Chang’ an and Tri-colored Glazed Pottery: the Flourishing Tang
6 min readThe city of Xi’ an, which in ancient times was also known as Chang’ an and Jing Zhao, is today the capital city of Shaanxi Province. It is one of China’s most famous historic and cultural sites. Located on the southern banks of the Wei River in the Guanzhong Plain, it enjoys the benefit of rich earth created by several large river systems.
As a result, Xi’ an has been one of China’s seven ancient capitals. The others are Luoyang, Nanjing, Beijing, Kaifeng, Hangzhou, and Anyang. Among these, it is the most ancient and, with 3,000 years of history, the one with the longest past. It has seen the passage of many dynasties, from early Western Zhou(1134 BC) all the way up to Tang(618-907). Western Zhou, Qin, Western Han, Xin, Western Jin, Early Zhao, Early Qin, Later Qin, Western Wei, Northern Zhou, Sui, and Tang all had their capitals here. Among the seven early capitals of China, Xi’ an had the most extensive building. Chang’ an’s streets and alleys and markets, and the palaces of Han and Tang dynasties give one an unforgettable sense of magnificent grandeur. Today, thefamous historic sites dotted around Xi’ an include: Banpo Museum, Great Goose Pagoda, Stelae Woods, Huaqing Pond, Qin Tomb and the Terracotta Warriors, Mao Ling(imperial tomb), Qian Ling(imperial tomb), Famen Temple, and others. In 1982, Xi’ an became one of the first registered historic cultural cities in China.
Great Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi’ an. The pagoda was built in 652AD for preserving the sutra and figures of buddha that Xuanzang brought backfrom India.
The most glorious years of the early capital were in the Han and Tang dynasties. The following focuses on the Tang, and gives an introduction to the Great Tang Empire in the feudal period when it was at its height. In the late years of the Sui Dynasty, the Tang prince Li Yuan gathered troops under him and participated in the late-Sui peasant rebellions. Leading a large army he “entered the pass”into China proper and in 618 declared the establishment of a new dynasty. Its reign name was called Wude and its capital was at Chang’ an(Xi’ an). This then began the period of Chinese history when the Li family ruled China as the Tang Dynasty. In the 9th year of Wude(626), the second son of Li Yuan, Li Shimin, with the assistance of certain important ministers, mobilized the “Xuanwumen Coup.”He put to death those opposing him, his elder brother Li Jiancheng and his youger brother Li Yuanji, and he forced his father Li Yuan off the throne. Ruling now as Emperor, he changed the reign name to Zhenguan, andhe began his long rule as the famous Tang Taizong. Tang Taizong, or Li shimin, was a most capable emperor among rulers in Chinese history. Although the path of his assuming power may not have been the most enlightened and virtuous, nevertheless his rule in both military and civil matters was one of splendid achievements. In the second year of Zhenguan, EmperorTaizong ordered his army’s general, Li Duan, to declare war on the Tujue(Turks). Li Duan was greatly successful, obliterating the threat of various western tribes against the Central Plains.
He then began to “open up”the northwest. At the same time, Emperor Taizong used highly capable ministers as his most important assistants, and they organized governmental affairs in a stable and secure fashion. He passed a series of legal, economic, and cultural reforms, leading the Great Tang Empire to previously unknown heights. The Zhenguan period is justly renowned in Chinese history.
Ancient city wallin xi’ an. Theexistingcity wal was mainly built in the beginning of the Ming Dynasty.
In the fourth month of the twenty-third year of Zhenguan(649), Tang Taizong was overturned by his ninth son, who assumed the throne with a new reign name of Yongwei. The ninth son then became Tang Gaozong. After assuming the throne, Gaozong continued to implement the policies of Taizong so that his reign continued the legacy of the Zhenguan reign.
In 655, the sixth year of his reign, Tang Gaozong set up Wu Zetian as empress and Wu Zetian began to oversee governmental affairs. In 683, Gaozong died of illness. In the ninth month of 690, the sixty-seven-year-old Wu Zetian changed the reign name of the dynasty to Zhou and began to rule as emperor herself, in her own name. She became the only female emperor to formally be declared as and rule as empress in China. Although she had usurped power, and was later denounced for consolidating power in her own hands, nonetheless the political aneconomic situation of the Tang Dynasty continued to move forward during her reign. She had a book published on agricultural practices and greatly developed agricultural production. She created the conditions for a substantial improvement in the material wealth of Tang-dynastylives. However, during the latter part of her reign she doted on one minister and became very dissatisfied with her premier. In 705, the Premier Zhang Jianzhi and others mobilized a palace coup that forced her off the throne. The previous Tang-dynasty reign name was restored. In afinal struggle for imperial power, Li Longji defeated the Empress Wei group and assumed the throne. He changed his reign name to Kaiyuan, and became Tang Xuanzong(reigned712-756). Xuanzong was a very enlightened ruler, as successor to Li shimin. He made adjustments in political power, reformed the administrative and military systems, encouraged economicdevelopment, reformed the tax system, he revised the waterworks, and generally brought the people to a status they had never before enjoyed. The poet Du Fu has written admiringly of the “flourishing time of Kaiyuan.”
From the time the Tang Dynasty was established up to the years of Kaiyuan,a number of enlightened rulers, including Li Shimin and Wu Zetian, administered the country. In terms of foreign relations, the Tang Dynasty continued the practice of the Sui and gradually run its administration by three ministries called Zhongshu, Menxia, and Shangshu, all of which strengthened the power of the emperor’s rule. At the same time, Tang reformed the exam system of the Sui dynasty, making it into an important method and shortcut to finding excellent officials. In addition, to strengthen relations with miniority peoples on the border, Li shimin adopted a “hard and soft”approach. In 641, or the 1 5th year of Zhenguan, he married Princess Wencheng to Songtsen Gampo, which pulled Tibet into a tighter liaison with the Great Tang.
The renowned “Silk Road”also became an important conduit at the time for the Central Plains to develop towards the outside, to improve relations with foreigners, to increase economic and cultural exchange.
With few internal or external worries, Tang Dynasty was able to expand and advance in an unprecedented way. The humanities and arts of the early Tang period developed briskly.
Poetry, calligraphy, and painting saw the appearance of a number of famous artists. Those poets included”the four outstandings of early Tang,”Wang Wei(699-759), Cen Shen(715-770), and the two greatest poets Li Bai(701-762) and Du Fu(712-770). In addition to these were the great masters of painting, Wu Daozi and Li Sixun, the calligraphers Yan Zhenqing and Liu Gongquan, and the musician Li Guinian. All were representative of Tang-dynasty cultural talent.
Tang sancai(tri-colored glazed pottery) is one of the marvels of handicrafts of the Tang era, which competes in technical excellence with our arts today.
Tang sancai is the term applied to a kind of ceramic that is glazed with different colors and that was used in both daily life and as an article in funerary practices to accompany the deceased. The colors include green, blue, yellow, white, red, and orange, but the primary colors are yellow, green and orange, so it is called sancai or tri-colored. Many types of objects were made with this form of ceramic, including human and animal figurines and various shapes ofpots. The primary production places of sancai were Luoyang and Chang’ an, also some parts of Henan and Shaanxi. In the process of making the ceramic, the glaze was allowed to run down naturally, so that the results were often strange and wonderful and no two were ever exactly the same. The artistic creation of Tang sancai reflected the special nature of the age and of society at the time. The warrior figures are fierce and robust, the horses are magnificent steeds, and the camels are vigorous. All are well endowed with the vigor and strength of early Tang.
From the plumpness of the faces of ladies, one can see also that this was a period when plumpness was considered a mark of beauty.
