Representation of Heaven and Beyond

The Bi Disc Imagery in the Han Burial Context

Bibliographic Data

ID13069983
AuthorsHau-ling Eileen Lam (Education University of Hong Kong, corresponding author)
Year2019
Volume7
Issue2
Pages115-151
Publication date2019-06-28
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueAsian Studies (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2232-5131 • E-ISSN: 2350-4226
PublisherUniversity of Ljubljana (PUBLISHER • SI)
DOI10.4312/as.2019.7.2.115-151
OpenAlexW2955224543
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited10

The bi (“disc”) is an object that was originally made from jade, and became an independent motif that appeared widely in different pictorial materials during Han times. The bi disc is considered one of the earliest jade forms, and has been used for ritual purposes or as an ornament from the Neolithic period until today. This paper focuses on the Han Dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE), a period in which jade bi discs were extensively used and placed in burials of different ranks. Present finds show that images of bi discs also appeared widely in Han burials, in which they were depicted on coffins, funerary banners covering coffins, and mural paintings, and were also engraved on pictorial stones and pictorial bricks, these practices becoming more ubiquitous in the later Han period. By studying various images of bi discs in different burials throughout the Han period, this paper will explore the development and significance of different pictorial representations of bi disc in Han burial context, and also attempt to reveal the rich content and thoughts embedded in the form of bi discs during this period of time

Aesthetics · Ancient history · Archaeology · Art · Context (archaeology · Heaven · JADE (particle detector · Late period · Literature · Mural · Painting · Period (music · Politics · Representation (politics · Visual arts · Ancient Mediterranean Archaeology and History · Chinese history and philosophy · Eurasian Exchange Networks · History

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