 西周 散氏盘拓本  西周 毛公鼎拓本 中国先秦两汉的典籍中，涉及玺印起源的记载不多。出现于周秦间的《逸周书·殷祝篇》所载是古人有关天子玺印及印章起源的描述：“汤放桀，取天子之玺，置天子之坐前”，提出商王汤取代夏王桀时已经有了作为君权象征的“天子之玺”。汉代的两种纬书《春秋运斗枢》和《春秋合诚图》也都将天子的玺印说成来自神的授予，如《春秋运斗枢》说“皇帝时，黄龙负图，中有玺章，文曰'天王符玺’”，《春秋合诚图》说“尧坐舟中与太尉舜临观，凤凰负图授尧，图以赤玉为匣，长三尺八寸，厚三寸，黄玉检，白玉绳，封两端，其章曰：'天赤帝符玺’”。这些是以秦汉时代的帝玺之制编绘三皇五帝时代获得符玺的情形，并无实物可据。但是这些说法间接地反映了玺印在战国至汉代国家制度中的地位。 The Yi Book of Zhou（逸周书），written during the period of the Zhou (11th century B.C.-256 B.C.)and Qin dynasties mentions the “Xi of the Son of Heaven”, a symbol of the authority of the emperor at the time when Emperor Tang of the Shang Dynasty overthrew and supplanted Emperor Jie of the Xia Dynasty (c. late 21st century B.C.-early 17th B.C.). Yun Dou Shu of the Spring and Autumn（春秋运斗枢）and He Cheng Tu of the Spring and Autumn（春秋合诚图）also claimed that the xi of the Son of the Heaven was bestowed by God. For instance, the Yun Dou Shu of the Spring and Autumn states “in the time of the Yellow Emperor , there was a yellow dragon carrying a painting with a xi drawn in it. Its words read 'the xi of the Emperor of the Heaven '.” These records on the obtaining of the Three August Ones and Five Sovereigns were invented according to the system of the imperial seals during the Qin and Han dynasties, and there is no physical evidence to rely on. However, these quotes do indirectly reflect the status of xi in the time from the Warring States Period to the Han Dynasty.  六朝 隋造像及钟鼎拓本屏  六朝 隋造像及钟鼎拓本屏 南朝范晔所撰《后汉书·祭祀志》中的一段话揭示了玺印在中国产生的社会背景及其功用：“尝闻儒言，三皇无文，结绳以治，自五帝始有书契。至于三王，俗化雕文，诈伪渐兴，始有印玺以检奸萌。”三皇是指传说中的伏羲、神农、皇帝时代；三王是指夏、商、周时代。范氏说杜绝“诈伪”、用于取信的玺印在三王时代已经出现，是他听儒者口传的，具体哪一时期存在玺印，在范氏时代已经难以考究。 The Later Chronicles of the Han Dynasty: Records of Sacrifice Ritual（后汉书·祭祀志）written by Fan Ye in the Southern Dynasty (398-445)reveal the social context of the production of seals in China and their main characteristics: It was said that the use of seals started in the Xia, Shang and Zhou Dynasties for the purpose of preventing fraud. 商代的甲骨文和西周金文中，没有发现当时使用玺印的迹象。商周时代“国之大事，在祀与戎”，甲骨文和金文资料中未及玺印是不难理解的。这可能也表明，商和西周时代印信尚未形成普遍或稳定的社会功能，还处在形成、发育过程之中。做出这一判断，与目前发现的实物比较吻合。 No traces relating to seal use can be found in Shang Dynasty oracle bone inscriptions or in Western Zhou Dynasty bronze inscriptions. During the time of the Shang and Zhou dynasties “the most important events of the empire are sacrifices and wars.” It is understandable that no mention of seal use occurs in the brief records of the oracle bone and bronze inscriptions. Physical evidence discovered to date indicates that seals in the Shang and Zhou dynasties were still in a developing stage and did not have widely –accepted or stable social functions.  六朝 隋造像及钟鼎拓本屏  隋造像及钟鼎拓本屏 本文节选自孙慰祖：《中国印章-历史与艺术》，外文出版社，2010年。 Sun Weizu: The History and Art of Chinese Seals, Foreign Languages Press, 2010 责任编辑：戴梦岚 |
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