A dog could have had much more "dignity" in prehistoric
times than it does today.
Instead of being petted by man, it used to be worshipped as a totem among
different tribes in China.
Although the status of a dog seems to have fallen, the animal has always been
loved by man and this kinship started more than 7,000 years ago.
Since the Stone Age, people have been portraying the dog in art, and Chinese
museums boast a rich collection of bronzes,
ceramics, paintings and jade
artifacts that put dogs at the centre of their designs.
It can be observed from these artworks that dogs were primarily hunting
companions before the Tang
Dynasty (AD 618-907), but became pets after people enjoyed an economic boom
in the 7th century.
"A dog is as fast as an eagle and as fierce as a tiger,"
remarked Fu Xiuyi in his prose titled "A Tribute to Dogs," which was written
during the Western
Jin Dynasty (AD 265-316).
Adorable and loyal
Dogs have been good companions from as early as the beginning of human
civilization. Their bones were found buried along with humans in New Stone Age
ruins that have been excavated in Central China's Henan
Province .
The dog headed the six domesticated animals, which included the horse, the
ox, the pig, the rooster and the sheep.
Prehistoric people in China began to include dogs in drawings to decorate
their pottery ware. The status of dogs was demonstrated in a pattern on a
Neolithic Age pottery vase, which was unearthed at the Dadiwan
historical site of Qin'an, Northwest China's Gansu
Province .
Four muscular dogs fighting each other ferociously were painted with forceful
brushwork on the vase that has been carbon dated to be around 7,000 years old.
