National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

> > > >
Color New!IIIF Color HighRes Gray HighRes PDF   Japanese English
0312 Innermost Asia : vol.2
Innermost Asia : vol.2 / Page 312 (Grayscale High Resolution Image)

New!Citation Information

doi: 10.20676/00000187
Citation Format: Chicago | APA | Harvard | IEEE

OCR Text

 

Engraved bronze seals.

822   KUCHA AND SOME OF ITS ANCIENT SITES   [Chap. XXII

completely absent from the Kuchâ acquisitions.4 The presence of comparatively numerous SinoKharosthi pieces among the coins collected (see App. B) is of interest.

Amongst the bronze objects, which are by far the most numerous, the seals claim first notice. Quite a number of these, as seen in Pl. CXI, show engraved designs of animal figures, mostly of a grotesque type (Kuchâ. 02, 3, 6, 1o1, 103, 113-17, 120, 123, 126, 154, 157, 158, 160, 164). Among the few seals with human or semi-human figures, special mention may be made of Kuchâ. 0156, a man with sword standing in an attitude not unlike the king's figure on certain Kushana coins (Pl. CXI), and Kuchâ. 0161 (Pl. CXI), a Triton-like figure not uncommon in Graeco-Buddhist reliefs. The bronze seal-ring, Yul. 075 (Pl. CXI), also shows classical influence in its intaglio head. Otherwise the crude execution of most of these bronze seals suggests local origin. Among the numerous small ornamented objects in bronze, such as buckles, hooks, strap-loops, buttons, Kuchâ. of io, 112, 121, 125 ; Yul. 02 (Pl. CXI), show figurative designs of interest. The bronze arrow-heads (Kuchâ. 059-69, 106 ; Yul. 032-40 ; for specimens see Pl. CXI) vary greatly, the types found at the Tun-huang Limes, Lop Desert, and Niya sites being well represented, besides others more peculiar in shape, such as Kuchâ. 069 ; Yul. 032 (PI. CXI).

The stone objects, which are largely of lignite, comprise a series of seals (Kuchâ. 032, 109,

132-5, 149 ; Yul. 054, 69-74, 78, Pl. CXI) not unlike the bronze seals in design.   Chinese
lapidary characters are found on Kuchâ. 0136, as also on the bronze seal 0159 (Pl. CXI). The glass objects comprise mainly beads and pendants (Kuchâ. 09, 56, 58 ; Yul. 056-8, 6o, 62, 64, Pl. CXI), often corresponding in shape to similar relics from Khotan sites. The small glass ducks, Kuchâ. 0144-7 ; Yul. 065 (Pl. CXI), may have served as charms. Of the few seals in glass, Kuchâ. 0152 (Pl. CXI) deserves special notice, as it shows the well-modelled figure of a Buddha seated in meditation, apparently under the Bodhi tree. Another glass seal, Yul. 059 (Pl. CXI), displays the roughly cut device of an ibex or horse, suggesting local manufacture, as do the majority of the bronze seals. Finally we find paste used as the material in the Amalaka-shaped beads Yul. 067-8 (Pl. CXI) and the pendant Yul. 055.

Objects in stone and glass.

LIST OF ANTIQUES FOUND AT, OR ACQUIRED FROM, KUCHA SITES

OBJECTS FOUND AT TONGUZ-BASH SITE

Tong. oi. Mass of raw cotton (?) with pods. C. 3i" x 2" x 2".

Tong. o2. Child's string sandal ; of same type as T. XXIII. f. oI ; Y. vI. or. &c. Well made. Heel part of upper destroyed. Length 7r", gr. width of sole 2i".

Tong. 03. Mass of hemp (?) fibre, from unravelled string. c.3"X2"

Tong. 04. Two frs. of plain ribbed silk ; fine weave ; one buff, tied in knot in corner ; one dark red. Gr. M. 7".

Tong. 05. Fr. of neck of pottery vessel, turning well out to plain rim above and prominent shoulder below. Fine terra-cotta giving salt efflorescence ; no orn. Gr. length 2 ", h. ri".

4 The only two terra-cotta objects are the figurine of a squatting monkey with a small monkey astride on its shoulders, Kuchâ. 073 (Pl. X), which Afrâz-gul acquired before starting for Dawân-kum, and the small relief head,

Tong. o6. Fr. of pottery ; fine terra-cotta, with buff slip on outside. No orn. I " x

Tong. 07. Fr. of pottery ; fine brownish body, hard fired ; signs of slip on outside. Gr. M. 2r".

Tong. 08. Fr. of pottery ; fine red body, coated inside and out with dark-green glaze, now iridescent. Gr. M. 2".

Tong. 09. Fr. of walnut-shell. Gr. M. r ig".

Tong. ozo. Stucco relief fr. R. half of warrior's helmeted head, extending to line drawn down through middle of L. eye. Helmet has round knob on top, and curtain falling down back of head and extending under chin as gorget. Very soft pink clay, full of fine hair; surface much gone. Remains of white paint on face,

Yul. ovo, corroded by wind-driven sand.

The stucco heads of warriors, Kuchâ. 074-6, were stated by Mir Sharif to have been picked up from the wind-eroded debris among small dunes to the SW. of Kotluk-ordu.