Archive for the ‘Ancient Asia’ Category
By: The Scribe on April, 2012
How’d you like to be the archaeologist responsible for finding over 3,000 Buddha heads & statues on your excavation? Or part of the team that has to put the thousands of broken ones back together?
As daunting as the task sounds, this discovery in Handan, China, is so exciting that doubtless the archaeological team from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences doesn’t mind one bit. The discovery of the Buddha statues is thought to be the largest since 1949, when the People’s Republic of China was founded.
While many of the statues are broken, the majority are made from limestone and white marble, range from eight inches to several feet long, and are believed to be around 1,500 years old, dating back to 534-577 A.D. (Northern Qi / Eastern Wei Dynasties). They were found outside of the ancient capital city Ye, and one early theory is that the statues were buried after the fall of the Northern Qi dynasty, during a period where the rulers attempted to purge Buddhism from the country.
But rough treatment of Buddhist art wasn’t completely typical of the period, as other sites appear to contain respectful statue burials. Katherine Tsiang, director of the Center for the Art of East Asia (University of Chicago), commented that “it may have been that some of the ruins and broken sculptures from the past were gathered from old temple sites and buried in a pit… in other sites, there are inscriptions that suggest that old damaged sculptures were not just dumped in a pit, but respectfully buried in an orderly way.”
By: The Scribe on June, 2011
Turkey is home to some of the most interesting archaeological digs around. One of the most intriguing would have to be the underground city at Derinkuyu. Of all of the underground cities found in Turkey, the Derinkuyu underground city is the largest.
It is unknown exactly why the city was constructed. Archaeologists have found evidence that the city could be sealed off from the inside by means of a series of large stone doors. The stone doors are approximately one meter to a meter and a half in height. They are between 30 and 50 cms thick and weigh between 200 and 500kg. Each of the 11 floors in the city could also be closed off independently of one another.
The city was large enough to comfortably house between 35,000 and 50,000 people. The complex contains wine presses, oil presses, storage rooms, refectories, chapels and even stables. It is believed that the city was built between the 8th and 7th centuries BCE. The people that were believed to have built the underground city were known as the Phrygians. The kingdom of Phrygia was located the west central part of Anatolia. This is part of modern-day Turkey.
The Phrygian kingdom was attacked by many enemies. In approximately 690 BCE they were overwhelmed by Cimmerian invaders from Iran and were also conquered by invaders from the kingdom of Lydia. It finally became part of the Roman Empire and all traces of its language had vanished by the 7th century CE.
The Phrygians had a fairly advanced culture for the Bronze Age. Their music influenced some styles of Ancient Greek music and Midas, the king with the golden touch was mentioned as being a Phrygian. Some of the musical instruments that were used to play ancient music were also created b y the Phrygians.
It is unknown why Derinkuyu was created. The huge stone doors and access to water may 
have meant that it was designed to be a stronghold should the Phrygians be attacked. The presence of churches and other religious buildings also suggested that the complex may have been used for religious purposes. Only about ten percent of the stronghold has been excavated and so scientists are still learning more about the structure as they go along. It is believed that while the city may have been started in the 8th to 7th centuries BCE it may have been expanded and enlarged during the Byzantine era. There is some evidence that suggests this work may have been performed during the 5th and 10th centuries CE. This was a time when the city was used more frequently as a means of taking refuge and for religious purposes.
Derinkuyu is only one of several underground cities that have been unearthed in Turkey. Many are located in the same province as Derinkuyu. It is believed that these other underground structures may have been created by ancient Christians as a place where they could retreat to in order to escape being persecuted. Derinkuyu is actually connected to some of these other underground cities through a series of tunnels.
By: The Scribe on June, 2011
The three wise monkeys are a familiar sight to many people. They sit in a row, one with his ears covered, one with his mouth covered and the third with his eyes covered. The saying, “see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil” is one that has been translated into many different languages and used around the world. But where did the monkeys come from and why is there sometimes a fourth monkey included with the others?
The source for the popular depiction of this saying is the Nikko Tosho-gu shrine in Nikko, Japan. The carving was completed in the 17th century by sculptor Hidari Jongoro. The panel that the monkeys are on is actually part of a much larger eight panel series. The depictions illustrate the life cycle of man and incorporate many ideals from the Code of Conduct developed by Confucius. Confucius was a famous Chinese social philosopher who lived from 551 to 479 BCE.
Although the three monkey carving is the most widely known illustration of the “see no evil, speak no evil, hear no evil” saying, there are other areas where it was found as well. Another source for the saying is from the Analects of Confucius, a written record of the sayings and actions of Confucius. It was written during the time period between 475 BCE and 221 BCE by Confucius’s pupils in the time following his death. In this case, the saying was somewhat longer and translated into “Look not at what is contrary to propriety; listen not to what is contrary to propriety; speak not what is contrary to propriety; make no movement which is contrary to propriety”. It is understandable why the much shorter version is so popular today.
Monkeys appear frequently in the Shinto faith and so it is no wonder that monkeys would appear in carvings on an important Shinto temple. The monkey acts as a messenger of Hie Shinto shrines and during the year of the monkey the faith will celebrate with special festivals that only take place during this time.
Each of the monkeys has a name. The monkey who has his eyes covered is known as Mizaru. The monkey covering his ears is named Kikazaru and the monkey with the covered mouth is Iwazaru. Many people know Kikazaru as Mikarazu and Iwazaru as Mazaru althouth the reason for this name change is not known.
In some cases, a fourth monkey may also be seen alongside the Three Wise Monkeys. This monkey’s name is Shizaru and is often shown sitting with his arms crossed. He illustrates the ideal of “do no evil”. In many cases, modern culture believes that the group of monkeys shows people who ignore evil or wrongdoing by turning away or ignoring what is going on around them. Other people use the series of monkeys as a reminder that they should avoid being gossipy or snooping into the business of those around them. Many cultures use this philosophy as a way of avoiding exposure to evil so that they do not do wrong in turn.
By: The Scribe on June, 2011
Many people have seen the Disney movie Mulan and do not realize that it is actually telling the story of an ancient Chinese poem titled the Ballad of Mulan. Because it is a legend, it is unknown when Mulan may have lived although she was believed to have lived during the Northern Wei dynasty which lasted from 386CE to 534CE.
In the movie, Mulan is depicted as being unskilled with weapons. The “real” Mulan, on the other hand, was said to have practiced with many different weapons. The area in which she was believed to have lived was known for practicing martial arts such as Kung Fu and for being skilled with the sword. In the legend, the real Mulan (whose name was actually Hua Mulan) rode horses and shooting arrows.
In the movie as well as in the poem, there was no male child. This caused problems when the Emperor (or Khan as he is called in the poem) began to call up troops to fight the invading Mongol and nomadic tribes. If there had been a son he could have gone in his father’s place as it was only up to the family to provide one man to fight. Whether it was the father or the son did not matter; all they needed to do was provide one person to join the army.
As in the Disney movie, Mulan chose to enlist in her father’s place as he was too old to fight. At the age of eighteen she joined the army and prepared to fight against the Mongolian and nomadic tribes that wanted to invade China. Unfortunately for her there was no intelligent horse and no small red dragon as there was in the Disney version of the legend.
According to the legend she fought for twelve years. During that time she was offered twelve ranks as a way to reward her for her skill in battle. Then, according to both the Disney film and the legend, Mulan chose to return home to live a quiet life with her family. She turned down a title that would have been bestowed upon her for her skill in battle.
Although the first versions of the legend date from the 6th century CE a later version of the book expanded on the original poem. It is no surprise that the poem was expanded on as it is quite short. The book was written and released during the late Ming Dynasty which lasted from 1368CE to 1644CE. This expanded version became quite popular and the story became a folk legend as well. One of the main reasons for this popularity was that it mentioned gender equity, something which few pieces of literature included at the time.
Disney is not the only company to have made a movie about Mulan. The character has also appeared in a number of other movies or has had characters named after her. Some of the movies were successful and others failed to attract interest at the box office.
Next page
How’d you like to be the archaeologist responsible for finding over 3,000 Buddha heads & statues on your excavation? Or part of the team that has to put the thousands of broken ones back together?
But rough treatment of Buddhist art wasn’t completely typical of the period, as other sites appear to contain respectful statue burials. Katherine Tsiang, director of the Center for the Art of East Asia (University of Chicago), commented that “it may have been that some of the ruins and broken sculptures from the past were gathered from old temple sites and buried in a pit… in other sites, there are inscriptions that suggest that old damaged sculptures were not just dumped in a pit, but respectfully buried in an orderly way.”
