1
《書》曰：「明試以功，車服以庸。」 言昔者聖人興天下之大利，除天下之大害，躬親其事，身履其勤，憂之勞之，不避寒暑，使天下之民物，各得安其性命，無夭昏暴陵之災。 是以天下之民，敬而愛之，若親父母； 則而養之，若仰日月。 夫愛之者欲其長久，不憚力役，相與起作宮室，上棟下宇，以雍覆之，欲其長久也； 敬之者欲其尊嚴，不憚勞煩，相與起作輿輪旌旗章表，以尊嚴之。 斯愛之至，敬之極也。 苟心愛敬，雖報之至，情由未盡。 或殺身以為之，盡其情也； 弈世以祀之，明其功也。 是以流光與天地比長。 後世聖人，知恤民之憂思深大者，必饗其樂； 勤仁毓物使不夭折者，必受其福。 故為之製禮以節之，使夫上仁繼天統物，不伐其功，民物安逸，若道自然，莫知所謝。 《老子》曰：「聖人不仁，以百姓為芻狗」。 此之謂也。
The Classic of Documents declares: “Prove their worth by what they achieve, then reward merit with the carriages and vestments befitting it.” The sense is this: the ancient sage labored for the common good of the realm and swept away its gravest evils—taking the burden on his own shoulders, braving every season, until every living thing could keep its natural span free from untimely death, tyranny, or plunder. So the folk revered and cherished him as they would their own parents; they took his example for their nurture, as one lifts the face toward sun and moon. Love made them wish him to endure forever, so they shouldered corvée without complaint and raised halls—beams aloft, eaves below—to roof him in, all so his reign might last. Reverence made them wish him awe-inspiring rank, so they forged wheels, flew standards, and forged regalia that matched his majesty. Such was love pressed to its limit and reverence carried to its height. Where love and reverence are genuine, no repayment, however lavish, can ever discharge the debt of feeling. Some laid down their lives—such was the depth of their devotion; generation after generation they kept his shrines lit, proclaiming his achievement to posterity. Thus his fame runs on beside heaven and earth without end. Later sages understood that rulers who take the people’s anxieties to heart are owed their joys in turn; and that those who labor at humanity, cherishing life so none dies before its time, earn a blessing in return. So they framed rite and music to set bounds: the supreme humanity that carries heaven’s pattern and orders the world must never trumpet its own work; the people thrive as if by nature itself, unaware whom to praise. Laozi writes: “The sage is not ‘kind’ in the small sense; he holds the common people as ritual straw dogs—deployed without clinging.” The passage means just this.
2
夫禮服之興也，所以報功章德，尊仁尚賢。 故禮尊尊貴貴，不得相逾，所以為禮也，非其人不得服其服，所以順禮也。 順則上下有序，德薄者退，德盛者縟。 故聖人處乎天子之位，服玉藻邃延，日月昇龍，山車金根飾，黃屋左纛，所以副其德，章其功也。 賢仁佐聖，封國受民，黼黻文繡，降龍路車，所以顯其仁，光其能也。 及其季末，聖人不得其位，賢者隱伏，是以天子微弱，諸侯脅矣。 於此相貴以等，相讟以貨，相賂以利，天下之禮亂矣。 至週夷王下堂而迎諸侯，此天子失禮，微弱之始也。 自是諸侯宮縣樂食，祭以白牡，擊玉磬，朱幹設鍚，冕而儛《大武》。 大夫臺門旅樹反坫，繡黼丹朱中衣，鏤簋朱紘，此大夫之僭諸侯禮也。 《詩》刺「彼己之子，不稱其服」，傷其敗化。 《易》譏「負且乘，致寇至」，言小人乘君子器，盜思奪之矣。 自是禮制大亂，兵革並作； 上下無法，諸侯陪臣，山楶藻梲。 降及戰國，奢僭益熾，削滅禮籍，蓋惡有害己之語。 競修奇麗之服，飾以輿馬，文罽玉纓，象鑣金鞍，以相誇上。 爭錐刀之利，殺人若刈草然，其宗祀亦旋夷滅。 榮利在己，雖死不悔。 及秦並天下，攬其輿服，上選以供禦，其次以錫百官。 漢興，文學既缺，時亦草創，承秦之製，後稍改定，參稽《六經》，近於雅正。 孔子曰：「其或繼周者，行夏之正，乘殷之輅，服週之冕，樂則《韶》、《舞》。」 故撰《輿服》著之於篇，以觀古今損益之義云。
Court dress and chariot regalia arose to reward merit, make virtue visible, exalt humanity, and honor the worthy. Rite therefore grades the high above the low and forbids trespass—that is what makes it ritual; no one may don insignia above his station—that is what makes it binding. When it is honored, superiors and inferiors fall into rank; the mean in virtue falls back, the abundant in virtue shines forth. Hence the true king on the throne wears the deep-crowned diadem hung with jade beads, robes figured with sun, moon, and ascending dragon, chariot fittings of the “mountain” and gold-root types, the yellow canopy and the yak-tail standard at the left—all to answer his virtue and proclaim his merit. Worthy helpers who receive fiefs ride chariots of state emblazoned with paired dragons, their silks brocaded with axe-and-fu motifs—insignia that broadcast their humanity and capacity. By the final generations the sage-king had lost his seat and good men withdrew to obscurity; the throne grew feeble while regional lords threw their weight about. Then lords measured one another by title alone, traded slander for wealth, bought loyalty with gain, and the empire’s ritual order collapsed. It began when King Yi of Zhou stepped down from his dais to greet vassal lords—a Son of Heaven already surrendering proper precedence. Thereafter princes claimed royal music at their meals, offered the white bull reserved for the Son of Heaven, sounded jade lithophones, carried crimson shields bossed in gold, and performed the Great Martial dance in full regalia. Great officers raised twin gatehouses, lined their approaches with trees, set up the lordly cup-stand, wore inner robes brocaded with axe emblems, used carved sacrificial gui and crimson cap cords—every one a prerogative of a marquis. The Book of Poetry mocks “those fellows in finery that outranks their virtue,” lamenting how counterfeit splendor corrupts the moral order. The Book of Changes warns that when a mean man mounts a noble’s carriage, bandits already plot to strip him—the vessel summons the theft. Hence ritual unraveled and arms flared everywhere; high and low lost all measure until even vassals and household ministers carved mountain-shaped capitals and painted their roof beams like kings. By the Warring States excess and trespass burned brighter still; rulers shredded the ritual codices, loathing any text that might curb their ambition. They raced to outdo one another in bizarre silks, gilded saddlery, jade-hung bridles, and ivory-mounted harness—each display grander than the last. They slaughtered for margins slimmer than an awl-tip, reaping lives like hay, and in the same breath saw their own lineages snuffed out. So long as glory stuck to the self, they went to the grave unrepentant. When Qin swallowed the realm it seized every court’s carriages and costumes, reserving the best for the throne and handing the rest down the bureaucracy. The Han began in haste, short of classical scholars, and at first simply continued Qin usage; only by degrees did it reform the code, cross-check the Six Classics, and edge back toward proper dignity. Confucius said: “Whoever may succeed the Zhou should use the Xia calendar, ride the Yin carriage, wear the Zhou cap, and for music adopt the Shao and the Wu.” Hence this “Chariots and Vestments” monograph is set in writing so readers may trace how regalia has waxed and waned from antiquity to the present.
3
上古聖人，見轉蓬始知為輪。 輪行可載，因物知生，復為之輿。 輿輪相乘，流運罔極，任重致遠，天下獲其利。 後世聖人觀於天，視斗周旋，魁方杓曲，以攜龍、角為帝車，於是乃曲其輈，乘牛駕馬，登險赴難，週覽八極。 故《易·震》乘《乾》，謂之《大壯》，言器莫能有上之者也。 自是以來，世加其飾。 至奚仲為夏車正，建其斿旐，尊卑上下，各有等級。 周室大備，官有六職，百工與居一焉。 一器而群工致巧者，車最多，是故具物以時，六材皆良。 輿方法地，蓋圓像天； 三十輻以像日月； 蓋弓二十八以像列星； 龍旂九斿，七仞齊軫，以像大火； 鳥旟七斿，五仞齊較，以像鶉火； 熊旗六斿，五仞齊肩，以像參、伐； 龜旐四斿，四仞齊首，以像營室； 弧旌枉矢，以像弧也：此諸侯以下之所建者也。
The earliest sages watched windblown pigweed roll and grasped the principle of the wheel. A wheel could bear a load in motion; from that insight they learned manufacture, then framed a body to ride upon it. Body and wheel worked in tandem, rolling on without end, hauling heavy freight over long roads—the world profited from the pairing. Later sages read the sky: the Dipper’s square bowl and crooked handle, the Dragon Horn stars imagined as the celestial chariot—then they curved the draught-pole, hitched ox and horse, crossed rough terrain, and ranged to the ends of the earth. Hence the Changes pairs Thunder atop Qian as “Great Strength”—no crafted thing may outrank what sits highest. Afterward every reign layered new ornament on the design. When Xi Zhong served the Xia as master of chariots, he standardized streamers and pennants so rank from highest to lowest matched fixed grades. Zhou perfected the system: six ministries of craft, of which chariot-making was one among many trades. No single object demanded coordinated skill from so many masters as the chariot; only when every part arrived in season could the six materials meet the standard. The body was squared to echo earth; the canopy was domed to echo heaven; thirty spokes stood for the days of the lunar month; twenty-eight canopy ribs mapped the lunar lodges; the dragon standard’s nine streamers, their seven-ren fall aligned with the axle guard, matched the Great Fire constellation; the bird pennant’s seven streamers, five ren level with the crossbar, answered Quail Fire; the bear ensign’s six streamers, five ren to the shoulder line, invoked Orion and Strife; the tortoise banner’s four streamers, four ren to the crown, mirrored the Encampment lodge; the bent-arrow bow-banner echoed the Bow asterism—such were the emblems permitted below the rank of independent prince.
4
天子玉路，以玉為飾，鍚樊纓十有再就，建太常，十有二斿，九仞曳地，日月昇龍，像天明也。 夷王以下，周室衰弱，諸侯大路。 秦並天下，閱三代之禮，或曰殷瑞山車，金根之色。 漢承秦制，禦為乘輿，所謂孔子乘殷之路者也。
The emperor’s jade-lined state carriage bore jade inlay, twelve-knot cheek tassels, and the Grand Constant standard with twelve streamers dragging nine ren on the ground, broidered with sun, moon, and ascending dragon to mirror celestial radiance. After King Yi the royal house declined, and regional lords dared to ride the great-road chariot reserved for the Son of Heaven. When Qin united the realm it surveyed Three Dynasties ritual; tradition names the Yin “auspicious mountain” carriage and speaks of the gold-root hue. Han continued Qin practice: the imperial train was termed the palanquin equipage—the carriage type Confucius had praised as “the Yin road.”
5
乘輿、金根、安車、立車，輪皆朱班重牙，貳轂兩轄，金薄繆龍，為輿倚較，文虎伏軾，龍首銜軛，左右吉陽筩，鸞雀立衡，B42E文畫輈，羽蓋華蚤，建大旂，十有二斿，畫日月昇龍，駕六馬，象鑣鏤鍚，金B42F方釳，插翟尾，朱兼樊纓，赤E47B易茸，金就十有二，左纛以DA3E牛尾為之，在左騑馬軛上，大如斗，是為德車。 五時車，安、立亦皆如之。 各如方色，馬亦如之。 白馬者，朱其髦尾為朱鬣雲。 所御駕六，餘皆駕四，後從為副車。
Palanquin, gold-root, seated, and standing state carriages shared scarlet-flecked double-toothed wheels, twin hubs, paired linchpins, gold-foil dragons on the side-rails, tigers on the crossbar, dragon-headed yoke, lucky tubes at either side, luan birds on the crossbeam, cloud beasts painted down the pole, plumed canopy with jeweled finials, a twelve-pennon great banner figured with sun, moon, and dragon, teams of six with ivory bits and pierced tin bosses, gold shield-mounts and square nave caps, pheasant plumes astern, vermillion cheek and crupper tassels, red hide and yak wool, twelve gold roundels, and the yak-tail standard at the left trace—large as a peck measure—the whole ensemble called the “chariot of virtue.” The five seasonal chariots—seated and standing models—matched this specification. Each matched its directional color, horses dyed or caparisoned to suit. White horses had mane and tail dyed scarlet so the team showed crimson crests. The sovereign alone used six horses; all other cars ran four, trailing as escort vehicles.
6
耕車，其飾皆如之。 有三蓋。 一曰芝車，置𨏟耒耜之箙，上親耕所乘也。
The ritual ploughing carriage wore the same decorative scheme. It carried a triple canopy. Also called the “mushroom” carriage, it stowed hoes and ploughs for the ceremonial furrow—the emperor’s personal car for the spring ploughing rite.
7
戎車，其飾皆如之。 蕃以矛麾金鼓羽析幢翳，𨏟冑甲弩之箙。
The war chariot matched the same ornamental program. It carried spears, command flags, gongs and drums, feather screens, sun shades, and a locker for helms, mail, and crossbows.
8
獵車，其飾皆如之。 重輞縵輪，繆龍繞之。 一曰闟豬車，親校獵乘之。
The hunting carriage used the same fittings. It had a double tire, cloth-wrapped wheel, and coiling dragon scrollwork round the felloe. Also known as the “pig-barrier” car, it carried the ruler on the imperial battue.
9
太皇太后、皇太后法駕，皆禦金根，加交絡帳裳。 非法駕，則乘紫罽軿車。 雲B42E文畫輈，黃金塗五末，蓋蚤。 左右騑，駕三馬。 長公主赤罽軿車。 大貴人、貴人、公主、王妃、封君油畫軿車。 大貴人加節畫輈。 皆右騑而已。
On statutory progresses the two dowagers rode gold-root cars veiled with lattice curtains and hanging panels. For informal outings they used the purple felt covered gig. The pole bore cloud-beast painting, the five metal tips were gilt, and the canopy carried jeweled finials. They were driven three-in-hand with traces on both sides. Senior imperial daughters rode the crimson felt gig. Great and ordinary honored consorts, princesses, princes’ wives, and enfeoffed noblewomen rode lacquered, painted gigs. Great honored ladies added ornamental striping to the pole. All these gigs used a single right-side trace horse.
10
皇太子、皇子皆安車，朱班輪，青蓋，金華蚤，黑B42E文，畫轓文輈，金塗五末。 皇子為王，錫以乘之，故曰王青蓋車。 皇孫則綠車以從。 皆左右騑，駕三。 公、列侯安車，朱班輪，倚鹿較，伏熊軾，皁繒蓋，黑轓，右輫。
Crown prince and princes rode seated cars with scarlet-flecked wheels, blue-green canopy, gold finials, black cloud beasts on the panels, painted sashes and pole, gilt hardware. Once a prince was enfeoffed he received this model—hence the “king’s green-canopy carriage.” Imperial grandsons followed in green carriages. All used paired traces with three horses. Dukes and marquises rode seated cars with speckled red wheels, deer figures on the uprights, bears on the crossbar, black silk canopy, black sashes, and a right-side mudguard.
11
中二千石、二千石皆皁蓋，朱兩轓。 其千石、六百石，朱左轓。 轓長六尺，下屈廣八寸，上業廣尺二寸，九文，十二初，後謙一寸，若月初生，示不敢自滿也。 景帝中元五年，始詔六百石以上施車轓，得銅五末，軛有吉陽筩。 中二千石以上右騑，三百石以上皁布蓋，千石以上皁繒覆蓋，二百石以下白布蓋，皆有四維槓衣。 賈人不得乘馬車。 除吏赤畫槓，其餘皆青雲。
Officials at full and straight two thousand piculs used black canopies with red both-side sashes. One-thousand- and six-hundred-picul ranks kept red only on the left sash. Each sash was six feet long, eight inches across the lower flare, twelve inches at the crown, cut with nine motifs and twelve scallops, the trailing edge pared back an inch like a crescent moon to signal humility. In Jing’s Zhongyuan 5 an edict allowed six-hundred-picul officials and above to mount carriage sashes, bronze tips on fittings, and lucky tubes on the yoke. Two-thousand-picul ranks added a right trace; three hundred and up used black cloth canopies; one thousand and up had black silk overlay; below two hundred, white cloth—all with corner ties and wrapped poles. Traders were forbidden horse-drawn passenger carriages. Retired officers kept crimson-wrapped shafts; everyone else used blue cloud designs.
12
公、列侯、中二千石、二千石夫人，會朝若蠶，各乘其夫之安車，右騑，加交絡帷裳，皆皁。 非公會，不得乘朝車，得乘漆布輜軿車，銅五末。
Wives of dukes, marquises, and two-thousand-picul officials, at court levees or the silkworm ceremony, rode their husbands’ seated cars—right trace, lattice veils, black throughout. Away from formal assembly they could not use the court car but might take the lacquered cloth gig with bronze-capped fittings.
13
乘輿大駕，公卿奉引，太僕禦，大將軍參乘。 屬車八十一乘，備千乘萬騎。 西都行祠天郊，甘泉備之。 官有其註，名曰甘泉鹵簿。 東都唯大行乃大駕。 大駕，太僕校駕； 法駕，黃門令校駕。
For the emperor’s grand progress the three excellencies led the team, the grand coachman held the reins, and the grand general rode escort on the running board. The train numbered eighty-one follow-cars, the full complement evoking “thousand chariots, myriad horsemen.” Western Chang’an staged the suburban rite to Heaven with the full Ganquan equipage. The ministry kept an annotated order of march—the “Ganquan procession book.” At Luoyang only the funeral of an emperor deployed the great equipage. Under the great-progress order the grand coachman checked every trace and buckle. For the middle-grade statutory train the Yellow Gate superintendent checked every strap and buckle.
14
乘輿法駕，公卿不在鹵簿中。 河南尹、執金吾、雒陽令奉引，奉車郎禦，侍中參乘。 屬車三十六乘。 前驅有九斿雲罕，鳳皇闟戟，皮軒鸞旗，皆大夫載。 鸞旗者，編羽旄，列系幢旁。 民或謂之雞翹，非也。 後有金鉦黃鉞，黃門鼓車。
On a statutory progress the three excellencies did not march inside the formal order of march. The capital intendant, the city’s chief of police, and the Luoyang magistrate led the teams, a carriage gentleman held the reins, and an attendant-in-ordinary took the seat beside the driver. The follow-train numbered thirty-six cars. The vanguard displayed nine-streamer cloud-nets, phoenix-patterned ji halberds, leather-canopied scouts, and luan standards, each piece carried by a ranked grandee. The “luan” banner braided pheasant plumes and yak tails along the staff beside the imperial umbrella. Rustics nicknamed it the “chicken plume,” but that name is a vulgar error. The rear brought up a bronze signal gong, a gilded battle-axe, and the eunuch corps’ drum wagon.
15
古者諸侯貳車九乘。 秦滅九國，兼其車服，故大駕屬車八十一乘，法駕半之。 屬車皆皁蓋赤裡，朱轓，戈矛弩箙，尚書、御史所載。 最後一車懸豹尾，豹尾以前比省中。
Classical enfeoffed lords were allowed nine escort chariots. When Qin swallowed the rival kingdoms it seized their court trains, which is why the Han “great progress” runs eighty-one follow-cars while the statutory halving uses thirty-six. Each escort wagon wore a black canopy lined in red, scarlet sashes, and racks for pole-arms and crossbows—manned by masters-of-writing and attending censors. The rearmost car flew a leopard-tail pennant; anyone stationed ahead of that marker was treated as inside the inner-court cordon.
16
行祠天郊以法駕，祠地、明堂省什三，祠宗廟尤省，謂之小駕。 每出，太僕奉駕上鹵簿，中常侍、小黃門副； 尚書主者，郎令史副； 侍御史，蘭台令史副。 皆執注，以督整車騎，謂之護駕。 春秋上陵，尤省於小駕，直事尚書一人從，其餘令以下，皆先行後罷。
Heaven at the southern suburb kept the statutory train; Earth and the Bright Hall shed thirty percent of the escort; temple runs pared the roster again—these were the “light” and “lighter” formations. On every outing the grand coachman logged the harness and filed the order of march, while a chief eunuch and a junior yellow gate doubled-checked the roster. The duty secretary from the Masters’ Bureau paired with a gentleman’s clerk; the attending censor paired with an Orchid Terrace archivist. Each deputy carried a checked list to line up mounts and carriages—what the court called “escort duty.” Seasonal tomb pilgrimages used an even slimmer train than the “light” set: only one on-duty secretary rode along, while chiefs of bureau and below cleared the road beforehand and peeled off once the rite ended.
17
輕車，古之戰車也。 洞朱輪輿，不巾不蓋，建矛戟幢麾，<輻車>輒弩服。 藏在武庫。 大駕、法駕出，射聲校尉、司馬吏士載，以次屬車，在鹵簿中。 諸車有矛戟，其飾幡斿旗幟皆五采，制度從《周禮》。 吳、孫《兵法》云：「有巾有蓋，謂之武剛車。」 武剛車者，為先驅。 又為屬車輕車，為後殿焉。
The “light car” is the old battlefield chariot, stripped for speed. Its body showed scarlet through pierced wheels, it carried neither sun-screen nor roof, it bristled with spears, ji, and signal flags, and a trailing supply cart bore bundled crossbows and spare quarrels. The whole detachment lived in the imperial arsenal between parades. Whenever the great or statutory train rolled, the colonel of crossbowmen and his staff took these cars in sequence among the follow-wagons inside the cordon. Each type bristled with pole-arms, while banners and streamers stayed strictly polychrome according to the Zhou canonical scheme. The military treatises of Wu and Sun record: “Add canopy and side screen and you have the armored escort wagon.” Those armored wagons opened the march. Light war cars also brought up the rear of the follow-train.
18
大使車，立乘，駕駟，赤帷。 持節者，重導從：賊曹車、斧車、督車、功曹車皆兩； 大車，伍伯DA7A弩十二人； 闢車四人； 從車四乘。 無節，單導從，減半。
Senior envoys used a tall four-horse carriage with crimson hangings, the rider standing to show rank. Men carrying the imperial staff drew a heavy escort—paired wagons for the burglar bureau, the display axes, the route supervisor, and the merit clerk; the lead baggage wagon added twelve runners with shouldered crossbows; four outriders on foot cleared the way; and four light follow-cars trailed behind. Envoys without the bronze staff made do with half that escort and a single file of runners.
19
小使車，不立乘，有騑，赤屏泥油，重絳帷。 導無斧車。
Junior missions rode seated gigs with a side trace, lacquered red fenders, and doubled scarlet drapes. Their vanguard omitted the ceremonial axe wagon.
20
近小使車，蘭輿赤轂，白蓋赤帷。 從騶騎四十人。 此謂追捕考案，有所敕取者之所乘也。
Rapid courier gigs used orchid scrollwork on the panels, crimson hubs, a white umbrella roof, and red side screens. Forty mounted runners rode escort. Such was the train for investigators chasing bandits, holding inquests, or serving sealed warrants of arrest.
21
諸使車皆朱班輪，四輻，赤衡軛。 其送葬，白堊已下，灑車而後還。 公、卿、中二千石、二千石，郊廟、明堂、祠陵，法出，皆大車，立乘、駕駟。 他出，乘安車。
Every official dispatch vehicle shared speckled red wheels, four-spoke hubs, and scarlet yoke hardware. After obsequies crews whitewashed the lower panels to a set line, sprinkled the wheels for purification, and only then drove the cars back to depot. High ministers traveling under statute to suburban shrines, the Bright Hall, or mausolea all stood in heavy four-horse baggage wagons. Ordinary business let them drop into enclosed seated carriages.
22
大行載車，其飾如金根車，加施組連璧交絡四角，金龍首銜璧，垂五采，析羽流蘇前後，雲氣畫帷裳，B42E文畫曲轓，長懸車等。 太僕禦，駕六布施馬。 布施馬者，淳白駱馬也，以黑藥灼其身為虎文。 既下，馬斥賣，車藏城北秘宮，皆不得入城門。 當用，太僕考工乃內飾治，禮吉凶不相干也。
The imperial corpse wagon matched the gold-root state car but layered knotted cords and linked jade discs at each corner, gilt dragon jaws clutching ritual bi, polychrome silk tassels, plume fringes fore and aft, painted cloud veils, curved sashes with beast scrollwork, and the extended “long suspension” hearse style. The grand coachman handled six horses—the special white team reserved for the funeral train. Those “distribution” mounts were snowy piebalds whose hides were singed with black paste into tiger stripes for the catafalque team. Once the mound was closed the horses went to public auction, the hearses were locked in the northern vault outside the walls, and neither team nor car might re-enter the capital gates. Before another use the grand coachman and the Works office refitted the interiors so mourning gear never mingled with living court ritual.
23
公卿以下至縣三百石長導從，置門下五吏：賊曹、督盜賊、功曹，皆帶劍，三車導； 主簿、主記，兩車為從。 縣令以上，加導斧車。 公乘安車，則前後並馬立乘。 長安、雒陽令及王國都縣加前後兵車，亭長，設右騑，駕兩。 弩車前伍伯，公八人，中二千石、二千石、六百石皆四人，自四百石以下至二百石皆二人。 黃綬，武官伍伯，文官闢車。 鈴下、侍閣、門蘭、部署、街里走卒，皆有程品，多少隨所典領。 驛馬三十里一置，卒皆赤幘絳云。
Everyone from the three excellencies down to a three-hundred-picul county chief traveled with five household runners—burglar clerk, thief-catcher, merit clerk—each sword-armed, and three lead cars; the chief registrar and chief recorder each rated a follow-wagon. County magistrates and above added the axe-bearing vanguard wagon. A duke in a covered carriage still posted outriders fore and aft as if standing in a state car. Chang’an’s and Luoyang’s magistrates, plus capital county chiefs in kingdoms, doubled the escort with armored vans fore and aft, ward captains, a right-side trace horse, and two-horse teams. Foot runners marching ahead of the crossbow wagon numbered eight for a duke, four for top ministers and six-hundred-picul ranks, and two for everyone from four hundred down to two hundred piculs. Officials with the yellow ribbon gave military posts foot escorts and civil posts light clearing carriages. Grooms, doorkeepers, gate sergeants, clerical runners, and neighborhood constables each drew fixed complements scaled to the magistrate’s jurisdiction. Post stations sat thirty li apart on the highways, every courier in a scarlet kerchief and crimson coat.
24
古者軍出，師旅皆從； 秦省其卒，取其師旅之名焉。 公以下至二千石，騎吏四人，千石以下至三百石，縣長二人，皆帶劍，持戟為前列，揵弓<韋蜀>九鞬。 諸侯王法駕，官屬傅相以下，皆備鹵簿，似京都官騎，張弓帶鞬，遮迾出入稱促。 列侯，家丞、庶子導從。 若會耕祠，主縣假給闢車鮮明卒，備其威儀。 導從事畢，皆罷所假。
Ancient hosts on campaign marched with full brigades in train; Qin cut the infantry tail but kept the old names “army” and “brigade” for its escort labels. Dukes through two-thousand-picul ministers rated four mounted attendants; magistrates from one thousand down to three hundred piculs had two; every man went armed with sword, halberd at the van, bow on the back, and nine-tube quiver. A king’s statutory progress duplicated the capital model: from chancellor down every aide rode in the roster with strung bows, filled quivers, and tight pickets controlling every crossing. Marquises made do with their household steward and junior son-of-the-house leading the escort. For the spring plough or joint sacrifices the county seat loaned road-clearing wagons and liveried runners to fill out the spectacle. Once the rite ended every borrowed runner and vehicle went back to county stock.
25
諸車之文：乘輿，倚龍伏虎，文畫輈，龍首鸞衡，重牙班輪，昇龍飛軨。 皇太子、諸侯王，倚虎伏鹿，文畫輈轓，吉陽，朱班輪，鹿文飛軨，旂旗九降龍。 公、列侯，倚鹿伏熊，黑轓，朱班輪，鹿文飛軨，九降龍。 卿，朱兩轓，五降龍。 二千石以下各從科品，諸轓車以上，軛皆有吉陽。
Imperial cars showed paired dragons and tigers on the panels, painted beasts along the pole, dragon and luan on the yoke, double-notched red wheels, and flying hub caps figured with ascending dragons. Heirs and kings swapped the dragon for tiger-and-deer pairs, kept lucky tubes and speckled wheels, carved deer motifs on the hubs, and flew nine-dragon ensigns. Dukes and marquises paired deer and bear, blackened their sashes, and still flew the nine-dragon pattern on lesser banners. Ministers of state doubled the red sashes and dropped to five dragons on the staff. Everyone below two thousand piculs matched ornament to salary rank, but any covered gig upward still mounted the bronze “lucky” tubes on the yoke.
26
諸馬之文：案乘輿，金方釳，插翟象鑣，龙画𦁕，沫昇龍，赤扇汗，青兩翅，燕尾。 駙馬，左右赤珥流蘇，飛鳥節，赤膺兼。 皇太子或亦如之。 王、公、列侯，鏤鍚文髦，朱鑣朱鹿，朱文，絳扇汗，青翅燕尾。 卿以下有騑者，緹扇汗，青翅尾，當盧文髦，上下皆通。 中二千石以上及使者，乃有騑駕云。
Imperial teams wore gold hub caps, pheasant plumes, ivory bits, dragon scrolls on the brow band, foam-white ascending dragons on the cheek pieces, crimson chest cloths, blue “double wings,” and swallow-tail cruppers. Outriders flanked the team with crimson ear tassels, bird-shaped cheek bosses, and doubled scarlet breast bands. The crown prince’s outriders often matched this harness scheme. Kings, dukes, and marquises used pierced tin bosses, figured manes, scarlet bits and deer motifs, red brocade on the breast, blue side wings, and swallow-tail cruppers. Ministers with side traces shifted to tawny chest cloths, blue wings and tail tassels, and patterned brow bosses on both lead and trace mounts. Only officials at “full two thousand piculs” and credentialed envoys rated the paired trace horses described above.