Abstract
Song Yuan Huaya (the Huaya of the Song and Yuan Dynasties) is a type of seal featuring figurative patterns and sometimes decorated with ciphered or ethnic characters. Their origins are the Song and Yuan Dynasties, although their influence extends to the Ming (1368–1644 CE) and Qing (1644–1912 CE) Dynasties. Although it is based on the Chinese Han seal tradition, Song Yuan Huaya exhibits various elements from the influence of the Silk Road. This is thought to be the first time in Han seal history that the Steppe culture can be seen so abundantly on private seals. This paper takes an interdisciplinary approach to analyse, probably for the first time in the field, some cases of Song Yuan Huaya, in which a dialogue between the Han seal tradition and Silk Road culture occurs. The findings will hopefully advance the understanding of the complicated nature of the art history, society, peoples, and ethnic relationships in question, and will serve as the starting point for further studies of intercultural communication during specific historical periods.
Highlights
As an established category of Chinese art, seals are considered among the most significant representatives of Chinese aesthetics
Yuan Dynasty, their cultural advantage remained and the communication between the Sino culture and other cultures, such as those introduced via the Silk Road, was deepened and complicated by the empowerment of ethnic groups and the dialectical situation of the people of Han ethnicity
It is not surprising that, compared to the more comprehensive Yinxue 印學 (Chinese orthodox seal9 study), the study of Song Yuan Huaya began quite late, and its earlier stages were stagnant for four reasons: (1) The majority of the objects identified as Song Yuan Huaya were allegedly obtained from tomb robbery and random surface finds, later emerging in curio markets no earlier than the 1920s to 1930s
Summary
As an established category of Chinese art, seals are considered among the most significant representatives of Chinese aesthetics. Their form and function evolved from a history of over. The inter-cultural communications among different nations, ethnicities and regions along the Silk. Yuan Dynasty, their cultural advantage remained and the communication between the Sino culture and other cultures, such as those introduced via the Silk Road, was deepened and complicated by the empowerment of ethnic groups and the dialectical situation of the people of Han ethnicity. Huaya as a major cultural heritage of— not limited to—the period, can certainly help us to better understand the art of seals of the period in question under the influence of the Silk Road
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