曾国青铜器简论

On Bronzes of the Zeng State

曾国青铜器自20世纪60年代以来多有出土。是反映曾国历史文化最重要的材料。即便略去曾侯乙墓等出土的大宗战国时期青铜器不计，曾国青铜器属于西周和春秋阶段的仅礼器的数量就有30余批、近200件。这在周代诸侯国之中十分突出。曾国青铜器的特征因此也可以较清晰地表现出来。曾国青铜文化的发展先后处于周和楚两个文化体系之下。

The bronze culture of the Zeng State was developed successively under the Zhou and the Chu cultural systems. This position was characteristic of most of the princedoms lesser and weaker than the states of the Five Overlords and the Seven Powerful States. At present the evolution of Zeng State bronzes through various periods can be traced by analyzing their representative groups that form a roughly complete sequence without distinct temporal missing links. In the microscopic sense, these bronzes can be divided into two stages different in cultural attribution, i.e. the stage from the late Western Zhou to the early Spring-and-Autumn period and that from the mid Spring-and-Autumn period to the mid Warring States period. At the technological level, the evolution of these bronzes＇ casting techniques, like the change of their cultural features, maintained basic identity with the then main stream.