When I first saw the bronze statue of Li Chan, I saw a picture on the Internet. It has a history of more than 3000 years since/kloc-0 was excavated in Lingkou Town, Lintong County, Shaanxi Province in 976. Its bottom is engraved with 33 rare inscriptions, revealing the mystery of the Millennium for us. "Li Chan Ming" records that it is the son of the Jia family who wants to attract merchants. He fainted at the age of Ding Ke, and he had merchants in rewelding. And Wang Zailan are teachers. He gave him the correct gold medal, which is to commemorate Yi's wealth. This inscription shows the origin of this bronze reed. At that time, Zhou Wuwang gave you a lot of gold, that is, bronze, after the successful commercial expedition. But this right stone reed didn't want to spend gold, so he gave this copper reed to these Kim Joo-sung to sacrifice to his ancestor Tan Gong. Therefore, archaeologists named this bronze reed after its owner "You Shili". The inscription on the bottom of Li Jian shows that the time for King Wu to chop down the merchants was the early morning of Jiazi's day, which was full of stars. According to this clue, astronomical historians infer that the year of Zhou Wuwang's business was 1044 1.9 BC, and this mystery that has puzzled for thousands of years finally started with Li Yi. Then, why did people in Shang and Zhou dynasties carve words on bronzes, and what significance and role did these inscriptions have for them? Today, we will start with bronze inscriptions to analyze the significance of bronze inscriptions in Shang and Zhou Dynasties. To fully understand the significance of bronze inscriptions in Shang and Zhou dynasties, we must first understand the background of the formation of bronze inscriptions at that time, so as to clearly understand the significance and role of bronze inscriptions at that time and its contemporary significance. At first, bronzes were used as tools for holding and cooking food. Later, due to the complicated production process and low productivity, it was not easy to make a beautiful bronze ware, so gradually only people with high status could own bronze ware. Later, precious bronzes were used as "ritual vessels" in various sacrifices, which made bronzes more precious and became the status symbols of many nobles. During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, nobles were mostly distributed in and around Gyeonggi, so the development of bronzes was mostly in these areas. During the Shang Dynasty, "Pan Geng crossed Henan and returned to Tang Cheng's former residence" (Historical Records of Yin Benji), while Haojing, the capital of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and Wangli, the eastern Zhou Dynasty, moved eastward to Luoyi (Historical Records of Zhou Benji). It can be seen that the capital and surrounding areas in Shang and Zhou Dynasties were mostly plains, with many rivers, rich water resources and good agricultural development. Not only that, there are also a lot of copper resources in these areas, such as "467 Mountain Out of Copper Mountain" in Guanzi Dishu. Therefore, the nobles of Shang and Zhou dynasties had a suitable living environment, benefiting from the abundant copper resources at that time, and a large number of cheap labor slaves naturally promoted the development of bronzes in the Central Plains. On the other hand, the Shang and Zhou Dynasties changed from a patriarchal society to a slave society, but it still retained the religious belief of ancestor worship in the patriarchal society, offering sacrifices to ancestors constantly. At this time, bronzes were used as sacred sacrificial vessels. In order to make bronzes look more solemn and intimidating, people in Shang and Zhou Dynasties also learned to carve patterns and characters on bronze walls, which is the origin of inscriptions. However, in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, due to the great cultural integration of all ethnic groups, the handicraft industry at that time was unprecedentedly brilliant, and the copper smelting technology also made great progress. The patterns of bronzes were more colorful, and the methods of engraving inscriptions were more diverse, resulting in the feat of embedding gold and silver wires in bronzes to form inscriptions. This is the background of Jinwen. Second, the historical significance of bronze inscriptions The development of bronzes in Shang and Zhou Dynasties was very prosperous, and even reached a height that was beyond the reach of later generations. Therefore, later generations often regarded bronzes as symbols in Shang and Zhou Dynasties, and bronze inscriptions became representative characters in Shang and Zhou Dynasties. What role and significance did these inscriptions have in the Shang and Zhou Dynasties? (1) The meaning of ancestor worship The so-called "national event" lies in ancestor worship (Zuo Zhuan was published for thirteen years). It can be seen that in the Shang and Zhou dynasties, sacrifice was as important as war, and both of them could play a role in maintaining national stability. So why does sacrifice play such an important role? It turns out that people in the Shang and Zhou Dynasties attached great importance to ancestor worship, and even people in the Shang Dynasty believed that ancestors were gods and could convey their wishes to God. Although Zhou Dynasty was different from Shang Dynasty in the way of offering sacrifices, it still had the belief of ancestor worship, and offering sacrifices to ancestor gods also played an important role in the social life of Zhou Dynasty. The reason why ancestors were deified and ancestor worship was so important in Shang and Zhou Dynasties was mainly because the production conditions at that time were backward. In Shang and Zhou Dynasties, people's understanding of the outside world was limited to totem worship and belief in gods. The concept of Heaven Emperor still exists in many people's minds. People in Shang and Zhou Dynasties offered sacrifices to their ancestors in the hope of praying for blessings and avoiding disasters. In daily life, even if the production level is improved and people's strength is enhanced, people in Shang and Zhou Dynasties are still accustomed to the contributions of their ancestors, so ancestors have always maintained a sacred and solemn position in front of people in Shang and Zhou Dynasties. In the frequent sacrificial activities in Shang and Zhou Dynasties, bronzes became necessary sacrificial vessels, and the inscriptions on bronzes had some mysterious connection with religious beliefs at that time. It can be said that inscriptions also serve religious sacrifices. For example, the inscription of "Wu, the stepmother" on the tripod of Simu indicates the identity of bronzes, but in the Zhou Dynasty, the number of inscriptions increased again and again, which not only recorded the clan identity, but also recorded the official contribution of ancestors. From here, we can also see the significance and role of bronze inscriptions in offering sacrifices to ancestors. These inscriptions play the role of family identity in sacrifice, allowing ancestors to protect their descendants. Those successful inscriptions have improved the recognition of the family, increased the pride and cohesion within the family and maintained their respected position in the family. They can also rely on the favor left by their ancestors to gain privileges. In the middle of the Western Zhou Dynasty, there even appeared the inscription "Yong Bao Yong Yong, descendants". As Mozi Lu Wen said, "Thought was engraved in Zhong Ding and passed on to later generations". The meaning of these inscriptions is more sacred, and they have become a medium that can communicate across time and space. The inscription at this time has two functions. First, they put their hopes on the people who cast bronzes. They hope that their clan can live forever and inherit this bronze forever, so that they can enjoy this bronze ritual vessel in the sacrifices of future generations. Second, I hope that future generations can regard this bronze as a treasure, give them a little shade through the inscription, and also hope to unite the hearts of the family. Muswuding (II) The Significance of Accepting Gifts from the Emperor During the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, the emperor often gave bronzes to heroes, and the heroes would engrave words on them to show the origin of bronzes. The inscription of the late master Fang Ding records that the late master Wang Yi was in charge of it for five years, and he used it to enjoy the sacrifice of the Yi prince's family. Father B (quoted from Jin Wen Yin Zhou Integration and History of Yin Shang Dynasty) probably means that the Shang King gave me a five-year storage, and my little minister made a statue to pay homage to his father, Prince B, as well as: Jing Hougui's inscription records: Jing Houfu and Chen Yi. (Yang Kuan's History of the Western Zhou Dynasty) This is a record given to slaves by the Zhou Emperor. In addition, there are other bronzes, such as the Juvenile Minister's Office and Wei Ziding, which were given to the heroes by the Emperor of Heaven. Why did the Emperor give these ministers bronze wares? What was the significance at that time? It turned out that since bronze ware became a symbol of the nobility at that time, there was even a saying that "utensils were used to hide gifts." According to the bronzes, the rank of noble ministers is different, so the emperor in the upper power occupies the vast majority of the ownership of bronzes, and the main source of bronzes of those ministers is the reward of the emperor. It can be seen that it is a great honor for the emperor to give his servants bronzes. At this time, the bronzes are not only as simple as property, but also as sacred representatives, representing the emperor's recognition of the achievements of his lieutenants and giving them higher social status and clan identity. After these courtiers were sealed, what is the further significance and function of carving the inscription of merit reward on the cast bronzes? The inscription at this time has three meanings: first, the emperor's seal is a very grand ceremony and the highest honor. The recipient hopes to record this sacred moment through the inscription and greatly improve his sense of self-esteem, so as to satisfy Freud's "desire to be a great man" (quoted from Dale Carnegie's "The Weaknesses of Human Nature"), and hopes that the inscription will make the society recognize him, worship him and even recognize his whole family. Second, because of the emperor's reward, family ancestral temple got another bronze ritual vessel. Therefore, by recording these inscriptions, we should tell our ancestors when offering sacrifices to them, such as "Fang Ding, a junior minister" mentioned above and "Li Chan" at the beginning. They believe that they can communicate with their ancestors' gods through bronzes, thank their ancestors for their blessings to the family, and hope that their ancestors can do the same in the future. Third, by recording these achievements, it becomes a symbol of family identity. I hope these blessings can be passed on to future generations, and let future generations remember the gift of the son of heaven and serve him wholeheartedly. Third, the contemporary significance of the bronze inscription. After the historical significance of the bronze inscription, we also briefly talk about the contemporary significance of the bronze inscription. So what is the significance of bronze inscriptions to the contemporary era? There are two main meanings: first, it helps us to understand the history of Shang and Zhou Dynasties. Due to the long history of Shang and Zhou dynasties and the lack of historical materials, even historians have few records. The inscriptions recorded on bronzes are first-hand historical materials, which can help us to study and understand the history at that time in more detail and accurately, and make up for the lack of historical materials. They are very important historical materials for studying the social conditions of Shang and Zhou Dynasties. As mentioned earlier, "Li" solved the Millennium mystery of the specific year of logging. Second, it has a far-reaching influence on contemporary literature. Bronze inscriptions can be said to be an earlier writing in history, which has a far-reaching influence on various fonts such as Xiao Zhuan and Li Shu. Later fonts absorbed the nutrition of inscriptions on bronze and made breakthroughs and innovations. Moreover, the vast majority of inscriptions on bronze are vigorous strokes, and there are many waves at the turning point. They have the literary appeal of the times and have always been highly praised by painters, and even become a relatively high evaluation standard of writing art. So now the bronze inscriptions have become the objects that calligraphy lovers like to copy. Finally, the significance of bronze inscriptions in Shang and Zhou dynasties is analyzed from the perspective of bronze interests. In Shang and Zhou Dynasties, people worshipped their ancestors' beliefs and attached importance to sacrifices. Bronze ritual vessels were the media they thought they could communicate with their ancestors, which made bronze ritual vessels play an important role in Shang and Zhou Dynasties. With the emperor's emphasis on ceremonies, bronzes became a symbol of aristocratic status. What kind of bronze ware is used for what status is stipulated. If you use too much, you will exceed your authority and be punished. Bronze inscriptions become more meaningful with the promotion of bronze identity, which is not only the representative of clan identity, but also the evidence of social identity promotion, and can also protect future generations and maintain family unity. Reference historical materials: Wang Jinfeng's History of Yin Shang Dynasty, Yang Kuan's History of Western Zhou Dynasty, Zuo Zhuan in the Spring and Autumn Period, Yang Kuan's History of Warring States and Historical Records.