A study of the Xiaozhu State's bronze inscriptions = 小邾國金文探論

Abstract

Xiao Zhu State is one of the states surnamed Cao divided from the State of Zhu from the late Western Zhou Dynasty to the late Warring States Period, located in the Surabaya SiShui, Shandong. Currently, the noble cemeteries Xiao Zhuo have been found in Shandong Zaozhuang and Tengzhou. XiaoZhu state has a small land area, weak national strength, and low status, and has always existed as a vassal state of other countries and was destroyed by the Chu state during the Warring States period. The existence period is basically the entire Chunqiu period. The records of the Xiao Zhu States in the literature are relatively brief, and there are few bronze inscriptions. In 2002, a batch of Xiaozhuo bronze with inscriptions was unearthed at the Xiaozhuo State Cemetery in Dongjiang Village, Zaozhuang City, Shandong Province, which provided much information for the study of the history and culture of XiaoZhu. In addition, inscriptions on copper artifacts from the excavation of the noble burial sites of the Xiaoguo State in recent years, such as the excavation work carried out in Dahan Village, Guanqiao Town, Tengzhou City, Shandong Province in 2017-2018, are of great significance to the study of the history of the XiaoZhu. This paper mainly focuses on the Xiao Zhuo State cemetery excavated in Dongjiang Village, Zaozhuang City, Shandong Province in 2002, and a large number of Xiao Zhuo State's related heirloom copper inscriptions, combined with the records of Xiao Zhuo State in the heirloom literature, as well as archaeological evidence in recent years. This paper sorts out the comprehensive study of XiaoZhu.It compares and analyzes the characters, examples, and characters appearing in the inscriptions to look at the historical development of Xiaoguo itself and its diplomatic relations with neighboring countries.