The Essence of Chinese Wine Culture from the Bronze Garlic Bottle of the Western Han Dynasty
Garlic bottle bronze ware is a high-end type in the collection, and it is very rare to complete it. It first appeared in the ancient Shang and Zhou dynasties in China. After that, the garlic head bottle gradually became a display device, and the bronze garlic head bottle was gradually replaced by the ceramic garlic head bottle. Therefore, the bronze garlic head bottle is very rare in the market. Mr. Wang, a collector, has a bronze garlic bottle in his house. Mr. Wang regards it as a treasure and keeps it very carefully on weekdays. "Although this small bottle looks inconspicuous, it represents the peak era of Chinese bronze wine vessels, and it is also a representative of our Chinese wine culture." Mr. Wang, a collector, loves the garlic bottle.
"With the innovation and development of other wine utensils, the porcelain garlic head bottle gradually replaced the bronze utensil. In terms of use, it has evolved from a wine utensil to a display utensil since the Yuan Dynasty. It has a unique shape and is very ornamental, and has become a must-have item for the royal families of all dynasties. Maybe you can see the porcelain garlic bottle on the market, but the complete bronze garlic bottle is very rare." Mr. Wang said proudly.
Mr. Liu, a collector: Although future generations brought the idea of innovating and transcending tradition into the pottery industry at that time, the ancient style has always been the creative source behind the works. Therefore, the bronze garlic head bottle is still the object sought after by bronze ware collectors and wine collectors.
Mr. Zhang, a collector: There are many bronze wine vessels from the Central Plains. Some are used to hold wine, and some are used to warm wine, mainly used by nobles at that time. Because of its ceremonial nature, it is gorgeous, solemn and exquisite in craftsmanship. However, if you look at the wine vessels of the same period, you will find that these wine vessels are very large in volume, especially the drinking vessels are much larger than modern ones. Why? This is because the technology of brewing 3,000 years ago is still very primitive, and the degree of artificial brewing is not high. If you want to be satisfied and intoxicated, you must drink more, so the utensils used for drinking are very large. Moreover, the wine cannot keep the temperature all the time. If you want to drink hot wine all the time, you must have a heating tool, so some wine utensils such as wine warmers appeared, and then became an indispensable member of the bronze wine utensils.
Wang Wenxiu (specialist at the Hohhot Evening News Collection and Tasting Meeting): Garlic bottle is a type of Chinese bronze wine vessel that cannot be ignored. Because the top of the garlic bottle is shaped like a head of garlic, it is named the garlic bottle. In addition to the garlic bottle we saw in Mr. Wang's collection, the most common ones on the market are the pottery shapes imitating the Qin and Han Dynasties during the Qingming and Han Dynasties. Because the porcelain garlic bottle was first fired in the Song Dynasty, the basic shape popular in the Ming and Qing Dynasties was the shape of a garlic head, a long neck, a round belly, and a circle foot. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, the abdomen of the bottle changed, and the garlic-shaped mouth was different in size. And like this garlic bottle from the Western Han Dynasty, the belly is rounder, the neck is longer, the body is well-packed, and the whole bottle is free of bumps. It is a rare high-quality product. Through such a bronze wine vessel, we can see the profoundness and exquisiteness of our Chinese wine culture by carefully savoring the process of the ancestors' warm wine pouring and wine tasting.
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