Ba–Shu culture

Culture of Sichuan and nearby parts of China

Pattern of the Golden Sun Bird discovered at Jinsha site, a symbol of the Ba–Shu culture and believed to be a totem of the ancient Shu people.[1] It has been designated a symbol for the Chinese culture as a whole by the Chinese government.

Ba-Shu culture (Chinese: 巴蜀文化; pinyin: Bāshǔ wénhuà) refers to a regional culture centered around Sichuan province and Chongqing city, also encompassing parts of Yunnan, Guizhou, southwestern Shaanxi (particularly Hanzhong)[2] and neighboring regions which speak Southwestern Mandarin. Historically centered around the Yangtze River, it emerged as an amalgamation of the cultures of the Shu and Ba kingdoms after their conquest by the State of Qin. The discovery of the Shu site of Sanxingdui in 1986, and Jinsha in 2001 places the Ba-Shu culture's age at nearly four millenia old;[3][4] consequently, it is commonly considered to be one of the cradles of Chinese civilisation and culture.[5][6] Ba-Shu culture has continued to the present day and is nowadays famous for aspects such as its cuisine and Sichuan opera.[7][8][9]

## Origins

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### Shu culture

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The Bronze Sacred Tree, one of the artifacts unearthed at Sanxingdui

The kingdom of Shu originated from the Sanxingdui culture and thrived from the 2nd millennium BC until its destruction by the State of Qin in 316 BC, coinciding with the not fully substantiated Xia dynasty in the Zhongyuan region, which lasted a total of one or two millenia.[10] The Shu culture had a rich tradition of metalworking (especially with bronze) and manufactured numerous notable artifacts, hundreds of which were unearthed at sacrificial pits at Sanxingdui and Jinsha; these include bronze statues, heads and masks, several bronze trees (one of which, the Bronze Sacred Tree, has been restored), daggers, hundreds of pieces of pottery, and the Golden Sun Bird.[11][12] Additionally, the Shu culture is noted for its resistance to external influences, and was more or less unaffected by other nearby cultures until its conquest by the State of Qin in 316 BC.[13][14]

### Ba culture

[edit]

Ba culture and the State of Ba were historically centered around the Three Gorges area.[15] The Ba people worshiped the white tiger, which was their totem, and crafted many bronze artifacts based on its form and patterns.[16][17] They had a rich tradition of performing arts, with distinctive instruments and rituals like the Bayu Dance.[18][19] However, there is a lack of identifiable artifacts belonging to the Ba culture, as well as knowledge of the culture, as nearly all of them have been mixed with relics of nearby kingdoms, and there is an absence of written records about Ba culture made by its contemporary states or the Shang dynasty.[20]

## Traditional language

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Main articles: Sichuanese dialects, Sichuanese characters, and Ba–Shu Chinese

### Ancient writing system

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Main article: Ba–Shu scripts

Ba–Shu pictographic scripts

## Architecture

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A Taoist temple at Huanglong.

### Sichuanese architecture

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Main article: Sichuanese architecture

### Sichuanese garden

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Main article: Sichuanese garden

## Visual arts

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Main articles: Shu embroidery and Sanxingdui

"Five stars rising in the East" armband, a 3rd-century Sichuan brocade armband. A bronze altar unearthed at Sanxingdui, dating back to the ancient kingdom of Shu

## Performing arts

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Main article: Sichuan opera

Main article: Music of Sichuan

Main article: Shu school

## Clothing

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Main article: Clothing in ancient Shu

## Tea culture

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See also: Chinese tea culture and Mengding Ganlu tea

## Food culture

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Main article: Sichuan cuisine

See also: Sichuanese liquor

* Mapo tofu

* Bon bon chicken

* Tea-smoked duck

## Others

[edit]

Main article: Sichuanese medicine

Main article: Mahjong

Main article: Sichuan clique

Main article: Religion in Sichuan

* Religious sites in Sichuan
* A pavilion of the Taoist Shangqing Temple in Mount Qingcheng, Chengdu.

* Golden Temple of Mount Emei of the Chinese Buddhist tradition.

* Statues of buddhas at a Litang monastery of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.

* Baba Mosque [zh], a Sichuanese Sufi mosque in Langzhong.

* St John's Cathedral, Langzhong (Anglican).

* Immaculate Conception Cathedral, Chengdu (Catholic).

* St. Joseph's Cathedral, Chongqing (Catholic).

## See also

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* Sichuanese people
* Culture of Gansu
* Culture of Qinghai
* Culture of Yunnan
* Tibetan culture

## External links

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* The Center for Bashu Cultural Studies of Sichuan Normal University (English website)

## References

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1. ^ Li, Hsing-jung; Fêng, Ming-i; Yü, Chih-yung (November 1, 2014). 導遊實訓課程 (in Traditional Chinese). Taipei: E-culture. p. 331\. ISBN 9789865650346.
2. ^ Yan, Jie; Wang, Jun (2011). "Character and social interpretation of local architecture in the south of Shaanxi". Advanced Materials Research. 368–373: 3009. doi:10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.368-373.3006.
3. ^ Zhao, Weijie (2021). "New archeological marvels of ancient Shu civilization". National Science Review. 8 (7): nwab071. doi:10.1093/nsr/nwab071. PMC 8310767. PMID 34691698. Archived from the original on April 18, 2024. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
4. ^ "Jinsha Site Museum". www.jinshasitemuseum.com. Archived from the original on April 18, 2024. Retrieved February 24, 2024.
5. ^ Liu, Hong (June 2006). "巴蜀文化渊源". huaxia.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on May 2, 2019. Retrieved September 7, 2017.
6. ^ Liu, Hong. "巴族和蜀族怎樣構成巴蜀文化？ | 中國文化研究院 - 燦爛的中國文明". chiculture.org.hk (in Chinese). Archived from the original on April 18, 2024. Retrieved April 18, 2024.
7. ^ Tan, Yihua (May 27, 2024). "协同保护巴蜀文化瑰宝，川渝携手为川剧保护传承立法_四川在线". sichuan.scol.com.cn (in Chinese). Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
8. ^ "用更多精品力作推动川剧振兴 促进巴蜀文化绽放新的时代光彩". sc.people.com.cn (in Chinese). November 30, 2023. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
9. ^ "李后强丨川菜的文化基因与学理基础 -四川经济网-经济门户". www.scjjrb.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved June 17, 2024.
10. ^ "【巴蜀文化】天府人间，辉映流光 - 青陇巴蜀 - 汗青网" (in Chinese). March 4, 2016. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
11. ^ "Bronze sacred tree found in Sanxingdui sacrificial pit – The History Blog". September 9, 2021. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
12. ^ "Newly found Chinese artifacts illuminate mysterious ancient kingdom". NBC News. June 15, 2022. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
13. ^ Luo, Zhitian (March 29, 2023). "【资讯】浅析巴蜀文化". Chengdu University of Technology (in Chinese). Archived from the original on April 5, 2024.
14. ^ "Qin Dynasty: Achievements, Facts & Time Period". HISTORY. June 16, 2023. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
15. ^ "巴文化的多元传播探究_光明日报_光明网". www.gmw.cn (in Chinese). October 27, 2004. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
16. ^ "东西问丨巴文化何以成为中华文明的坚定"一元"？-中新网". www.chinanews.com.cn (in Chinese). May 14, 2022. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
17. ^ Tang, Li (October 9, 2014). "巴文化传统符号与旅游工艺品设计的融合 -《装饰》杂志官方网站 - 关注中国本土设计的专业网站 www.izhsh.com.cn". www.izhsh.com.cn (in Chinese). Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
18. ^ "巴文化 | 巴、蜀、楚的文化关系，你知道吗？_巴楚". www.sohu.com (in Chinese). Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
19. ^ "巴渝舞：巴人啸聚山林的狂欢盛宴_巴中市人民政府". www.cnbz.gov.cn (in Chinese). Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
20. ^ "巴文化研究若干问题的思考 - 重庆考古". www.cqkaogu.com. Archived from the original on June 17, 2024. Retrieved April 12, 2024.

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Sichuan topics

Chengdu (capital)

General|

* Politics
* Economy
* Education

History|

| States and kingdoms|

* Sanxingdui
* Ba & Shu
* Chengjia
* Shu Han
* Cheng-Han
* Western Shu
* Former Shu
* Later Shu
* Li Shu [zh]
* Ming Xia
* Da Xi

|

Events|

* Sichuan-Mongol War [zh] (anti-Mongol fortresses)
* Repopulation of Sichuan [yue]
* Railway Protection Movement
* Home Front Period

Geography|

* Cities
* Sichuan Basin
* Chengdu Plain
* Regions (West [zh]
* East [zh]
* North [zh]
* South [zh])
* Rivers (Sichuan
* Min
* Jialing
* Tuo
* Yalong)
* Mountain ranges (Daba
* Longmen
* Qionglai
* Hengduan)

Culture|

* Ba–Shu culture
* Clothing in ancient Shu
* Sichuan embroidery
* Sichuanese cuisine
* Sichuanese liquor [zh]
* Mengding Ganlu tea
* Panda tea
* Sichuan opera
* Sichuanese music
* Lord of Sichuan
* Sichuanese architecture
* Sichuanese garden

People|

* Sichuanese
* Hakka
* Xiang
* Tibetan
* Qiang
* Yi

Religion|

* Buddhism
* Chinese Buddhism
* Tibetan Buddhism
* Chinese folk religion
* Chinese salvationist religions
* Christianity (Main article)
* Catholic Church in Sichuan
* Protestantism in Sichuan
* Anglicanism in Sichuan
* Methodism in Sichuan
* Quakerism in Sichuan
* Baptist Christianity in Sichuan
* Seventh-day Adventist Church in Sichuan
* Confucianism
* Islam (Main article)
* Taoism

Languages|

* Sichuanese (lingua franca)
* Ba–Shu (extinct)
* Hakka
* Xiang
* Sichuanese Standard Chinese
* Kham
* Jiarongic
* Qiangic
* Nuosu

Tourist attractions|

* Bailu, Pengzhou
* Dujiangyan Irrigation System
* Gsumge Mani Stone Castle
* Huanglong Scenic and Historic Interest Area
* Jiuzhaigou Valley
* Leshan Giant Buddha
* Mount Emei
* Mount Gongga
* Mount Qingcheng
* Sanxingdui & Jinsha archaeological sites
* Sichuan Giant Panda Sanctuaries
* Southern Cliff Buddhist Sculptures

* Category
* Commons

see also
Greater Sichuan
Chongqing

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