址在汉魏时期为一驿置机构，名悬泉置。1990-1992年甘肃省文物考古研究所进行发掘，共出有字汉简23000多枚，汉简内容以中亚西域、邮驿交通、民族关系、丝绸之路、河西地区的历史地理和经济发展为其特色。
    Museum information card, Oct 2025  ↩︎
18. In Hanshu, an independent oasis state called Jingjue, generally thought to be Niya, is mentioned:
    The seat of the king’s government is the town of Jingjue, and it is distant by 8,820 li [probably 3,667 km/2,279 miles] from Ch’ang-an. There are 480 households, 3,350 individuals with 500 persons able to bear arm. [There are the following officials] the commandant of Jingjue, the leaders of the left and the right and an interpreter-in-chief.
    — Hanshu, chapter 96a, translation from Hulsewé 1979.^[4]
    Niya became part of Loulan Kingdom by the third century. Towards the end of the fourth century it was under Chinese suzerainty. Later it was conquered by Tibet. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niya_ruins ↩︎
19. http://www.chinaknowledge.de/History/Terms/silkroad.html
    ↩︎
20. 丝路凿通后，汉与西域的精绝、渠勒、于阗、莎车、疏勒、尉头、尉犁、渠犁等诸国往来密切，悬泉汉简记载有大童过往西域诸国国王、使者及质子东行去长安的史实。 ↩︎
21. 交流最直接体现在物质方面，根据西北地区出土的汉简可知，来自西域的动物不仅有天马、胡狗、驴，此外还有狮子。汉武帝将来自西域大宛马称为“天马”，悬泉汉简中有迎接天马的记载。 ↩︎
22. 首服，即我们常说的头衣。汉代以来，首服的种类大致分为冠、冕、巾、帻等四类，其中冠、冕是士大夫阶层和王族所佩戴之物，而巾、帻是下层庶民所常着之首服。居延边塞地区屯成吏卒所着首服主要是巾、帻这两样。 ↩︎
23. “袍”汉简
    甲渠侯官遗址出土
    “阜”指黑色。早復袍，指黑色的夹层衣服。贳卖（买）是赊货交易。贳卖衣物名籍是成卒赊卖衣物、布帛等物品的登记名册。边塞贳卖（买）活动大体分为两类，一类系卒民之间的贾卖（买），一类系吏卒之间的赏卖（买）。
    甘肃简牍博物馆藏 ↩︎
24. 从殷商至魏晋，以简牍为主要文字载体的古代中国，时间跨越近2000年，是中国传统思想、文化、制度形成与发展的重要时期。闪耀着中华民族思想智慧之光的典籍，书写于竹木；秦汉时期开创和确立的大一统国家制度体系和文明形态，记录于简牍。这一时期中华先人几乎所有的文明创造与积累，都曾由简牍记载并传承。https://www.tjbwg.cn/cn/exhibitionInfo.aspx?id=21114 ↩︎
25. 商武丁 乎取馬于畓以卜骨
    王襄旧藏
    释文：正：壬辰卜，古，真乎取馬于出以。三月。一二三告臼：口已王示散二屯。叔。（骨白刻辭）
    此卜骨正面所刻卜辞大意是三月某日贞人贞问是否要命人到由这个地方取马。
    天津博物馆藏 ↩︎
26. 春秋 壬戎兵器铜玺
    铜质，鼻钮，钮上有绳纹，印背铸有对称的蟠虺纹。印面呈菱形，被二条凸起的交叉直线分成四格，格内铸阳文“壬戎兵器”4字。此玺应是在军中发放兵器的文书上封缄所用。从纹饰及字体判断，应属秦国官玺，是传世唯一的春秋铜玺，极为珍贵。
    此玺为晚清著名金石学家、文物收藏家陈介祺（字寿卿，号簠斋）旧藏古玺之冠，后为周叔弢购藏并于1981年捐献。
    天津博物馆藏 ↩︎
27. 汉 嘉平石经春秋残石
    熹平石经是东汉灵帝时期刊刻的官方儒家经本。石碑立于洛阳太学，是汉代隶书成熟鼎盛期的典范。
    天津博物馆藏 ↩︎
28. 秦汉时期、汉宇书体由篆书向隶书演变以及草、行、楷等书体萌芽的过程，甘肃以放马滩秦简、居延汉简、悬泉汉简等为主要代表的简牍墨迹，成为其最有力的实证，这些简牍真实地记录井向后世呈现了这一时期汉字书体潢变的历程。 ↩︎
29. 天水放马滩秦简是西北出土最为重要的简牍墨迹之一，它尚具备篆书的古形痕迹，是隶书从篆书当中脱化而来的重要证据，同时，也体现了早期隶书的审美特点。 ↩︎
30. 天水放马滩日书简出土于天水市放马滩1号素墓，计460枚。成册于战国将末的秦王政八年（前239年）。可分为甲本、乙本及慕主记等三部分。皆为古隶书体，但风格有所不同。日书简甲本计73枚。内容为《月建》等八章，字形略扇，用笔重起轻提，线条乍见分书的蚕头雁尾，时显短画迅跳，是比四川出土的《青川木牍》还要早的古隶形态。日书简乙本和墓主记简牍共有379枚。内容除与甲本中《月建》等七章相同外，还有关于禁忌诸文共20章：《墓主记》8枚，系纪年文书。皆是秦王政八年的抄本。 ↩︎
31. 甘肃汉简在个别隶书简册中出现了行书、楷书的笔画雏形，是字体演变发展中的意向特征。 ↩︎
32. 候粟君所责寇思事册，1974年8月出土于甲渠候官遗址F22号，共36枚，是东汉光武帝刘秀建武初年甲渠候官粟君和客民寇恩之间发生的一宗经济纠纷案的案卷材料。 ↩︎
33. 《燧长焦水死驹劾状》，为东汉建武三年（公元27年）时的章草册书代表，在中国书法史上具有重要的艺术价值。其用笔尚残存隶意，用笔精炼，可以看出书写者在书写过程中，手腕与手指的高度配合面产生的灵动之美，与今草所不同的是，此简的字与字之间，尚处于独立的状态，还不能看到字与字间明显的顾盼关系。 ↩︎
34. 简牍作为华夏文明重要的文字载体，中华文脉得以绵延赓续，得以生生不息。每一枚简牍，都像跨越千年的智者，讲迷着穿越时空的故事，为我们不断实证华夏辉煌的过注。
    新时代，我们要增强文化自信，担负起新的文化使命，就要持续深入挖掘简牍资源，探究书写于简牍之上的文化密码。用鲜活的表达，更生动地讲好简牍里的中国故事，从而促进简牍文化的创造性转化和创新性发展，让千年前的简牍文献生命重续。 ↩︎