Former Nazi Officers in the Near East: German Military Advisors in Syria, 1949–56

In the early days of the Cold War, Syria was the first Arab country where former officers of the German Wehrmacht played an active role as military advisors. This was due, in part, to the fact that Germany was not burdened by its past political relations to Arab states for, in contrast to the Western powers, Germany which had never had territorial ambitions in the Near East. Even in the very early stages, German advisors contributed considerably to the development of Syria's armed forces and military intelligence. The advisory activities of German experts became even more intensive as a result of increased trade between the two countries; however, in 1956 the political situation in Syria worsened and the country began moving towards the Eastern Bloc putting an end to the non-official activities of German military advisors.     

‘I call the people.’ Church bells in fourteenth-century Catalunya

Bells were an inescapable part of fourteenth-century urban life. They signalled the hours of the day and times for prayers; they warned of tempests and enemy armies; they heralded masses, funerals, and deaths. The pealing of bells brought men, women, and children together, choreographing communal behaviour in time and space. Bells echoed the vox Domini, calling out the deaths of holy men and women, celebrating the working of miracles. The ubiquitous presence of bells reflected the omnipresence of God in the medieval world. Their echoes transformed private moments into collective experiences, elevating the mundane into the miraculous. Scholars have rarely examined the religious aspects of bells, looking instead at their more practical side, especially their utilisation as markers of time and the allegedly concurrent rise of mercantile culture. This article approaches bells from the viewpoints of those men and women who heard them and wanted them rung. Focusing on sources from Christian clerics, we see that medieval men rang the bells with clear, but many possible, purposes in mind. By marking time and prayers, Christian church bells helped to create and facilitate communities within dioceses, spurring and choreographing their actions. During funerals, bells broadcast private moments, giving them communal significance. The transformative, creative function of bells is clearest in their role in miracles. In Manresa, the vision experienced by a few became a community affair when the church bells gathered the people; the bells transformed an ordinary day into one where the people, as a community, received divine favour. Finally, with the deaths of holy persons, the tolling of bells transformed private, even anonymous deaths, into moments of wonder as God’s hand touched the world.The pealing of bells defined Christian communities in the Mediterranean and, at the same time as rulers and elites throughout the region were seeking to control minority groups, those same groups were seeking to exercise control over the sounds within their own communities. Through the pealing of bells, churchmen across Catalunya sought to direct the thoughts and prayers of their listeners. When the Christian clerics of Catalunya rang their churches’ bells, they had specific aims in mind, yet, as the evidence demonstrates, the pealing of the bells never meant just one thing. This article demonstrates that there is much more to understanding medieval bells than knowing ‘for whom the bell tolls’; we have to look at the listeners as much as the ringers in order to understand their cultural significance in medieval Europe. This article is a first step in how such a study could be begun.     

Prehistoric land use and hydrology: a multi-scalar spatial analysis in central Arizona

Human land-use strategies involving the management of rainfall and runoff to promote crop production are found throughout the world. This paper presents a functional assessment using hydrological modeling with modern high-resolution LiDAR datasets and contextual archaeological site data to study prehistoric agriculture. The focus is on rock alignments created by the Hohokam culture in the semi-arid environment of the US Southwest. By incorporating a multi-scalar GIS study for terrain analysis at a regional, community, and site scale, the complex interactions between the prehistoric sites, features and the environment are revealed. The results of these analyses on digital elevation models (DEMs) gave insight to the past functionality of such agricultural features within the cultivated landscapes. The results included:1) The agricultural features were suitably placed for the collection of rainfall and runoff.2) The features were reducing the volume of water flowing through the area to prevent flooding and crop destruction and promoting soil infiltration.This shows the complexity and innovation of prehistoric societies living in marginal environments and how their adaptation to such environments was necessary to sustain their populations.     

论刘向对《战国策》的部属归类

刘向作为《战国策》的编定者,对该书总体性质的形成有着深刻的影响。以往质疑刘向部属归类的讨论,未能在此前提之下进行讨论。由此,论者往往过度聚焦于书中具体篇章所体现的子书色彩,却游离了最应着力审视的全书总体性质。事实上,通过审视该书编辑体例、编辑目的,以及刘向对其在部属归类上的斟酌取舍,不难得出《战国策》总体性质是史料汇编类文献的结论。概言之,刘向对《战国策》的部属归类是合理的。这也展现了一代文献学大家卓越的专业眼光。     

成功刻画特定历史环境的人物形象——《史记》列传历史编纂成就析论

司马迁记述人物的成就有诸多方面,其中"成功地刻画特定历史环境的人物形象"尤其值得我们深入总结和大力阐释。《伍子胥列传》、《魏公子列传》、《袁盎晁错列传》等名篇,不仅展现了这些人物生动感人的性格、神采,而且深刻地反映出他们所处的不同时代的特点,因而为我们提供了撰写历史人物传记的成功典范。我们要认真借鉴《史记》的成功经验,努力实现对传统史学精华的创造性转化和创新性发展,不断探求在当今历史书写中如何做到既能生动地刻画人物的活动、性格、气质,又能凸显其所处的时代特点,从而有效地克服历史著作平淡乏味的缺陷,使我们撰写的史书更能受到大众的欢迎。     

Fluid mixing induced by hydrothermal activity in the ordovician carbonates in Tarim Basin,China

Permian hydrothermal activity in the Tarim Basin may have been responsible for the invasion of hot brines into Ordovician carbonate reservoirs. Studies have been undertaken to explain the origin and geochemical characteristics of the diagenetic fluid present during this hydrothermal event although there is no consensus on it. We present a genetic model resulting from the study of δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O, δ³⁴S, and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr isotope values and fluid inclusions (FIs) from fracture‐ and vug‐filling calcite, saddle dolomite, fluorite, barite, quartz, and anhydrite from Ordovician outcrops in northwest (NW) Tarim Basin and subsurface cores in Central Tarim Basin. The presence of hydrothermal fluid was confirmed by minerals with fluid inclusion homogenization temperatures being >10°C higher than the paleo‐formation burial temperatures both in the NW Tarim and in the Central Tarim areas. The mixing of hot (>200°C), high‐salinity (>24 wt% NaCl), ⁸⁷Sr‐rich (up to 0.7104) hydrothermal fluid with cool (60–100°C), low‐salinity (0 to 3.5 wt% NaCl), also ⁸⁷Sr‐rich (up to 0.7010) meteoric water in the Ordovician unit was supported by the salinity of fluid inclusions, and δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O, and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr isotopic values of the diagenetic minerals. Up‐migrated hydrothermal fluids from the deeper Cambrian strata may have contributed to the hot brine with high sulfate concentrations which promoted thermochemical sulfate reduction (TSR) in the Ordovician, resulting in the formation of ¹²C‐rich (δ¹³C as low as ?13.8‰) calcite and ³⁴S‐rich (δ³⁴S values from 21.4‰ to 29.7‰) H₂S, pyrite, and elemental sulfur. Hydrothermal fluid mixing with fresh water in Ordovician strata in Tarim Basin was facilitated by deep‐seated faults and up‐reaching faults due to the pervasive Permian magmatic activity. Collectively, fluid mixing, hydrothermal dolomitization, TSR, and faulting may have locally dissolved the host carbonates and increased the reservoir porosity and permeability, which has significant implications for hydrocarbon exploration.     

贵州少数民族传统生态理念初探

生态问题是当前政府和学术界都十分关注和重视的问题,也是关乎当今和子孙后代生存发展的重大问题。贵州的世居少数民族在漫长的社会、生产、生活的实践中,形成了本民族的生态知识和传统生态理念。本文着重从贵州少数民族的传统生态理念:和谐理念、保护理念、风水理念等方面进行论述。     

陕西子洲出土商代青铜容器铸造工艺观察分析

2010年11月,陕西省子洲县裴家湾镇关王岔村出土了6件青铜容器,包括尊、瓿、盘、觚、鼎、提梁卣各1件。本文通过对铜器上遗留的工艺痕迹进行肉眼观察,对铜器的铸型设计、芯撑情况、浇注位置等铸造工艺环节以及铸后加工的细节进行了初步的判断和复原,指出该批铜器的铸造工艺与安阳出土的殷墟前期同类器物基本相同,这一结果对认识和揭示这批青铜器的学术价值具有重要的意义。     

朝贡制度与东亚地区传统国际秩序——以16-19世纪的明清王朝为中心

东亚地区传统国际秩序应称"封贡体系"较为周全。封贡关系的要义在于"事大"与"字小"。从中国明清王朝与朝鲜、琉球、越南等属国关系看,朝贡制度也是双边贸易、文化交流、边疆管控以及司法合作的基本机制,而在属国遭遇国家安全危机时,作为"上国"的明清王朝也积极进行政治外交和军事上的援救行动。不过,朝贡制度旨在建立"上国"与"属国"之间的主从关系,各个"属国"之间并没有围绕"上国"而形成合作联盟。因此,它在近代难以抗衡运用条约体系的西方列强以及日本在东亚地区的扩张。     

辽金元的夏捺钵——“阿延川”、“上京”及“爪忽都”辨

辽、金、元三朝皇帝每年皆例行驻夏活动,习称"夏捺钵",并在国家政治生活中占有举足轻重的地位,其中以炭山避暑最为引人注目。作者从四库本宋元文献中所见"阿延川"、"上京"两名入手,认为"阿延川"本作"爱阳川","上京"实乃"上陉"之误,两地皆位于炭山(金莲川草原)范围,并对清人认为"爪忽都"亦指金莲川的观点提出了不同的意见。