Jade, And The Pre - Qin Period Customs Culture

Chinese people respect"Jade"from ancient time , and the largest number of ancient jades was found in China. Ancient people not only recognized the dense and warm of jade , and gave it a special meaning, but also considered it as the sustenance of people's devout faith, the pursuit of art and feelings. Ancient chinese jade developed from a tool use by witches to a symbol of royalty, and formed a strict grading system .This thesis revealed the spectacular jade culture, the origin of etiquette system and custom in ancient time based on summing up and analyzing previous studies. It used many kinds of research methods, such as archaeology, gem stone, geology from historical perspective. It concluded that Chinese jade culture went through a theorized and standardized process and then toward an independent and complete cultural system. This thesis proved that chinese jade culture played an important role in maintaining slavery.We concluded that ancient people know jade first from the manufacturing of Paleolithic stone. The mystery of jade dissipated while its etiquette function has been noticeably strengthened through Hsia, Shang,Zhou the Qin and Han Dynasties period.The witten about use of jade in oracle bone inscriptions confirmed that jade had become a carrier of the country's political system and the maintenance of social class in Shang period. Jade was seemed as a symbol of wealth and power in ChunQiuZhanGuo period. Jade used for decorating showed a secular tendency, and its ornamentation style gradually shifted from abstract to realism, and showed a characteristic of grading when used in funeral at Han dynasty. From this period, jade's content used in etiquette system weakened. This thesis defined the classification of jade, described its developing process from simple objects to spirit carrier, and proved the importance of jade in people's lives in the Pre-Qin,Qin and Han Dynasties from the aspects of jade's uses. This thesis also analyzed jade's history and philosophy value about jade clothes system, funeral concepts, jade's ethics concepts in the Pre-Qin,Qin and Han Dynasties. This thesis also analyzed impacts on developing of jades by the integration of Confucianism and Taoism'.Jade has been incorporated in poetry, painting, music as a kind of works of art after thousands years of fusion. Jade culture has melted into religion, philosophy, ethics, character as a special ideology, and formed unique Chinese jade culture.