Stone Tiger in the Tomb of the Ming Dynasty

There are many places worth visiting in Fengyang, Anhui Province. The Tomb of the Ming Dynasty is a must. It was built by Zhu Yuanzhang for his parents. In fact, there are his brother and sister-in-law in the tomb.
The Ming Imperial Mausoleum is located about 7 kilometers south of Fengyang County, and has been built for 13 years. Although the owner of the tomb is not an emperor, it not only has the same regulations as the Ming Tombs in Nanjing and the Ming Tombs in Beijing, but also has a larger scale. The buildings and decorations in the mausoleum are extremely exquisite, which can be said to be the palaces and palaces, solemn and magnificent.
Since the end of the Ming Dynasty, the imperial mausoleum has been under constant wind and rain erosion and man-made destruction. Most of the original grand imperial city, brick city, earth city, and more than a thousand magnificent palaces and houses have been reduced to ruins. Only a few stone carvings remain on the site, but they are still very interesting.
These stone carvings, whether large in number, rich in content, or exquisite in sculptural carving, can be called the crown of imperial tombs of all dynasties, and are all large-scale stone carvings that inherit the Song and Yuan dynasties and the Ming and Qing dynasties.
There are 32 pairs of stone statues standing on both sides of the 200 meter long royal tomb Shinto, which extends people's sight forward and is very dignified. They are all made of the whole stone. Although they have gone through more than 600 years, the details are still discernible.
I can't see the historical relics by myself, so I asked a guide to go along and talk about them. She talked about the broken leg of Shi Qilin, the pattern on the back of the stone lion, the ears of the minister, and the sword of the general.
Further inside, there are four pairs of stone tigers, each lifelike.
What's the meaning of Stone Tiger? The tiger is the king of all animals. It is majestic, murderous and a symbol of imperial power. Stone tiger has another function, which can expel evil spirits and better protect the tomb owner when placed in front of the tomb.
These stone tigers are tall and sturdy, almost like real tigers. The lines engraved on them are simple and realistic, without any gorgeous decoration. If there were no guide, I would hurry past them today, and I could not see any difference between them. I have visited many emperors' mausoleums. Many of them are stone tigers, and I have never seen them carefully.
The guide asked me if I could see the difference between them? I said with an air. She asked again, what is the difference except for the appearance?
There are 8 stone tigers in total. When I look carefully, I find that two are newer than the others. How could this happen?
She said that these two were newly made in recent years. The original two were destroyed during the "Cultural Revolution", which was completely destroyed and could not be recovered.
I said these two are also very good, so they are complete. She waved her hands again and again, saying that you should look more carefully?
What else can you see? In addition to the old and new, in addition to the appearance.
She said that the original stone tiger's lines were natural and smooth, cute and charming. Although it had been eroded by 600 years of wind and rain, its style was still the same. Touch it with your hand, it is very smooth and round, suffused with light black light, and should have been touched by countless hands. The newly made stone tiger is light white, and the carving is rough. The boundary of the contour is not very clear, the patterns are different in depth, and the appearance is dull.
I'm a little confused. Modern technology is so advanced that we can make the same stone tiger with the original six, which can be accurately mapped and designed by computer.
The guide smiled and said, your idea is true, but real works of art cannot be copied, such as these stone tigers. You should know that when those stone masons carved these stone tigers, they were full of emotion. Whether the emotion was love or hate, the reason why stone tigers looked different was an expression of different emotions. Technology is developed again, but technology has no emotion.
Yes, these original stone tigers not only used up their heart and emotion when carving, but also had more than 600 years of natural wind and rain and 600 years of history. With the change of dynasties and the change of owners, the scroll of history turns from page to page in front of their eyes. Although these stone tigers can't speak, they also have souls. These things can't be copied even if people today are careful.
After a talk, I was enlightened. After looking at these stone tigers, it was really different.
This reminds me of the word "Baojiang". "Wrapping paste" can be understood as a kind of "gloss" of cultural relics, which can only be formed on the surface of artifacts after years and months.
The older something is, the thicker the coating is, and it bears the years. In the long years, dust, sweat, hand stains of players, or dirt buried in water, prolonged rubbing, even the penetration of rays in the air, can be gradually formed layer by layer.
They stand here silently, with quiet light and long history, revealing a warm old atmosphere, which is unmatched by the impetuous tone and dry texture "polished" by means of quick success and instant benefit.
The most powerful thing is time, which can destroy a piece of grandeur and forge a spirit.