Item number: X67

Year: 5th – 7th C. AD

Material: Bronze

Size: 36.7 x 25.1 x 2.1 mm

Weight: 4.76 g

Provenance: Stephen Album Rare Coins 2026

This item is a bronze mask pendant from the Semirechye region, which was likely employed as an amulet.

The artefact is styled as a frontal visage; because the eyes and mouth are hollowed out, it may have served a symbolic masking function. The head exhibits certain Mongoloid physiognomic traits, including strongly protruding cheekbones and small palpebral fissures with the medial canthi sloping slightly downwards, all bordered by thick, gently arched eyebrows. However, it lacks the prominent nasal bridge typically depicted on sculptures of Central Asian peoples. The coiffure resembles a Roman tonsure, akin to that of medieval European monks, where only the crown of the head is shorn, leaving the remaining hair to form a tonsure crown—alternatively, this feature may represent an actual diadem. The ears are pointed and erect, hinting that the subject depicted might be a supernatural being, or that the ears constitute an integral part of the headdress, forming a crenellated crown. A goatee, modelled as a long, pointed cone, adorns the chin. A vertical suspension loop is situated at the apex. The reverse side is entirely unornamented, bearing only the rudimentary contours of the obverse face.

Among unearthed mask artefacts, the earliest known specimen is the Sumerian Mask of Warka. Nevertheless, even earlier iterations have been depicted in numerous wall paintings, though they likely failed to survive due to the perishable nature of their materials. By mimicking and concealing the human countenance, masks possess profound religious or symbolic significance, and in antiquity they were frequently utilized as ceremonial paraphernalia or as media to commune with the supernatural realm.

According to historical provenance, this pendant originates from the Semirechye region. Mask-like ornaments or sculptures excavated from Semirechye remain exceedingly rare and seldom appear in archaeological reports. Conversely, personal adornments featuring anthropomorphic motifs have been recovered from excavations, having functioned as waist-hung ornaments or as appliqués stitched onto armour.

The Sogdian city-states were primarily situated in Transoxiana, located in modern-day southwestern Uzbekistan. During the Tang Dynasty, the Chinese referred to them as the ‘Nine Sogdian Surnames’ or the ‘Hu of the Nine Surnames’. When travelling or residing within Han imperial territories, these people frequently adopted their state of origin as their surname; a notable example is An Lushan, who derived his surname from the State of An. Despite the appellation ‘Nine Surnames’, this entity comprised more than merely nine polities and was presumably not composed of a singular ethnic group. The lineage of the Sogdians can potentially be traced back to the remnants of the Da Yuezhi after their defeat and eradication by the Xiongnu, after which they gradually assimilated into the Turks and other ethnic groups in the region. In AD 630, the fourth year of the Zhenguan reign of Emperor Taizong of Tang, the Tang generals Li Jing and Li Ji launched a campaign that annihilated the Eastern Turkic Khaganate, thereby steadily augmenting the Tang court’s influence over the Western Regions. During the Zhenguan era, various city-states commenced sending tributary missions one after another. In AD 659, the fourth year of the Xianqing reign of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, the Tang Dynasty destroyed the Western Turks and established loose rein over the Nine Sogdian Surnames, placing them collectively under the administration of the Anxi Grand Protectorate. Leveraging their geographical advantages and commercial proficiency, the Sogdians traversed the length of the Silk Road, establishing communities in major metropolises such as Chang’an and Luoyang, and progressively attained significant status within the military and administrative systems of the Tang Empire.

Taking the State of Shi—modern-day Tashkent—among the Nine Sogdian Surnames as the northern boundary, the territory further north is the Semirechye region, encompassing modern southeastern Kazakhstan and eastern Kyrgyzstan. Semirechye, or the ‘Seven Rivers’, is a collective designation for the seven primary rivers and countless tributaries draining into Lake Balkhash. During the Sui Dynasty, this territory was originally under the jurisdiction of the Western Turkic Khaganate. In AD 679, the first year of the Diaolu reign of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, the Tang general Wang Fangyi established the garrison city of Suyab in this region. In AD 751, the tenth year of the Tianbao reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, the Tang army suffered a defeat at the Battle of Talas, causing Tang power to gradually withdraw from the Semirechye region. This locality was subsequently possessed by the Turgesh Khaganate and the Karluk Khaganate. Historically, the Semirechye region constituted a vital segment of the northern route of the Silk Road, along which merchants and civilians could travel towards the Levant, or even press onward to Constantinople, modern-day Istanbul. In the mid-ninth century AD, the Kara-Khanid Khanate expanded into this region, which led to its progressive Islamisation.

物件編號: X67

年代: 公元 5-7 世紀

材料: 青銅

尺寸: 36.7 x 25.1 x 2.1 mm

重量: 4.76 g

來源: 史蒂芬稀有錢幣專輯 2026

這是一枚青銅面具吊飾，來自七河地區，可能是用作護身符。

吊飾造型為正面頭像，因雙眼與嘴部挖空，因而可能起到象徵面具的功能。該頭像有部分蒙古人種的特徵：顴骨強烈凸出，眼裂較小，內眼角略微向下垂，邊緣圍繞著呈平緩弧狀的粗大眉毛，但沒有描繪一般會出現在中亞民族塑像上的高挺鼻樑。髮型形似羅馬式剃度（Roman tonsure），如中世紀歐洲修士一般，僅剃掉頭頂，餘髮呈頭冠狀，也或者其就是頭冠。雙耳尖而直立，可能暗示描繪的是某種超自然對象，或者其為頭冠的一部分，形成山形的冠冕。下頜蓄山羊鬍，呈長而尖的錐狀。頂部有垂直的吊環。背面無雕飾，僅有正面的粗略輪廓。

目前出土的面具文物，已知最早者為蘇美人的瓦爾卡面具，但更早者在諸多壁畫中已有描繪，只是可能因材質而未能留存。面具模仿並遮擋人類外表，因而有強烈的宗教或象徵意涵，古時常被用作儀式或連繫超自然世界的物品。

據來源，該吊飾出自七河地區。目前七河地區出土的面具類飾品或雕塑相當罕見，極少在發掘報告中出現。而以人像為主題的隨身飾品，有用作腰間掛飾和甲冑補綴的掛飾等等的文物出土。

粟特城邦主要位於河中地區(今烏茲別克西南部)，於唐代時人稱為「昭武九姓」或「九姓胡」，其國人於漢境行走時常以國名為姓，著名者如安祿山，便以｢安國｣為姓。雖名「九姓」，但並非僅有九個政權，也大概並非單一民族組成。粟特人源流可能可以上溯至大月氏被匈奴擊滅後的殘部，於當地逐漸與突厥等民族相融。唐太宗貞觀四年(公元630年)，唐軍將領李靖、李勣攻滅東突厥汗國，唐廷對西域影響力漸增。貞觀年間諸城邦紛紛開始入貢。唐高宗顯慶四年(公元659年)，唐滅西突厥，羈縻昭武九姓，統歸安西大都護府管理。粟特人藉地利與商貿之便，往來於絲綢之路沿線，並於長安、洛陽等地建立社群，並逐漸於唐帝國的軍、政系統中取得一定地位。

以「昭武九姓」中的石國(今塔什干)為北界，北部便是七河地區(今哈薩克東南部與吉爾吉斯東部)。七河為流向巴爾喀什湖的七條主要河流與無數支流的統稱。隋代此地原為西突厥統屬。唐高宗調露元年(公元679年)，唐將王方翼在此地區設碎葉城。唐玄宗天寶十年(公元751年)，唐軍於怛羅斯戰役中戰敗，勢力逐漸退出七河地區。本地先後由突騎施汗國、葛邏祿汗國所領。於歷史上，七河地區為絲路北線的重要路段，商民可途經此地區，前往黎凡特等地，甚或前往君士坦丁堡(今伊斯坦堡)。公元九世紀中，喀喇汗國擴張至該地區，並逐漸伊斯蘭化。