The Study Of Heng Knife In The Tang Dynasty

HengDao was the most representative short weapon of close combat in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.It had absorbed the styles of western regions on the basis of inheriting the tradition of the Han and Jin Dynasties.Its shape and structure was nearly perfect,its craftwork had reached the peak.It had a significant and profound impact on the development of the sabres in the later dynasties and the East Asian neighbors.In this paper,the systematic and complete study of Hengdao is divided into four aspects.The first chapter discusses the origin of Hengdao and its wearing way from the angle of the material and cultural exchange between China and the West.The name of HengDao began in the Sui Dynasty,the meaning of "Heng" was related to a record "With tying by the leather straps,Dao was hung under the armpit horizontally".The DieXie belts were widely used in the Northern Dynasties,and developed into the "DieXie Seven Things" in the Tang Dynasty,One of them called "PeiDao" meant HengDao and "DieXie" were the thin straps.From the late 5th century to the beginning of 6th century,the two-point system originating from the Scythian akinakes was imitated and learned by Sassanian,Hephthalite,Sogdiana,Turk and other countries in West Asia and Central Asia.This suspension system spread along the Silk Road to the Northern Wei Dynasty and replaced the scabbard slide.This kind of sabres with double ear-like fixtures were named HengDao for wearing on the waist obliquely,it became one of the main military equipments in the armies of the Tang dynasty.The second chapter analyzes the changes of the ring pommel of HengDao emphatically.Before the Sui Dynasty,the sabres' hilts always mounted a ring in the end,the ring pommel could even be used to hit and kill people.In the late Northern Dynasty,some sabres with no ring pommels appeared because of the influence of Western sabres' shapes,and the HuanShouDao began to decline.There were still a large number of HengDao with ring pommel in the Tang dynasty,we can find many clear examples such as some Tang poems with "DaoHuan",the frescos in the tomb of Princess Chang Le,an unearthed iron straight sabre in the tomb of Dou Jiao.However,in these ring pommels,there were more decoration than its practicability,and their extinction is inevitable,the typical examples were the murals in the tombs of PrinceZhang Huai and Prince Yi De.Therefore,after about 8th century A.D.,HengDao with no ring pommel occupied a dominant position,but this change was a continuous and long evolution,it can not be generalized.In the third chapter,the manufacturing,management,application of HengDao are combed and researched in detail.Firstly,HengDao were the necessary and standard weapons for FuBing soldiers,they were equipped in a very high proportion;secondly,we discussed the institutions and departments which were responsible for the production,storage and providing of HengDao,and also introduced all kinds of troops which could use HengDao;thirdly,HengDao didn't play a decisive role in the success or failure of war,and it needed to cooperate with other weapons and that can display its power;fourthly,HengDao also had a tiny space in the guard of honor,some luxurious and exquisite HengDao were seen as the ceremonial appliances,wearing HengDao in the palace must adhered to the laws and regulations;fifthly,HengDao could be traded legally as a commodity in the market,but their qualities must conformed to a certain standard,HengDao were forged by the methods of Perfusing Steel and Multiple-refined Steel,there was no innovation compared to the previous dynasties;sixthly,in the Tang Dynasty,HengDao were allowed private ownership,it was not only a sharp blade for self-defense,or a tool for suicide and self-mutilation,but also the gifts and largess;seventhly,after the emperor XuanZong,HengDao were controlled more and more strictly,the disable range were expanded gradually.The fourth chapter elaborates the changes of HengDao in the late Tang Dynasty and its influence on neighboring countries.Tang poetry often depicted a weapon named "WuGou",the murals and statues of vaisravana also described the images of a scimitar.Thus,the straight blades were becoming curved blades.In the 7th~9th century A.D.,the typical scimitars appeared in Central Asia,and the expansion of the Arab Empire promoted the spread of the scimitars.From the Five Dynasties to the song and Yuan Dynasties,ZhuoCiDao,ShouDao,HuanDao and other sabres replaced HengDao and became the Main combat short weapons.HengDao of straight body and narrow blade had ceased to exist.The Tang Dynasty was not only good at importing the western culture,but also exporting to the outside world.The structure and style of HengDao,including its forging skills were introduced into Japan and Korean Peninsula by the kentoshis,the Shosoin treasure named "Jin Yin Dian Zhuang Tang Da Dao" was a real example,the Japanese ancient literature also save a lot of information about HengDao.After the Northern Song Dynasty,the Japanese swordswhich had inherited the techniques and the spirits of HengDao started to export to China.