中国古代钱币诗话

古钱币系列是中国历史经济现象的载体,亦是承载时代进程的脉络与脚印。其见证了不同时期因政权更替的兴盛与衰败。在华夏古代文学宝库里,有关货币的诗话占有独特的重要地位。     

Ships and parts of ships on ancient coins. I

Ships and parts of ships on ancient coins. I, ARIE L. BEN-ELI (ed.)
Sir Francis Drake, GEORGE MALCOLM THOMSON
The social structure of crews of British dry cargo merchant ships PETER H. FRICKE
Clay pipes for the archaeologist ADRIAN OSWALD
Field archaeology in Britain, JOHN M. COLES
Estuaries: a physical introduction, K. R. DYER     

Of calves and kings: The Canaanite dimension in the religion of Israel

Abstract

In this article, the author studies the question how pastoral metaphors shape or construct the argumentative development and the internal structure of the Oracle against Babylon (Jer 50–51). Methodologically, the article draws on the insights provided by the cognitive linguistic approach to metaphor stating that metaphor is not merely a literary ornament, but rather a fundamental way in which people think. On the basis of these insights, the pastoral metaphors occurring in Jer 50,6–7; 8; 11–13; 17–18; 19–20; 44–45 and 51,38–40 are subjected to close scrutiny. It is shown that these metaphors display a strong internal development, challenging the view that the Oracle is an ongoing repetition of the same ideas. Moreover, the pastoral metaphors occur at structurally important positions in the Oracle, thus contributing to its overall architecture, and they provide important thematic links to other crucial texts in the book, e.g. Jer 25. Finally, the close analysis of the pastoral metaphors in Jer 50–51 has shed a new light on a number of the text's interpretational problems, for which new solutions were consequently proposed.     

South of the Pyrenees: kings,magnates and political bargaining in twelfth-century Spain

The twelfth century has been regarded as a milestone for changes at almost all levels of medieval society. Some scholars consider it a starting point to trace back the origin of more centralised political structures with power over a specific territory: the feudal kingdoms. This paper tries to describe how these changes occurred in the Iberian kingdoms. It presents the co-existence of powerful kings and strong nobilities during the twelfth century. It analyses the baronial rebellions against the kings and the peace treaties signed by the monarchs against them. One central aspect of these struggles was the definition of upper decision-making levels above the nobility which were attained through a dynamic of war and pacts made between enemy courts. The paper attempts to demonstrate the long-term outcome in favour of royal power and concludes that kings succeeded in setting themselves above the nobility and becoming centres of political networks by an increasing spiral of treaties negotiated with their hostile equals.     

Continuity and disruption in the ancient Hejaz: an assessment of current archaeological strategies

In this study I review two conflicting scenaria of the history of northwestern Arabia from approximately 1300 to 200 BC and discuss their theoretical and methodological determinants. The still sparse archaeological and historic information on this topic has been used in two quite different ways. On one hand there is the traditional culture historical approach which subordines all social interpretation to the precise strictures of an interrupted ceramic typology, on the other a recent attempt to interpret archaeological and textual data within the theoretical framework of a long-term historical model that integrates the Hejaz into the broader Near Eastern world system. I argue that these two approaches reflect fundamentally different approaches to the study of ancient society and that each incorporates a conceptual approach that necessarily determines its interpretational outcome. Furthermore I conclude that use of an inclusive theoretical model permits better integration of the growing archaeological and textual information bases and obviates much of the inconsistency and interpretational naivity that unavoidably derives from the culture historica approach.     

The image of the Frankish kings in the poetry of Venantius Fortunatus

The poetry of Venantius Fortunatus is a sadly neglected historical source for sixth-century Gaul. Amongst the literary material that has survived from that age, the works of Gregory of Tours loom large. Since Gregory provides us with the sole narrative history of Gaul for much of this century, we are forced to see Merovingian society through his eyes. Venantius wrote panegyric, and an age such as ours, which values sincerity of expression, finds little that is attractive in that genre. Despite this, Venantius' poetry affords us a vantage point from which to view the Frankish kings. It also provides important evidence for the nature of the cultural fusion of Germanic, Roman and Christian elements that was taking place in the Gaul of Gregory of Tours and King Chilperic. The poems written for the Merovingian monarchs suggest that Venantius sensed a Frankish hankering after the trappings of Roman imperial authority. He wrote, perhaps with didactic intent, to give full exposition to the traditional Roman conception of the just ruler, coupled with the more recent ideal of the orthodox Christian monarch that was still current in the Byzantine Empire. When Venantius Fortunatus journeyed to the courts of the barbarian kings, he brought with him his cultural baggage from Byzantine Ravenna.     

Alien coins and foreign exchange banking in a medieval commune: Thirteenth-century Lucca

In der Mitte des 12. Jahrhunderts liefen Gerüchte durch Europa von einem mächtigen christlichen Herrscher im Rücken des Islam, mit Namen ‘Priester Johannes’, in dessen riesigem Reich den Berichten nach sozialer Frieden herrschte, wunderbare Völker, Tiere und Pflanzen, auch wertvolle Edelsteine mit wunderkräftiger Wirkung zu finden sein sollten.Nachdem dieses Reich anfangs in Indien gesucht wurde, verlegte man es im 13. Jahrhundert nach Zentralasien und im 14. Jahrhundert nach Äthiopien. Heinrich der Seefahrer und seine Kapitäne versuchten, diesen mächtigen Herrscher zu erreichen, um mit ihm den Islam im Rücken anzugreifen. Aber erst 1517 gelang es den Portugiesen, den äthiopischen Herrscher persönlich zu treffen und ihm gegen seine islamischen Gegner zu helfen. Durch ungeschickte Politik machten sich die Portugiesen verhaβ, wurden verfolgt und 1640 endgültig aus Äthiopien vertrieben.Mit einem interdisziplinären Ansatz, der sich im wesentlichen auf die Fächer Geschichte und Ethnologie, aber auch Geographie, Germanistik und Theologie, stützt, wird der Versuch unternommen zu klären, ob es diesen Priester Johannes wirklich gab und wo sein Reich lag oder, falls es beides nicht gab, wer im 12. Jahrhundert Interesse an der ‘Erfindung’ einer solchen Person hatte und welche Folgen dies in den folgenden Jahrhunderten zeigte.     

南朝青瓷罐中的古钱及其相关问题

2003年,笔者从一朋友处获得一件青瓷器(插五)。据说这件青瓷系其父早年在湖州本地开挖土机时所得。这是一件六朝中后期南朝时的青瓷六系(桥形系,其中二系早残)小罐,以其釉色、造型及胎体的情况来看应属于南方这一时期的典型器。按理说毛口残系,腹无纹饰的这么一件青瓷本无特别之处,但是如果其腹中盛有同一时期的古钱,则情况又当别论了。针对古钱而言,它似乎比其它一般的伴出物更能说明某些问题。这件青瓷六系小罐,其高85mm,腹部最大直径处125mm,出土时其腹中藏钱至口沿(近满)。笔者先前粗略地观察了这些早已与器形溶为一体且锈结较为严重的…     

Aspartic acid racemization variability in ancient human remains: implications in the prediction of ancient DNA recovery

The extent of racemization of aspartic acid (Asp) – expressed as d/l ratio – has been used as a marker of biomolecular degradation in ancient remains. However, Asp racemization rate is highly variable, and depends on biochemical and geochemical factors. In this paper we aim to determine to which extent the fraction analyzed and the kind of sample used may influence the d/l Asp ratios. Other factors, such as burial site and sample preservation conditions, are also considered.     

Rise and fall of Kantu: A historical study of an ancient Tibeto-Burmese speaking group

On the basis of Chinese records and previous academic achievements in and outside China, the author makes a deeper study on the history of Kantu. As an ancient Tibeto-Burmese speaking group, Kantu was likely to have developed from the Qiongdu (Kontu) of Xinan yi (ancient ethnic groups in southwestern China). During the 12^th–13^th centuries, the Kantu group resided in an extensive area expanding from the border area between present Sichuan and Yunnan provinces of China to Burma. In the late 13^th century, the Yuan troops occupied the area of Kantu. Since then, there have been no more record about Kantu in Chinese annals, and they were likely merged into the groups of “Luoluo” (Lolo). In Burma, most of the Kantu people had been merged into the local peoples, with only a few remaining in remote mountain forests of northern Burma and still keeping their own name and customs. Thus, these people are just the living sources for our studies on ancient Kantu. __________ Translated from Minzu yanjiu (Ethno National Studies), 2004: 1