古代中国“刻石纪法”传统初探

Brief Discussion on the Tradition of Carving Stone to Record Laws in Ancient China

始自秦汉的'刻石纪法',是在先秦'铭金纪法'的基础上,对古代中国'镂之金石'法律传承方式的创新和发展。'刻石纪法'传统以唐为界大致分为初创期和完善期。初创期的法律刻石或以'铭功'兼及'纪法',或以盟诅、禁约、定契等内容表达其法律属性;完善期的法律刻石,既有彰显德礼教化、构建官府布政模式等正统性、规范性的一面,又有乡禁碑与讼案碑等独立性、变通性和世俗化的一面。由于'刻石纪法'传统具有道器兼备、官民互动、现实救济等显著特色,使其在古代法律传承和地方法律秩序的构建中,获得广泛的社会认同。

Originated from the Qin and Han dynasty,the"carving stone to record laws"is a innovation and development of the ancient Chinese method to inherit the law by"engraving on bronzes and stones",on the basis of the pre-Qin dynasty’s"inscribing on bronzes to record laws"。The traditional"carving stone to record laws"can be divided into the pioneering and perfect stage which is distinguished by the Tang dynasty.The legal carving stone of the pioneering stage express its legal attribute by"inscribing the contribution"and"record the laws",or by the content of league、prohibition、concluding a contract,etc.The one of the perfect stage,on one hand owned the legitimacy and normative which express propriety and cultural trait,construct the mode of the government’s administration,on the other hand it owned the flexible and secularize trait of the"the forbidden stele"and"the suit stele".Due to the"carving stone to record laws"tradition have the marked characteristics of giving attention to"Tao"and"Tool",making interactive between the official and the people,real relief,etc.It find wide social accepting among the process of the ancient law’s inheriting and the construct of the local legal order.