WRITING BEFORE INSCRIBING: ON THE USE OF MANUSCRIPTS IN THE PRODUCTION OF WESTERN ZHOU BRONZE INSCRIPTIONS

Abstract

Abstract While research on Warring States, Qin, and Han manuscripts is flourishing, much less is known about the use of manuscripts during the earlier stages of Chinese history, for which material evidence has not been preserved. Based on the layout features and textual anomalies in the Western Zhou bronze inscriptions, this article explores the traces of use of perishable writing supports in the process of the production of bronze inscriptions in this period and reconstructs their functions and physical qualities. Based on the surveyed evidence, the article posits that two distinct exemplar manuscripts were used in the inscription-making process: an original “master copy” that was kept aside for proofreading purposes and a secondary “blueprint” that was employed directly in the technical process of inscription-making. A single blueprint would be used consecutively by several craftsmen to produce a set of inscriptions on different types of vessels. The word count and layout of many inscriptions were already carefully planned during the process of their composition, and any study of a bronze text should therefore begin with the evaluation of its visual qualities. Moreover, this probe provides unambiguous evidence for the use of tube-lining in the inscription-making process and reconstructs the complete chaîne opératoire of bronze inscription production in the Late Western Zhou period. The article also offers insights into the level of literacy and the division of labor in bronze workshops, and touches upon the display function of bronze epigraphy during the Western Zhou period. 提要 近年來，戰國秦漢簡牘研究已成爲熱潮。相比之下，戰國以前寫本由於出土材料的闕失，其使用情況知之甚少。本文根據西周銅器銘文的佈局特徵及異常現象，對銅器銘文製作過程中使用易腐材質寫本的痕跡進行了探討，並對其物理性質及在銘文製作過程中的具體作用進行了復原。基於分析，本文指出在銅器銘文製作過程中使用了兩種不同的寫本：一種是用於審閱的“原稿”；一種是用於銘文實際製作過程的“藍本”。製作一套同銘器時（包括不同器類的器物），工匠們會輪流使用同一份藍本。不少銘文的起草過程中已對銘文字數、文字佈局進行了細心設計，因此，每一篇銘文的釋讀工作應該從考察銘文的視覺特徵入手。此外，本文爲泥條堆塑法在銘文製作過程中的應用提供了明證，復原了西周晚期銅器銘文製作的全部流程。再者，本文還關涉到西周時期銅器作坊中工匠的讀寫能力、勞動分工以及西周時期青銅銘刻的展示功能等問題。