2023.6 Changsha Three-Day Cultural Tour
2023.6 Changsha Three-Day Cultural Tour
Day 1 (Wed, June 28): Nanjing - Changsha (High-speed rail 7:25-11:52), take Metro Line 2 transfer to Line 6 to Hunan Museum (reservation required in advance). As soon as I got off the metro, I felt Changsha's 'heat' – the scorching sun and bustling crowds.
The Hunan Museum houses over 180,000 cultural relics, with two permanent exhibitions: 'Hunan People – Three湘 Historical and Cultural Exhibition' and 'Exhibition of Han Tombs at Mawangdui, Changsha'.
1. Hunan People – Three湘 Historical and Cultural Exhibition: Presented from the first-person perspective of 'Hunan People', it showcases the history and culture of Hunan, telling the process of creating the region's history and accumulating its civilization. Key artifacts include:
1. Dahe Human-Face Square Ding. A late Shang Dynasty vessel, excavated with a verdant green color, the mouth slightly larger than the base. The most distinctive feature is the semi-relief human faces decorating the four sides, surrounded by cloud-and-thunder patterns, with two claws under the chin.
2. Min Fang Lei. Featured on the 'National Treasure' program. The lid is cast with eight characters '皿而全作父己尊彝', the body with six characters '皿作父己尊彝'. Its dignified shape earned it the title 'King of Square Lei', representing the zenith of Chinese bronze culture. Unearthed in 1919, it was lost overseas; the body and lid were separated for a century until 2014 when it was purchased and returned to the Hunan Museum, reuniting lid and body - 'complete Lei returning to Hunan'.
3. Beast-Mask Pattern Pot with Swing Handle: Shang Dynasty, wine vessel. With an arched lid topped by a melon-ribbed knob, four ridges on the lid; long straight neck, elliptical cross-section body. A dragon-shaped swing handle on the upper belly sides with a flange on the dragon's back. Three stacked relief standing birds on each side of the lower belly. A bronze vessel with a round carved phoenix bird as a ridge is rare.
4. Seal of the King of Changsha: In 2009, a tomb robbery case in Changsha was successfully solved, recovering over 300 precious artifacts, including a gold seal and a gold imperial seal of the King of Changsha (now in the Changsha Museum). Both seals have a turtle knob on top and a square base below, incised with seal script 'Seal of the King of Changsha' and 'Imperial Seal of the King of Changsha', representing the noble status of the tomb owners – two generations of Liu氏 kings of Changsha.
5. Changsha Kiln Green-Glazed Brown-Decorated Poem Ewer: Changsha Kiln was a folk kiln product of the mid-to-late Tang Dynasty, mainly firing civilian ceramics such as jars, bowls, plates, boxes, and ewers. It broke the limitation of monochrome glazes, pioneering underglaze color decoration and text decoration. This Changsha Kiln poem brown ewer is 19 cm tall, with an outward-flaring mouth, short thick spout, a handle on the back, melon-ribbed belly, flat bottom, and a poem in brown on the belly: 'Spring water fills the spring pond, spring grass grows in spring time, spring people drink spring wine, spring birds sing spring songs.'
6. Yuan Blue-and-White Pear-Shaped Vase: Wine vessel, often used with a ladle and cup stand. On the belly, the central figure is the general Meng Tian wearing a phoenix-tail high crown and armor, a warrior behind holding a flag inscribed 'General Meng Tian'. Another warrior grabs a kneeling prisoner, and another seems to report. The figures are interspersed with strange rocks, fences, flowers, etc. Such Yuan blue-and-white human figures often draw from Yuan zaju, presenting a new artistic realm. The entire piece has fine texture, uniform glaze, pure color, and superb painting, making it a masterpiece of Yuan blue-and-white porcelain.
2. Exhibition of Han Tombs at Mawangdui: The Mawangdui Han Tombs are the family cemetery of Li Cang, Chancellor of Changsha Kingdom in the early Western Han. Among the three tombs, Tomb 2 is Li Cang himself, Tomb 1 is his wife Xin Zhui, and Tomb 3 is their son. Over 3,000 precious artifacts were unearthed, most well-preserved, including a gauze gown as thin as a cicada's wing, intact printed silk robe, various fine embroideries, bright lacquerware, exquisite painted silk banners, rich silk manuscripts, finely carved wooden figurines, musical instruments like qin, se, sheng, and weapons. Key artifacts:
1. T-shaped Silk Painting. Featured on 'National Treasure'. Wide at the top, narrow at the bottom, T-shaped, with tassel-like pendants at the four lower corners, unearthed in 1972 from Tomb 1. The painting is divided into heaven, human world, and underworld, containing numerous artistic images. It is not only a painting art but also represents traditional Chinese culture.
2. Gauze Gown. Unearthed in 1972 from Tomb 1, weighing 48 grams. If excluding the silk edges for collar, sleeves, and placket, it weighs only over 20 grams. 'As thin as a cicada's wing, as light as smoke', it amazes people with the advanced silk-weaving techniques of that time. The various silk fabrics and clothing unearthed from Mawangdui, with their early date, large quantity, variety, and good preservation, greatly enrich the historical data of ancient Chinese textile technology.
3. Zhu Hong Ling Wen Luo Silk-Padded Robe: Unearthed from Xin Zhui's tomb. Crossed collar, right lapel, curved train, made of vermillion diamond-patterned silk gauze, lined with plain silk, padded with silk floss. Its style is similar to ancient 'shenyi', popular among early Western Han noblewomen.
4. Vermillion Painted Coffin. The burial container of Xin Zhui. It was found nested inside a black lacquer plain coffin and a black-painted coffin. Both interior and exterior were coated with vermillion lacquer; on the exterior vermillion base, bright colors like blue-green, pink-brown, lotus-root brown, yellow-white were used to paint auspicious patterns of dragons, tigers, vermillion birds, deer, and immortals, presenting a flowing, ever-changing mysterious fairyland of Chu culture. It is a rare artistic treasure in the history of Chinese lacquerware.
5. Lacquerware: About 500 pieces unearthed from Mawangdui, mainly including ding, bi, boxes, pots, fang, zhi, ear cups, plates, lian, tables, small tables, and screens. Decorative patterns are mostly painted in red, black, and gray-green. Geometric patterns dominate, supplemented by dragon-phoenix and grass motifs. Many cup and plate interiors bear the inscriptions 'Jun xing shi' (May you enjoy your food) and 'Jun xing jiu' (May you enjoy your wine). The exteriors shine like new, indicating the advanced lacquerware manufacturing industry in the early Han.
6. Silk Manuscripts and Bamboo Slips: Covering philosophy, military, astronomy, medicine, geography, etc., including two ancient maps.
Out of respect and protection for the cultural relic, photography of Xin Zhui's body is prohibited. Her body, over 2,000 years old, remains well-preserved and not decayed, a great miracle in Chinese archaeology. As a cultural symbol of Hunan, the Mawangdui Han Tombs exhibition attracts numerous visitors to the Hunan Museum. Listening to the volunteer guides in red vests sincerely explaining, watching them lead the audience through the crowded halls, it was truly challenging – as a fellow museum volunteer, I deeply empathized. I reluctantly left the museum only at closing time at 5 PM.
After a short rest at the hotel, I went to the night market. Changsha is a city that never sleeps – Wuyi Square, Huangxing Road Pedestrian Street, Taiping Old Street, and Pozi Street are must-visit spots, the busiest areas of Changsha with entertainment and food. Every few steps there is a 'Sexy Tea' milk tea shop, each with a line. At night, the streets are packed with people, huge screens on street corners, various local snacks – the joyful night life best represents Changsha's character.
Day 2 (Thu, June 29): Orange Isle, Yuelu Mountain
First, visit Orange Isle Scenic Area, which has a circular sightseeing car. Orange Isle lies in the middle of the Xiang River, surrounded by water, stretching ten li, known as 'the best isle under heaven'. The main attraction is the statue square at the isle's head. Standing at the head of Orange Isle, looking up at the statue of the young Chairman Mao, reading 'Changsha' of Qin Yuan Chun again, sitting on the steps at the isle's head to feel the breeze and watch the Xiang River flow – it truly gives a sense of high spirits and vigor.
Crossing the river from Orange Isle leads to Yuelu Mountain Scenic Area, rich in historical sites and cultural atmosphere. Currently, the cable car is under repair; you can take a sightseeing bus from the foot to the top, where a panoramic view of the Xiang River beauty unfolds. Instead of taking the bus down, we walked along mountain paths through the woods, passing many scenic spots along the way – lush vegetation, beautiful scenery. On the mountain are the tombs of revolutionary martyrs like Huang Xing and Cai E, as well as a historic temple 'Lushan Temple'.
When tired, we found a tea house in the woods to drink tea and rest, only then can one appreciate the joy of slow travel.
Near the foot of the mountain, we saw 'Aiwan Pavilion' (Evening Love Pavilion), named after Du Mu's Tang poem line 'Stop the carriage and sit to enjoy the maple grove at dusk, frosty leaves are redder than February flowers'. It's a great place to view red autumn leaves.
At the foot of the mountain, Yuelu Academy is one of the four most famous academies in Chinese history. Zhu Xi and Zhang Shi, Southern Song Neo-Confucian scholars, once held a 'debate lecture' here. Emperor Zhenzong of Song personally inscribed the four characters 'Yuelu Academy'. Through many dynasties, it was named Hunan University in 1927. Every courtyard, every stone tablet, every tile gleams with the humanistic spirit tempered by time.
Day 3 (Fri, June 30): Changsha Museum, afternoon high-speed rail back to Nanjing
Changsha Museum is located at the confluence of the Xiang River and Liuyang River, a low-key but profound municipal museum. It features two permanent exhibitions: Changsha Ancient History and Culture Exhibition and Changsha Modern History and Culture Exhibition, with many significant relics – a great place to learn about Changsha's history and culture!
1. Gold Imperial Seal of the King of Changsha: The gold seal's shape matches historical records, providing new valuable evidence for the study of Han dynasty seal system.
2. Elephant-Pattern Large Bronze Nao: Shang Dynasty relic, 103 cm high, 221.5 kg. The nao is brownish-green, with a tubular handle, a tile-shaped striking part, main pattern is a coarse beast-face with semi-relief thick hook lines, and on the drum part a pair of elephant patterns standing facing each other with connected trunks.
3. Double-Sided Openwork Dragon-Design Green Jade Pendant: Warring States period, carved from green jade. The edge is a curved dragon body, with a small round hole in the center for threading a cord – a fine piece of Chu state jade.
At the Changsha Museum, I happened upon a good temporary exhibition, seeing many heavyweight relics like the jade burial suit of the King of Nanyue from the Western Han.
