神兽西来:丝绸之路上的天马和翼兽

Beasts of God:Tianma and the Winged Beast on the Silk Road

汉代丝绸之路的开通,给古老的中国带来了许多新的文化因素。其中天马和有翼神兽,就是通过丝绸之路传来的非常重要的美术题材,在考古发现中留下来许多遗物和遗迹。本文以文献和考古两方面材料相结合,分析和论述中亚的双马神崇拜与东传、汉代有翼神兽的流行、汉武帝的求仙思想与昆仑神话对天马信仰的助推等几个重要学术问题,从考古学与艺术史的层面,剖析了汉晋时代丝绸之路上这一历史文化现象。

The opening of the Silk Road in the Western Han Dynasty(202BC-8AD)infused various new cultural factors into ancient China.Among them,Tianma and the Winged Beast are listed as very important art themes transmitted through the Silk Road,leaving many traces and relics in archaeological discoveries.In this paper analyzed and discussed are several important academic issues,such as the worship of the God of the Two Horses in Central Asia and its spread to the East,the popularity of the Winged Beasts in the Han Dynasty,the idea of Emperor Wudi’s seeking immortality and the promotion of the belief in Tianma by Kunlun mythology.Such historical and cultural phenomena on the Silk Road in the Han and Jin Dynasties(202BC-420AD)are analyzed from the perspective of archaeology and art history.