by warrior-herdsmen living far north of China, such as on cat­ from Anxiang, Hunan Province, China. I The from alogue nos. 64, 7 8, and 8 o. inlay was not one of the Pyongyang and Yanqi bear a remarkable resemblance to the materials favored by Han , I and the prominence of present example in both design and in technique, showing amber inlay on the Thaw further suggests that it was extensive use of granulation and on a repousse surface. not made in China but farther west. The exact location of its The buckle from Anxiang presents a more dramatic design, manufacture has not yet been determined. with a large set in the middle section of the dragon's body and a finer, denser granulation neatly arranged in rows. I. For a brief discussion of amber in early China, see Bunker, White, and It also has more semiprecious stone inlays-forty-four So I999, pp. I53-H· chips in the bordering frame alone. The highly refined technique points to a more developed stage of Chinese goldwork that coincides with the Western Jin date of the tomb. 84. The most illustrious feature of this buckle is the granula­ buckle with dragons tion, the minute granules fused onto the buckle's surface China, ca. r st century B.c.- I st century A.D. to highlight the design and to create a brilliant texture. The Gold inlaid with semiprecious stones technique was introduced into China in the second half of the Length 3 Y2 in. (9 em) Private Collection first millennium B.c., probably the result of maritime trade with countries in South and West Asia, where the use of gran­

2 This belt buckle, with a curved slit and a movable tongue, is ulation dates from the third millennium B.C. Evidence for exquisitely worked in repousse from a single sheet of gold. such transmission is the presence of the granulation found on The central figure is a spirited dragon with two pointed horns, small gold fixtures excavated from the tomb of the king of large staring eyes, and a gaping mouth. Six cubs are shown Nanyue state, in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, who was sporting amid spiraling waves. The dragon's sinuous body is buried in the late second century B.c. 3 A gold deco­ densely covered with fine granulation and punctuated by cir­ rated with fine granules found at Aluchaideng, Hanggin ban­ cular bezels that originally held semiprecious stone inlays. The ner, Inner Mongolia, however, points to a northern route of small dragons are also embellished with granules accented by transmission over the steppes, suggesting that the technique colorful semiprecious stone inlays, and a band of filigree wires may have been brought to China by nomads, who had been a meanders along the border. conduit between China and the West since prehistoric times. 4 Three examples are known among archaeologically recov­ By the late Western Han and early Eastern Han, Chinese gold­ ered belt buckles; one from Pyongyang, Korea, a second from smiths had mastered the technique and put it to extensive use. Yanqi, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and a third Goldworks with fine granulation have been found at several Han sites in Hebei, Shaanxi, and Jiangsu. 5 Given the extravagant design and extraordinary craftsmanship, this buckle and those from Pyongyang and Yanqi were most probably made in the imperial workshops and then presented as gifts to the rulers of vassal states and governors of distant provinces. zs

I • Machida I 9 8 7, pl. 2; Han Xiang I 9 8 2, pl. I : r ; Zhongguo wenwu baOI99I,p.!. 2. Beijing 1991, vol. r, p. 132, vol. 2, colorpl. I9:3. 3· Ibid. 4· Tian and Guo 1986. 5. Sun Ji r 994, p. 59·

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