从南阳汉画像石说牛

Talk about Cattle from the Painting of Nanyang Han Dynasty

南阳是两汉时期的重要都市之一,两千多年来,肩负着耕田犁地的南阳牛——黄牛,在南阳人的心中具有举足轻重的作用。作为中国五大良种牛之一,至今在全国仍享有盛誉。汉代崇尚厚葬的理念孕育了汉画像石这种艺术形式,汉代社会的生活、艺术、科学、信仰等各方面,都在画像中得到体现,这其中有不少以牛为题的佳作,以强大的艺术感染力揭示了汉代社会生活的片断。

The arts of Han Painting reflected the fact on the living, art, science and bellef oI Han dynasty. Therefore, Han Painting could be an important data to study the social living in ancient China. Based on the figure of Han Paining in the Nanyang Han Painting Museum, the cattle were categorized into five types, which were farm type, transportation type, hunting type and fighting type, respectively. The characteristics and social functions were thoroughly described and some detailed data were presented for the study on the cattle couture.