馬黎?楊琳惜
2006年12月20日,在浙江余杭瓶窯葡萄畈遺址發(fā)現(xiàn)石頭的那個晚上,劉斌睡不著了。他越想這些石頭越激動:這一定是個重大發(fā)現(xiàn)。
他給自己的老師張忠培先生打電話,又打給北京大學趙輝老師、中國文化遺產(chǎn)研究院的孟憲民先生,第一時間把這個消息報告給他們。
在如今的大莫角山遺址——良渚宮殿區(qū),5000多年前,良渚國王就是在這個小山坡上俯瞰全城。他不會想到,5000年后,一位儒雅的西北男人及其考古隊,通過泥土里不起眼的石頭,發(fā)現(xiàn)了自己的國家。
30多年前,劉斌來到杭州工作,之前他只知道杭州有個著名的遺址叫良渚,卻不曾想自己與這塊土地的緣分,一結(jié)就是30多年,至今仍在繼續(xù)。
從1986年在瓶窯反山發(fā)掘王陵墓地開始,良渚遺址考古的重大發(fā)現(xiàn),劉斌一一見證:良渚遺址至今已6次入選全國十大考古發(fā)現(xiàn),2008年底開始對古城內(nèi)外進行大范圍勘探,至今已完成近20平方公里范圍的摸底工作。從發(fā)現(xiàn)近3平方公里的內(nèi)城,到發(fā)現(xiàn)6.3平方公里的外城,再到發(fā)現(xiàn)良渚古城外圍大型水利系統(tǒng)——10年的探索,換來了今天世界考古學界對良渚王國的認可,對中華5000年文明的認可。
歷史的一大步,有時其實是從考古人的一小鏟甚至是從一塊小石頭開始的。然而,如果沒有像石頭一般的執(zhí)著和硬氣,我們何曾知道,5000年其實離我們并不遠。
2006年12月,劉斌帶著考古隊在瓶窯葡萄畈遺址進行試掘。一條良渚時期的南北向古河道的發(fā)現(xiàn),讓劉斌感覺有戲。洛陽鏟一鏟下去,在3米多深的地方,碰到了石塊。
如果要說良渚古城發(fā)現(xiàn)的瞬間,這72個字似乎就可以說完了——對,不是玉器,也不是陶器,只是一層石塊,沒有任何驚心動魄的戲劇性場景,誰都不會想到發(fā)現(xiàn)的是一個古城,一個國家。
劉斌沒有放過這一層石塊,困惑,糾結(jié),論證,始終在繼續(xù)。
他的老師,著名考古學家張忠培先生說的話,劉斌一直印在心里:被材料牽著鼻子走。
“你發(fā)現(xiàn)了石塊,然后怎么辦?怎么樣去理解材料,這些材料帶給你的信息是什么?”
有些人會覺得,一堆爛石塊而已,也不是什么寶貝。但劉斌覺得,這些東西帶來的思考、困惑,就是重要材料,他必須思考每一個點、每一寸土背后的秘密。
他開始“破案”——石塊是在3米多厚的黃土堆積的下面發(fā)現(xiàn)的,而且中間沒有間隔,是一次性堆上來的,說明這些石塊應該是3米多厚的土的一個基礎,很有可能是大堤或者城墻。他再看石塊,發(fā)現(xiàn)是開采來的,那么,是從哪個山上開采來的?城墻的堆土,是山上的黃土,他就想到,現(xiàn)代修大堤,也是從山上運過來的,那必定是一個大工程。
“所謂的‘被材料牽著鼻子走,當某一種材料能觸動你,就要把它搞明白,要被它牽著走,找出它有多長有多寬,再順此想下去,這個石塊是從哪兒來的,后面的科技設計都是從這個角度來做的。考古就是教我們怎么樣去追尋遺跡,怎么樣去發(fā)現(xiàn)它的功能?!眲⒈笳f。
2007年,劉斌和良渚考古隊依次發(fā)現(xiàn)了西城墻、北城墻、東城墻。當11月最終發(fā)現(xiàn)南城墻時,這座被歷史的泥沙淹沒了5000年的王城,就真的出現(xiàn)在了我們的腳下。
“5000千年并不遙遠,穿過那間宋代酒肆的殘垣斷壁,從漢代人的墓地經(jīng)過,我們便可望見5000千年前的篝火……”
2016年冬天,在反山王陵南面姜家山發(fā)現(xiàn)新墓地時,愛寫詩的他,伏在良渚工作站的書桌前,寫下這些浪漫的句子,與良渚人隔空相望。
很多人說,劉斌這個人比較理想主義,愛較勁,如果不是他的堅持,或許這層石塊,就只是石塊了。
但是,當一個重大發(fā)現(xiàn)擺在眼前時,他反而覺出了一種孤獨。
古城發(fā)現(xiàn)后,來自各方的質(zhì)疑聲不斷涌來,一路上,劉斌遇到了很多紅燈。他一個人帶著幾個技工,請來各種專家,開論證會,尋求學術(shù)支持,包括向國家申請研究經(jīng)費,征地,和村里人打交道,努力保護遺址范圍。
考古不只是考古,考古人有時候像個包工頭,有時候還像居委會的工作人員,大量的生活瑣碎,雞毛蒜皮,他們?nèi)家獞獙徒鉀Q——跟施工隊磨合工期,動老百姓的田地又涉及青苗補償,雇傭民工、管理民工都需要妥善安排,而考古隊本身也有一攤吃喝拉撒的事。
良渚已經(jīng)成為中國第一批(12家)國家考古遺址公園之一,目前一期正在建設中。在遺址公園的修建過程中,這棵樹該不該砍,那條路該不該修,覺得哪里不對,不少細枝末節(jié)劉斌全都要管??吹接腥送z址里亂倒垃圾,他直接去擋車。在這個斯文的男人的心中,藏著十頭牛也拉不動的較勁和執(zhí)著。
有一段時間,莫角山遺址北邊的村子拆了,房子下面的垃圾沒有運干凈,上面鋪了土,變成了農(nóng)田,邊上修起了石坎。劉斌又激動了:修那么多生硬的東西做什么,把垃圾運走,原來底下就是田,現(xiàn)在還造田,不就是弄虛作假嗎?做石坎那么生硬,遺址就難看了,就毀了。
“我確實給他們的工程造成了很大的麻煩。”他笑道,“但把遺址毀了,我就要管?!?/p>
“經(jīng)常有人問我,考古苦不苦。這是個傻傻的問題。人生在世苦不苦?誰又能為我們開釋得比佛陀更清楚??脊攀且粓鲂扌?。面對歷史,我們不能改變什么、發(fā)明什么,只能在堅定的信念里,走近歷史的真實?!眲⒈笳f。
對話從上大學到現(xiàn)在的筆記、老照片,都是我一直珍藏的,但對我來說最具有紀念意義的是一個棕櫚箱子,里面是木頭,外面包裹著棕片。這是1981年我上大學前,在西安老家買的。那個時候沒有皮箱,就用這只箱子裝被子、裝衣服、裝書,托運到杭州。后來在杭州工作那么多年,搬了幾次家,也一直舍不得丟,用到現(xiàn)在。
仔細,有條理。考古工作類似于做檔案、做記錄,比如在野外挖掘,需要每天寫日記、整理資料,這就要求有很好的條理性,資料的記錄不能雜亂無章。
喝茶、靜坐。我也愛好文學,愛看書,喜歡詩歌。近些年看得比較多的是有關(guān)于宗教、茶文化、中醫(yī)的書,還有這幾年流行的靈性與科學方面的書??偟膩碚f,我讀的書大多圍繞著對宇宙、對人生的思考感悟,比較偏向哲學意義的探討。
改革開放最大的感受,就是日新月異的變化。首先是一種時間加速感,人與環(huán)境的變化,各種變遷非常迅速,這是信息時代帶給我們的。考古是了解過去,從懵懵懂懂認識器物開始,再到社會發(fā)展基本模式,再到大的歷史變遷,人的流動,環(huán)境的變遷,從宏大的時空中探尋變化的過程。
改革開放40年,對從事考古來說是幸運的。以前我們的狀態(tài)是封閉的,對外界不了解,但現(xiàn)在我們能夠走出國門,有了網(wǎng)絡媒介,信息知識的流通更加頻繁,我們不僅能了解過去,還能知道整個世界的歷史文化,觀察、體驗各個地區(qū)不同環(huán)境所造成的文化差異。
Liu Bin: Archaeologist Who Finds Ancient City
By Ma Li, Yang Linxi
Liu Bin was sleepless on a December night in 2006. That day, he had stumbled upon a layer of stones three meters underground at a site in Putaofan, where an archaeological investigation was undergoing. The site is part of the Liangzhu Culture, which was first discovered in the 1930s and named in the 1950s. Archaeological work has been going on for decades.
That day, he and his colleagues were exploring a north-south ancient river in Putaofan when the Luoyang shovel in his hands went down and he felt the shovel touch stones at a depth of 3 meters. These were neither jades nor potteries. Liu was excited. The stones were apparently from a quarry. The earth as thick as 3 meters was artificially heaped upon the layer of stones. What was underneath was probably a dike or a section of a city wall. He tentatively concluded that it must have been a colossal undertaking back then. Excited and certain that the stones pointed to something important, Liu made a few phone calls.
Liu Bin came to Hangzhou more than 30 years ago. His life has been closely connected with Liangzhu. He has witnessed all the key breakthroughs made in the archaeological work on the Liangzhu Culture. Liangzhu has been named six times on the annual top ten of national archaeological discoveries.
In 1986, archaeologists found the royal mausoleums at Fanshan. The stones discovered in December 2006 opened u a new possibility, though many people were skeptical about the significance of the stones. Liu invited experts and specialists over to take a look. He was instrumental in holding some seminars to find academic support. He applied for national funds for further excavation and for safeguarding of the site.
Eventually, funds came in and the green light was given. The efforts quickened.
In 2007, Liu Bin and his colleagues found the city walls in the west, in the north, in the east and in the south in that order. In 2008, archaeologists intensified their search. Since then, key discoveries have been made. They first found the 3-km2 inner city, then the 6.3-km2 outer city, and then a large-scale extensive water-control system on the peripheries of the state. These discoveries made within the last ten years have convinced the world that an early state did exist in ancient Liangzhu and that the Chinese civilization is at least 5,000 years old.
In reality, Liu Bin is more than an archaeologist. In order to keep the sites intact in Liangzhu, he has done a lot. He is a care taker of these archaeologists. He negotiated with the neighboring villages for the safeguarding. He stopped numerous activities, including some development projects which could have damaged the sites.
“Some people ask me if I feel archaeological work too hard. It is a silly question. Isnt life hard, too? Who can explain life better than Buddha does? Being an archaeologist is improving oneself toward perfection. We can neither change history nor invent history. All we can do is to continue to believe and approach the truth of history,” remarked Liu Bin.
Liu Bin is director of Zhejiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology. He has published over 60 academic papers. His insightful analyses convincingly explain how some jade pieces of the Liangzhu Culture evolved in ancient times. Right now he heads a national project on the study of civilization modes in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, a project going on in relevant provinces sponsored by the National Administration of Cultural Relics, the top national authority on archaeology. He also heads the archaeological project on the ancient Liangzhu city, a key national undertaking. Under his leadership, the archaeological field studies around Liangzhu have received annual top national awards several times.