Page 17 - Christie's Hong Kong November 29, 2022 Chang e Wha Collection of Jades

韘形珮
ARCHER’S RING-FORM
PENDANTS
關於「韘」，《詩經．衛風‧芄蘭》有個故事：「芄蘭之葉，童子佩
韘。雖則佩韘，能不我甲。容兮遂兮，垂帶悸兮。」意思是小孩子
拿芄蘭的葉子當作韘佩戴，雖然很像韘，難道我看不出來嗎？
因為雖然外表是佩韘的樣子，但垂下來的帶子擺來擺去，沒有
韘的重量，一看就知道是假的。西漢初年研究《詩經》的著作
《毛傳》就說：「韘，玦也。能射御則佩韘。」就是說有力量能拉
弓射箭的成人才會佩韘。
1976年，河南安陽殷墟婦好墓出土玉器中，即有「韘形器」
（圖一）的出現，器形為筒狀，下部平整，上端呈斜面式，中空，
可套入（左、右手不拘）拇指。正面雕琢獸面紋，巨角如牛，雙
耳後貼，方眼，無鼻，雙眼下各鑽一孔用以穿繩，背面有一橫向
凹槽，可納弓弦。韘形器的用法，是先套於拇指上，並將繩繫
於手腕以防脫落，然後利用凹槽扣弦張弓，純粹做為射箭的實
用器。
春秋期的韘形器仍屬於實用型，直到戰國早期，才出現了一件
傳世品＜玉鳳鳥紋韘＞（圖二，現藏於北京故宮），是一件不能
套指，不具實用功能僅供佩戴裝飾用途的「韘形珮」。隨著「韘
形器」的實用功能漸漸削弱，戰國晚期至西漢早期的玉韘，逐
漸失去鈎弦功能，形狀也從筒狀或環狀盾型走向扁平化，演變
為裝飾佩戴功能的「韘形珮」。
西漢早期的玉韘，承襲了戰國晚期的遺風，但仍有若干變化。
一是原用以鉤弦的柄狀凸翼，多被鏤雕美化成出廓的鳳鳥形，
看似實用的韘形器，實則已漸失扣弦射箭的基本功能，過渡為
裝飾用玉的韘形珮。二是出廓的凸飾已演化成左右的附耳狀，
造型多變，如左右兩隻變形鳳鳥與等長卻不對稱的設計。三是
用於裝飾的韘形珮，主要的用途為佩戴，所以形態趨於扁平、
中孔漸小、紋飾考究華麗。
到了西漢中期，幾乎不見實用的韘形器，作為裝飾用玉的韘形
珮廣為風行。形制上除扁薄片狀的發展外，在主體兩側（出廓）
fig. 1
圖一
There is a poem in The Ode (Shijing) about archer’s ring:
The leaf of pea-vine,
The boy’s wearing it like an archer’s ring.
He thinks he’s wearing an archer’s ring,
But can he fool me?
He is looking all proper,
But his dangling belt is shaking.
This is making fun of a child pretending to be an adult wearing
an archer’s ring. The leaf he is wearing has no weight, so the belt
attaching the ‘archer’s ring’ shakes when he walks, a tell-tale sign.
As scholars in Western Han noted, ‘she, archer’s ring, only worn
by those who knows archery,’ therefore only strong adults who could
use an arrow would wear archer’s rings.
Amongst the jades excavated in 1976 in the tomb of Fuhao, there
is an archer’s ring (fig. 1), cylindrical in form with a flat base and a
diagonally-cut top. It is wearable on either the right or left thumb. The
front of the ring is carved with an animal mask with large buffalo-like
horns, two swept back ears and rectangular eyes. It is nose-less but
pierced with two attachment holes below the eyes. The reverse of the
ring has a horizontal groove for bow strings. To use the ring, first wear
it on the thumb, secured to the wrist with strings and use the groove
for pulling the bow string to shoot. It is a purely utilitarian object made
for archery.
Archer’s rings remain utilitarian in the Spring and Autumn period, but
in the early Warring States period, archer’s ring-form objects started
to appear, such as the example carved with phoenix (fig. 2) in the
Beijing Palace Museum, which is purely decorative, cannot be worn
on the finger and dose not have any utilitarian functions. As they lose
their practical uses, these archer’s ring-form objects gradually became
flattened, unfit for pulling strings, and turning into purely decorative
pendants.
Jade archer’s rings in Early Western Han period follow the style of
late Warring States with some variations. Firstly, the handle-like
protrusion for hooking bow strings has largely turned into a flange
carved with phoenixes or birds. The seemingly functional ‘archer’s
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