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"Ancient Mirror": an Interpretation of Gujing Ji in the Context of Medieval Chinese Cultural History Ju E Chen

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East Asian History NUMBER 27 . JUNE 2004 Institute of Advanced Studies Australian National University Editor Geremie R. Barme Associate Editor Helen Lo Business Manager Marion Weeks Editorial Advisors B0rge Bakken John Clark Lo uise Edwards Mark Elvin (Convenor) John Fitzgerald Colin Jeffcott Li Tana Kam Lo uie Le wis Mayo Gavan McCormack David Marr Tessa Morris-Suzuki Benjamin Penny Kenneth Wells Design and Production Design ONE Solutions, Victoria Street, Hall ACT 2618 Printed by Goanna Print, Fyshwick, ACT This is the twenty-seventh issue of Ea st Asian History, printed August 2005, in the series previously entitled Papers on Far Ea sternHist ory. This externally refereed journal is published twice a year. Contributions to The Editor, Ea st Asian Hist ory Division of Pacific and Asian History Research School of Pacific and Asian Studies Australian National University Canberra ACT 0200, Australia Phone +61 2 6125 314 0 Fax +61 26125 5525 Email [email protected] Subscription Enquiries to Marion Weeks, East Asian History, at the above address, or to [email protected]. au Annual Subscription Australia A$50 (including GST) Overseas US$45 (GST free) (for two issues) ISSN 1036-6008 iii CONTENTS 1 Friendship in Ancient China Aat Vervoom 33 The Mystery of an "Ancient Mirror": An Interpretation of Gujing ji in the Context of Medieval Chinese Cultural History Ju e Chen 51 The Missing First Page of the Preclassical Mongolian Version of the Hs iao-ching: A Tentative Reconstruction Igor de Rachewiltz 57 Historian and Courtesan: Chen Yinke !l*Ji[Nj. and the Writing of Liu Rushi Biezhuan t9P�Qjll:J,jiJf� We n-hsin Yeh 71 Demons, Gangsters, and Secret Societies in Early Modern China Robert]. Antony 99 Martyrs or Ghosts? A Short Cultural History of a Tomb in Revolutionary Canton, 1911-70 Virgil Kit-Yiu Ho iv Cover Calligraphy Yan Zhenqing 1ffl1�9IlD Tang calligrapher and statesman Cover Illustration A painting commemorating the Huanghua gang martyrs by the Famous Li ngnan School painter He Jianshi {iiJ �� ,± Xiu Jinhua, Hu anghua gang gongyuan [The Huanghua gang Park], Guangzhou: Lingnan Meishu Chubanshe, 2001, p.53. THE MYSTERY OF AN "ANCIENT MIRROR": AN INTERPRETATION OF GUJINGJIIN THE CONTEXT OF MEDIEVAL CHINESE CULTURAL HISTORY *JueChen�H Re cord of an Ancient Mirror (Gujing ji tl��c, hereafter referred to as Ithem, many scholars, though not all, believe that chuanqi is a major genre of Gujing ji) is generally regarded as one of the fictional narratives the time and Gujing ji is representative 618-907).1 (chuanqi 1,iij-) of the early Tang m dynasty (AD The focus of the early Tang-dynasty chuanqi genre. 2 of the story is an "ancient" bronze mirror, around which a series of 2 The description of Gujing ji makes it episodic sub-stories develops.3 clear that the mirror is made of bronze The mirror travels with the protagonists to many places in China rather than jade or iron, because of the use of the verb "to cast" (zhu) used when � 581-618), at the end of the Sui dynasty (AD and performs miraculous describing its creation. According to deeds wherever it goes. In the end of the story, the mirror foretells the archaeologists and an historians, before fall of the Sui. the Warring States (475 BC to 221 BC) This mirror is also extraordinary in terms both of its appearance period, most Chinese mirrors were made of jade rather than bronze. From the and function. The form of the mirror reveals that, typologically speaking, Warring States onward, although a small this is an object from nowhere: the history of Chinese bronze mirror number of ancient Chinese mirrors were casting proves that a mirror such as this never existed. At the same time, made of iron, most were cast in bronze. The mirror in Gujingji could not there­ the functions of the mirror demonstrate that this is a mirror of somewhere: fore be more "ancient" than the Warring it is a reservoir of pre-Tang mirror lore. States period. 3 Gujingji was one of the earliest works in the history of Chinese narrative that Geremie R. Barme, Duncan Campbell, Isively studied by scholars both in China focused on a mirror. Similarly, Gujing ji Michael Loewe and Stephen Owen, who and in the West (for instance, in China was an early example of episodic fiction read earlier versions of this paper, have by Bian Xiaoxuan, Chen Yingque, Cheng in Chinese history. The story consists of provided helpful comments for this re­ Yizhong, Li ]ianguo, Lu Xun, Wang a dozen episodes surrounding the mys­ vised text, for which I am grateful. Meng'ou, Wang Pijiang, and Zhou Shao­ terious mirror. For a general discussion liang; and, in the West by Cunis Adkins, of the episodic nature of Chinese fictive 1 In addition to ancient scholars such as Glen Dudbridge, Karl S. Y. Kao, Andre narrative, see Andrew Plaks, "Conceptual Hong Mai (1123-1202) and Hu Yinglin Levy, Howard Levy, William Nienhauser, models in Chinese narrative theory," 0551-1602), the mid- and late Tang­ and Carrie Reed, among others) from Jo urnal of Chinese Philosophy 4.2 dynasty tales have been comprehen- different theoretical perspectives. Among (August 1977): 25-47. 33 34 JUE CHEN 4 English translations of Gujingji and other Because of the above, the mirror seems to po se a mystery in its own quotes from primary sources in this paper right to art historians, as well as to cultural historians of Chinese civilization. are mine unless acknowledged otherwise. This paper is an attempt to explore the nature of this mirror from the 5 In order to understand the complex message hidden in the design of this perspective of both Chinese medieval art history and cultural history. mirror, it is necessary to examine the Let us begin with art history. history of ancient and medieval Chinese bronze mirror casting. In this context, I found a number of curious elements. 1. These, I believe, suggest that the author Strange Design: an Unusual Mirror of Gujingji was someone knowledgeable in bronze mirror design. In Gujing ji we As its title suggests, Gujing ji is a "record" of an ancient bronze read: "Once upon a time the Yellow 4 Emperor cast fifteen mirrors. The dia­ mirror embellished with the follOWing design: meter of the firstmirror was fifteen cun, The width of the mirror was eight cun [Chinese inches],5 and the shape following the numerological charac­ 6 teristics of the full moon. The diameter of its knob appeared to be a Chinese unicorn squatting on its heels of the second mirror was one cun less Around the knob were a dragon, a phoenix, a tiger and a turtle, and that of the third was rwo cun less, representing the four directions-East, South, West, and North. Around and so on. This mirror here was in fact the four cardinal points were eight diagrams, and around these diagrams the eighth one." It is also noteworthy ,,7 were twelve "double-hours, represented by twelve corresponding that the author of Gujing ji indicates . that this mirror was the eighth of fifteen animal Signs Around these "double-hours" were twenty-four characters, 8 mirrors cast by the Yellow Emperor. bordering the mirror These characters resembled ancient Ii ff*-style Between this claim and the diameter of caUigraphy9 Although these characters were seemingly organized one the mirror (both eight), there may exist stroke after another according to the rules, they could not be found in hidden connections. Xue Hongji offers .lO a symbolic interpretation indicating that any dictionary this figure represents a sense of legit­ imacy: the Tang was the eighth united dynasty after the golden age of Three /quoted account we can assume that dle /(lingjt) around the mirror. If this was Dynasties. See Xue, Chuanqi xiaoshuo diameter of the smallest mirror in this the case, this is characteristic of the Sui shi [A history of Chuanqi fiction](Hang­ series was one cun. Typologically speaking, mirror: the area inside the rim was the zhou: Zhejiang Guji Chubanshe, 1998), this type of mirror would belong to dle main area for graphic deSign, while the p.44. Xue's theory is inspired, though category of "mirrors in the palm." nalTow band outside the rim was reserved simplistic. Ideological considerations 6 The shape of the knob here also may for inscriptions (mingwen dai). This aside, the eight cun bronze mirror is typo­ indicate that this mirror is not an ancient design was generally not seen in earlier logically real. Perhaps, the eight cun one. The knob of a Sui dynasty bronze mirrors in tenns of design. In this sense, mirror was an accepted style of the period mirror was usually circular or semicircular. it also indicates that the mirror was con­ when Gujing ji was written; perhaps Only starting from dle Tang did the temporary rather than ancient. the number eight here carries a certain squatting animal knob (judi guaishou 9 It is notewOlthy that the Han mirror symbolic/numerological implication. In niu) become visible in large numbers. inscription was nearly always in the styles any case, the size of the mirror here There had existed a small number of of zhuan or Ii; the Sui mirror inscription warrants further exploration. There are squatting animal knobs in the Han and was usually in the style of kai; and Three two interesting issues related to the dia­ in the Sui, but it did not become a popular Kingdoms and Six Dynasties mirrors were meter of the mirror, and complex messages fe ature in mirror design until the Tang. somewhere in between. See Shi Cuifeng, hidden therein indicate that the mirror See Shi Cuifeng, Zhongguo lidai tong­ Zhongguo lidai tongjingjianshang, pp.14s-6.
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