西周 女性 賞賜 銘文에 대한 고찰

Abstract

This study classifies and analyzes bronze inscriptions recording that women served as authoritative presenters of awards during the Western Zhou Dynasty, and examines the characteristics. There are 26 bronze inscriptions from the Bronze Age of China recording that queens and female aristocrats palyed a leading role as presenters of awards. The vast majority of them were made during the early (17 pieces) and mid (8 pieces) Western Zhou Dynasty, with the largest proportion about queens’ giving awards during the early period of the dynasty. Royal gifts for awardees include various items such as shells, textiles, clothes, land, animals, grains, jade, and bronze ware as well as labour force. This shows that women in the ancient China, despite their low status, were able to exercise economic power independently to some extent. In particular, it is noteworthy that they had the right to award land and labour force, which were the backbone of the Western Zhou Dynasty’s economy. However, in bronze inscriptions about male presenters of awards, war-related items such as wagons and their parts, harnesses, weapons, and flags are often listed, but none of them are seen in those of women. In addition, liquor and metal are not seen, either. Even in cases where clothes were awarded, Fu(front cloth panel), Huang(waistband) and Xi(shoes), which were components of Mingfu(formal attire worn in ceremonies), were never awarded. This is presumed to be because even queens did not have the authority of investiture. The fact that women in the Western Zhou Dynasty served as authoritative presenters of awards with a certain level of decision-making power gives a new understanding of their economic activities, and their economic status and role at that time.