The swordplay 2000 years ago, starting from the "golden marriage" in the history of iron smelting?

Shi Jin in "Water Margin" asked Wang Jiaotou to teach him the eighteen kinds of martial arts every day, and he taught him one by one from the beginning. In the era of cold weapons, there was a saying of "eighteen kinds of martial arts" and "eighteen kinds of weapons".

In the military book "Cuiwei Beizhenglu" written by Hua Yue in the Southern Song Dynasty, there are records of eighteen kinds of weapons including bow, crossbow, gun, knife, sword, spear, shield, axe, hatchet, halberd, whip, mace, pestle, fork, rake head, cotton rope lasso, and bare-handed combat.

In fact, in China, there are more than a hundred kinds of strange weapons. These cold weapons are not only the fighting partners of knights and generals, but also the witness of civilization.

The "First Sword of China" is Iron Inlaid with Jade

In the era of cold weapons, the most popular weapon was the sword. The sword is the most important weapon among all weapons. When talking about swords, we have to mention the treasure of Henan Museum, the "No. 1 Sword in China" that can be compared with the Sword of Goujian, King of Yue - the Jade-Handled Iron Sword.

The jade-handled iron sword is a cultural relic from the late Western Zhou Dynasty. It was unearthed in 1990 from the tomb of Guo Ji in Sanmenxia City, Henan Province.

According to Wang Longzheng, a researcher at the Henan Provincial Cultural Relics Research Institute, he found the jade-handled iron sword in the southeast corner of the tomb of Guo Ji. "At first, I only saw a small piece of jade." As the cleaning work progressed, the jade piece gradually transformed into a cylindrical object with patterns engraved on it. "As we continued to clean down, we found the iron part. It turned out that the iron was embedded in the jade!"

According to Wang Longzheng's description, although the jade-handled iron sword is now broken as a whole, when it was first discovered, it was still connected by a very thin part in the middle and was placed in a leather scabbard. The scabbard and the sword body were glued together by rust. Based on the remaining traces of the scabbard, the researchers speculated that the sword body was wrapped in silk fabric and placed in the scabbard.

The earliest example of artificial iron smelting in China

If you look closely at the sword, you can find that the sword body is 34.2 cm long, the handle is 12.2 cm long, and the blade is 22 cm long. Its biggest feature is that it is composed of an iron sword body, a copper sword core and a jade hilt.

The sword has a jade handle, which is made of Hetian green jade, straight and round, like a bamboo joint, and has a gentlemanly demeanor; the core is made of copper, the middle of the handle is hollow, and the copper core is inserted to connect the sword body; the body is made of iron, and it has been identified that the iron used in the jade-handled iron sword is a kind of artificial iron called block-smelting carburizing steel. According to the Institute of Metallurgy and Materials History of Beijing University of Science and Technology, "this is the earliest known example of artificial iron smelting in my country that has been scientifically tested and confirmed."

Before the jade-handled iron sword was discovered, my country's earliest artificial iron smelting technology was still a mystery. According to historical records, meteorite iron was used to make weapons in the Shang Dynasty; it was not until the Han Dynasty that iron tools were widely used.

Every progress in productivity is achieved in the process of people's understanding and exploration. Metal and jade are two completely different materials. However, the craftsmen living in the Yellow River Basin 2,000 years ago were able to perfectly combine metal and jade with exquisite ideas and superb craftsmanship to make a practical weapon that can be called a work of art. The appearance of the jade-handled iron sword pushed the history of iron smelting in China forward by 200 years, and also provided new clues for historical research, achieving the "golden and jade marriage" in the history of iron smelting in my country.

Henan's "Arsenal" Revealed

The history of Henan is half of the history of China. This ancient land of Henan has given birth to countless civilizations and legends.

The appearance of the jade-handled iron sword proves that humans in the Western Zhou Dynasty had already learned to forge cold weapons with iron, but cold weapons in ancient China had already appeared as early as the Xia and Shang Dynasties. This can be confirmed by the unearthed cultural relics such as the Erlitou site in Yanshi, Henan, the Erligang site in Shangcheng, Zhengzhou, and the Yin Ruins in Anyang. As early as the Xia and Shang Dynasties, humans had learned to make cold weapons with bronze and used them in wars.

Bronze Spear——

Deadly weapons in the age of car warfare

The Xia, Shang and Zhou dynasties are known as the chariot warfare period. Most of the cold weapons that appeared at this time were made of bronze, such as the dagger suitable for chariot warfare and the long-handled bronze sword. The dagger was the main fighting weapon equipped by the army.

Therefore, the word "gan ge" in Chinese can refer to all military actions, while "jin ge iron cavalry" is a synonym for war.

The bronze dagger unearthed at the Erlitou site in Yanshi, Henan Province, has a history of more than 3,000 years. It is the earliest bronze dagger discovered in China so far, and also the earliest bronze weapon.

In chariot warfare, the charioteers could only use their weapons to fight each other when the two chariots were at odds. At this time, the dagger stretched across the side of the chariot to help hook and kill. Therefore, the bronze dagger was also called the deadly weapon of the chariot warfare era.

Duogo halberd and halberd——

Spear Advanced Edition: Fighting Weapon

Eliminating old weapons and developing new, diversified weapons are the key to improving combat effectiveness and winning wars.

In the late Spring and Autumn Period, with the emergence of infantry and cavalry, frontal confrontations were more common, and the horizontal hook-shaped halberd was difficult to use. Therefore, a multifunctional weapon that could not only hook and peck but also stab came into being - a halberd combined with a halberd and a spear.

In 2002, the multi-pronged halberd and spear unearthed from the tomb of the king of Xu State in Ye County, Pingdingshan, Henan Province were an upgraded combination of the halberd and the spear.

By installing a spear tip on the head of the dagger, it becomes a fighting weapon with the dual functions of hooking and stabbing. It can be used for battles between chariots and against enemy infantry approaching the chariots.

Fuhao Axe——

The identity token of a female general

The cold weapons of ancient China not only excel in practicality, but also occupy an important position in terms of artistry and culture. For example, the bronze axe of the Shang Dynasty is not only a "splitting weapon", but also closely linked to royal power and military power.

In 1976, two bronze axes were unearthed in a high-level Shang tomb in Yinxu, Anyang. One weighed 9 kilograms and was decorated with a tiger eating a man pattern, and the other weighed 8.5 kilograms and was decorated with a dragon pattern. Both bronze axes were engraved with the inscription "Fuhao".

"King Zhendeng led Fu Hao with three thousand troops and ten thousand soldiers to attack the Qiang." "King Zhendeng ordered Fu Hao to lead Zhi Sheng to attack Bafang. The king went to Fu Hao to attack Tufang. King Zhendeng ordered Fu Hao to lead Hou Gao to attack Shifang." The discovery of these two bronze axes is considered to be a symbol of Fu Hao's power to lead troops to fight. Experts speculate that Fu Hao might have held this large bronze axe to show the power of the Shang royal family to the army or the enemy.

In China's long history, the emergence, development and decline of cold weapons have all gone through a long period. From the Stone Age, the Bronze Age to the Iron Age, cold weapons have accumulated a brilliant history, embodying the diligence, bravery and wisdom of the ancient working people of my country, and telling the glorious achievements of swords, spears, halberds, and iron horses.