Han Dynasty Art

Japanese: 漢代美術 - かんだいびじゅつ

Compared to the imposing, mysterious and profound works of art from the Yin and Zhou dynasties, those from the Qin and Han dynasties are simple, straightforward and diverse. They are a departure from the spell of obscure Taotie script and an evolution into a realist world in which subjects are seen as they really are. Of course, this change was not sudden. The social shift from clan rule, where religion and politics were unified, to a centralized monarchy of bureaucracy during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods transformed arts and crafts into an expression of the worldly aspirations of the new rulers. With the completion of the ancient empire by the First Emperor, arts and crafts also found their greatest opportunity for expression.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

殷･周代の荘重怪奇で重厚な造形作品と比べ，秦･漢代のそれは簡明平易で多彩である。それは，晦渋な饕餮文（とうてつもん）の呪縛から解き放たれ，対象をありのままに見る写実の世界への展開である。もちろんその変化は突然ではない。春秋･戦国の間における，宗族による祭政一致の支配から官僚制の中央集権君主制への社会の転換は，美術工芸を新たな支配者が希求する現世的願望の表現へと転換させてきた。始皇帝による古代帝国の完成で美術工芸もその最大の表現の場を得た。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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