1955 painted pottery pots with fish patterns on faces were unearthed from Banpo site in Xi city, Shaanxi province. This basin is a treasure of Neolithic pottery. It is made of fine clay red pottery, with open lips and intermittent black ribbons painted on the mouth. The inner wall is painted black to draw two symmetrical fish patterns. A person's face is round, with a bun-like tip and fin-like decoration on the top of his head. There is a deformed fish pattern on the left and right sides of the mouth, and the fish head coincides with the outline of the human mouth, which seems to contain two big fish in the mouth at the same time. There are two big fish chasing each other between two faces. The whole picture is free in composition, very dynamic, simple in design and full of fantasy. Now in the National Museum of China.

The painted pottery basin with fish pattern unearthed from Banpo site is the most unforgettable because of its mysterious pattern. Some people think that this picture reflects the close relationship and special feelings between Banpo people and fish, and it is a totem worshipped by Banpo clan. The life style of Banpo people is inseparable from fishing and hunting. They love and worship fish. They think that their clan originated from fish, so they worship fish as their totem ancestor. People and fish are painted together, which shows that people and fish are inseparable. It presents a picture of you and me, me and you, * * * life.

In addition, there are myths about the mutual change between man and fish in ancient books: for example, there is a legend in Shan Hai Jing that Zhuan Xu became a fish after his death. The deformed fish pattern probably represents a personalized independent god-the fish god. It has also been speculated that fish means "combination of men and women" in ancient Chinese, and this fish face pattern should mean praying for reproduction and family prosperity. In fact, no matter what Banpo people express with this pattern, it is great to be able to condense such rich social content into painting. Today's people can't know its true meaning, but it still gives people a strong sense of beauty and makes people want to explore the mystery of mysterious history.

Painted pottery basin with fish pattern on human face