妇好墓“龙纽石器盖”、九沟西周墓“龙纽玉印”及其他

Investigation on Fuhao Tomb’s Lid of Stoneware with Dragon Knob and Jiugou Tomb’s Jade Seal with Dragon Knob

1976年妇好墓出土的"龙纽石器盖"和2016年九沟西周墓出土的"龙纽玉印",为中国印章史的研究提供了一条新线索。作者认为,这两件器物不是器盖,可能与印章有关,但如何区别印章和印模,仍然值得探讨。印模的功能是复制,而印章是用于官私文书的封缄,具有凭信作用,两者不能划等号。另外,世界各国的印章,早期以图形为主,文字晚出,多附属于图形,中国的印章也分两种。作者认为,这两件器物不是文字印,而是图形印,并就二器印面的四个动物进行分析,指出它们是由三龙一鸟组成,并非龙、鹿、虎、鹰四字,与中国传统的"四神"无关。最后,作者还搜集出土文物中的鳄鱼形象,对鳄形龙的概念进行了探讨。

Two discoveries, the "lid of stoneware with dragon knob" unearthed from the Fuhao Tomb in 1976 and the "jade seal with dragon knob" unearthed from the Jiugou Tomb of the Western Zhou Period in 2016, provide new clue on the study of seal history of China. The author argues that both items are related to seal but have nothing to do with ware lid, though whether they are seals or seal matrixs remains uncertain. The function of seal matrix is to copy, while that of seal is to authenticate official or personal documents in order to prevent leakage. In the history of most countries around the world, including China, graphic seals appear earlier than inscribed ones, and characters on seals are usually attachment to graph. The author conducts analysis of the 4 animals on every seal surface and indicates that the two items are graphic seals rather than inscribed seals. The author expresses the opinion that the designs on both seals are "three dragons and one bird", not four characters to mean dragon, deer, tiger, and eagle which represent the traditional Chinese "four deities". Finally, the author investigates the images of crocodile in archaeological findings to discuss the concept of crocodile-like dragon.