再论博山炉的起源及相关问题

A Renewed Study on Boshan Incense Burners: Origins and Other Issues

关于博山炉问题,过去已有许多研究成果,但是也有一些问题值得深入讨论。目前学界基本认为博山炉起源于战国时期的豆形熏炉,也有学者对这一问题不断加以追溯,并指出早在红山文化时期,便有豆形熏炉出现。以往的研究却忽略了陕西茂陵一号无名冢丛葬坑1981年出土的博山炉,与豆形博山炉在形制上存在的区别。其实目前所见的两种类型的汉代博山炉,各自的起源并不相同。博山的形象不仅象征求仙和长生,也代表了死者期望通过山岳到达天界。结合相关文献的记载,在楚汉的信仰体系中,山岳不仅是神仙的所在,而且是通往天界的必经之路。通过汉代的相关材料,也可以看到龟、鱼或蛙等水生动物,似乎更容易与黄泉或幽冥有关,而鸟的形象往往和天界联系在一起。因此博山炉的鸟形饰件,在中国古代信仰体系中有特定的涵义,也可能是外来文化影响下的产物。

Although there have been a lot of researches on Boshan incense burners, some issues are worth in-depth studies. Regarding the origins of Boshan incense burners, most scholars believe that they derived from dou-shaped incense burners of the Warring States period, while others point out that doushaped incense burners had already appeared as early as in the Hongshan culture period. However, in the previous studies, differences between the shapes of dou-shaped Boshan incense burners and an incense burner excavated in 1981 from tomb no.1 at Maoling mausoleum in Shaanxi province have been ignored. In fact, the two types of Boshan incense burners from the Han dynasty have different origins. Boshan not only reflects the pursuit of longevity and immortality, but also is the way to heaven after death. According to related documents, in beliefs prevailing in the Chu kingdom and during the Han dynasty, mountains were where the immortals lived and the path from earth to heaven. Some Han dynasty materials show that turtles, fishes, frogs and other aquatic animals are probably more often associated with the underworld and birds with the heaven. Therefore, bird-shaped decorations on Boshan incense burners had special meaning in ancient Chinese beliefs or they were probably the result of foreign influences.