“奇华宫”铜炉年代考

The Production Date of the Bronze Qihuagong Incense Burner

"奇华宫"铜炉因铭刻"天汉二年"往往被认定为西汉武帝时期遗物,但是其器形与与唐宋时期的香炉十分接近,与汉六朝时期的炉相差甚远;铜炉腹部和足面装饰狮子图案也流行于唐宋时期;铭文所记二级工官制度目前发现仅出现于汉元帝及以后时期,汉武帝时期并没有出现。据此判断"奇华宫"铜炉所刻铭文乃后期伪造。

In previous scholarship, the Qihuagong bronze incense burner was often considered as a product made during the second year of Tianhan era during Emperor Wu＇s reign because of the inscriptions of the burner. Nonetheless, the shape of this piece is very similar to other bronze burners made during the Tang and Song period, and shows remarkable differences with those that were made during the Hart and Six Dynasty period. Moreover, the lion motif on the surface of the body and feet clearly represents the style popular during the Tang and Song period. A critical reading of the inscriptions shows a two-tier gongguang official craft production, which only appeared during Emperor Yuan of the Western Han period, much later than the Emperor Wu period. Therefore, the author suggests that the inscriptions were faked in later historical period.