一

　　龙泉因剑得名，因瓷生辉，龙泉是剑瓷合璧的品质之城，剑与瓷是龙泉城市的魂，是滋养着龙泉人的文化精华。

　　信步龙泉，处处可以感受到剑乡瓷都的风韵。

　　如果说宝剑是龙泉的外表，那么青瓷则是龙泉的内涵。

　　一个冷峻刚烈，一个温润如玉；一个动感十足，一个宁静似水，这也构成了龙泉城市的多重品格，形成了龙泉人既柔情似水又坚毅如钢的人文个性。

　　二

　　龙泉，位于江浙最高峰黄茅尖下，浩浩荡荡的八百里瓯江就发源于龙泉与庆元之间，清澈的高山泉水日夜奔腾，滋润着龙泉这片充满艺术气息的土地。

　　一座城市，拥有一项国家级非遗就相当了不起，而龙泉专属的龙泉青瓷传统烧制技艺是全国55个“世界非遗”之一，龙泉宝剑锻制技艺也是国家级非遗。丽水有三宝，其中两样在龙泉。

　　剑与瓷是江浙之巅龙泉的绝代双骄，剑瓷之业已成为养育龙泉人的物质与精神财富源头，使龙泉城成为以农耕为生的浙西南最早进入工业化的城市，也是浙江最早对外开放的城市之一。

　　龙泉的前身叫龙渊，现在的龙泉城里仍然有龙渊街道。同时，龙渊也是一把剑的名称。一座小城以剑命名，是当地人所喜欢的一种意境吧。于是剑就是城，城就是剑，龙渊的双重意义，让这个小城与宝剑一道扬名四方。

　　龙渊相传是铸剑大师欧冶子的杰作，“观其状，如登高山，临深渊”。

　　欧冶子是春秋战国时期的铸剑大师，史载他为越王铸了湛卢、纯钧、胜邪、鱼肠、巨阙五剑，是中国铸剑行业的鼻祖，也是龙泉宝剑的创始人。

　　关于“龙渊”剑的诞生过程，《越绝书》有记载。龙泉剑相传为欧冶子所铸，《越绝书》载：楚王命令相剑家风胡子到越地寻找欧冶子，请他铸造宝剑。于是欧冶子走遍江南名山大川，最后他来到了龙泉，凿茨山，泄其溪，取山中铁英，作剑三枚，曰“龙渊”“泰阿”“工布”。

　　龙泉剑是青铜器时代向铁器时代迈进的产物，铁剑“龙渊”，开创了中国冷兵器之先河。

　　三

　　龙渊剑自问世后便闻名于世，龙渊因而名声在外。

　　龙泉宝剑有“坚韧锋利，刚柔并济，寒光逼人，纹饰巧致”之特色。

　　建安二十一年，25岁的临淄侯曹植给好友杨修写了一封信，即《与杨德祖书》，其中有“盖有南威之容，乃可以论于淑媛；有龙渊之利，乃可以议于断割”的句子，表明龙渊是一把非常锋利的剑，可以斩断世间一切。

　　冷兵器时代，剑是一种高贵的小型武器，既可攻击，又可防身，龙泉剑削铁如泥，备受武者喜欢，武侠小说中常有高手身背龙泉剑的描写。

　　“宁知草间人，腰下有龙泉”，从李白的诗句中，我们可以读出，在唐代龙泉剑已成为上流社会广泛认同的时尚之物。

　　历史上，到底是因为先有龙渊这个地名还是先有龙渊宝剑，我并不清楚。

　　据《龙泉市志》记载，在东晋太宁元年（323年）置龙渊乡，在唐武德三年（620年），因避高祖李渊讳，改龙渊乡为龙泉乡。

　　这时的龙渊剑似乎也随之改名叫龙泉剑。唐代同时期的诗人郭震，在《古剑篇》中写道：“良工锻炼凡几年，铸得宝剑名龙泉。龙泉颜色如霜雪，良工咨嗟叹奇绝。”

　　历史翻到了唐乾元二年（759年）这一页，由于龙泉知名度越来越大，此时，唐王朝设置“龙泉”县。到了北宋时，因避讳“龙”字，龙泉改为“剑川”，南宋时恢复了原名，一直叫到今天。

　　但关于龙渊剑改名龙泉剑是因为李渊，也有人持怀疑态度，因为从一些诗歌中可发现，在唐之前，人家在诗中就称龙渊剑为龙泉剑。南朝梁诗人车噪在诗中说：“雪冻弓弦断，风鼓旗杆折。独有孤雄剑，龙泉字不灭。”这应该怎么解释呢？是不是在唐之前，就同时有龙渊剑或龙泉剑两种称呼呢？

　　四

　　龙泉剑是欧冶子留给后人的一个符号，七星井、剑池湖、剑池亭、欧冶子将军庙，这一处处千年的古迹，每时每刻都透露出一种岁月的深沉，也记录着人们对欧冶子的怀念与尊敬。

　　龙泉剑，不仅是一把剑，还是城市的根。

　　龙泉人是怎样学到铸剑技术的，我一直没有解开这个疑问。

　　按理说，在古时，这种独门技术，非一般人能学。根据史书记载，欧冶子铸的剑是铁剑。把矿石铁英炼成铁就不知要经过多少道工序，铸剑更是繁琐。欧冶子是无偿传授，还是龙泉人偷师学艺，这是历史之谜。

　　现在，龙泉剑出现在各类武侠作品中，倚天剑、屠龙刀……金庸和古龙小说中的宝剑，龙泉人几乎都铸了一遍。电影《赤壁》里，周瑜、曹操、赵云、孙权、刘备打斗用的剑，全是龙泉铸的。现在看电影也好，看电视也罢，凡是看到剑与刀，几乎都是流水的武侠，铁打的“龙泉”，前些年，龙泉人还专门请金庸大师去论剑。

　　2004年10月，金庸来到龙泉，让铸剑大师们兴奋异常。为了迎接金庸的到来，数月前，龙泉的铸剑大师们就开始铸造金庸笔下的二十四把名剑和七把宝刀。经过数月的苦苦钻研和精心设计，纸上的名剑宝刀终于变成了现实。10月25日下午，在龙泉杏园，龙泉市委、市政府隆重地将这些名剑宝刀赠送给了金庸。

　　看着琳琅满目的刀剑，金庸的喜爱之情溢于言表。他在接受刀剑赠送仪式上激动地说：“我在海外，到任何一个地方，都有人知道龙泉这个地方，因为龙泉有深厚的宝剑文化和青瓷文化。”

　　龙泉数千年前的刀剑生产，其凝聚而成的匠心，为后来的瓷业发展起到了很好的铺垫。剑瓷之间，一阳一阴，一刚一柔，两者都是水火交融的产物，也是独具匠心的呈现，匠心，通过这座城市，从剑到瓷到生活的方方面面不断流动。

　　（图片来自“视觉中国”）

　　Fame of Sword, Fame of City

Longquan, a city in southern Zhejiang, stands for the sword made in Longquan. The two words most often appear together. In a sense, the sword is named after the city and has turned Longquan well known in both Chinese history and literature, even though celadon made in Longquan enjoyed greater popularity overseas and the sword remained little known to the outside world.

Longquan is nestled at the foot of Huangmaojian, the tallest mountain of the province. The 400-kilometer-long Ou River starts somewhere in the mountain between Longquan and Qingyuan and empties into the East China Sea.

Ou Ye Zi (c.560-510BC), a legendary sword-making master living in the decades when China transited from the Spring & Autumn period to the Warring States period, came to present-day Zhejiang in search of iron ores for sword-making as he had been commissioned by the King of the Chu State. He came to Longquan and found what he needed. The master found iron ores he needed. Eventually he made three swords in Longquan. One of them was named Longyuan. Experts say that iron swords marked China’s historical transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age. And Ou Ye Zi’s swords are first iron swords known in history. Even today, Longquan has a Longyuan street in honor of the sword and of the history of Longquan.

Li Bai (701-762), the greatest poet of the Tang (618-907), mentions Longquan in a poem. Longquan in the poem stands for the sword made in Longquan. It can be deduced from this poem that Longquan swords were quite popular during the Tang. 

However, it isn’t clear whether the sword was named after Longquan or the sword’s name was adopted by the place where the sword was made by Ou Ye Zi.

According to a local history book, Longyuan Township was officially named in 323AD, which was a year in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. The name remained unchanged until 620 when Longyuan was changed to Longquan in order to avoid using Yuan in the place name as Li Yuan, the emperor of the Dynasty, had Yuan in his name. Some historians say that it was during this time that the Longyuan Sword was known as Longquan Sword. But there exist some evidence that it wasn’t true. A poet in the Liang Dynasty before the Tang mentions Longquan in a poem. In 759 AD, Longquan was officially made into a county by the central government.

It is also unclear how local people in Longquan first learned to make swords. Did they learn directly from the legendary Ou Ye Zi or they developed a sword-making industry singlehandedly themselves in Longquan? After all, it wouldn’t have been easy to establish an industrial chain of sword making. It would take a system to put hands on iron ores and then turn ores into iron and steel before sword-making masters turned raw iron and steel into swords.

Modern sword makers in Longquan are enjoying a big time today. So far, they have reinvented all the swords famously mentioned in Wuxia bestsellers of Jin Yong and Gu Long. These masters have also made all the historically famed swords used in cinematic blockbusters.

In October 2004, Jin Yong (Louis Cha 1924-2018) visited Longquan. The sword-making masters in Longquan were thrilled to have the famous novelist take a look at the 24 swords and 7 broad swords mentioned in his Kungfu novels and they reproduced. It had taken them a few months to translate the novelist’s imagination into metal masterpieces. On the afternoon of October 25, a ceremony was held and these cold weapons were presented the master novelist as gifts. In his brief thank-you speech, Jin Yong said that he had traveled across the world and met people who said they knew about Longquan in Zhejiang, China.