In ancient times, there was no fingerprint identification. Why draw a signature and press a fingerprint?

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Let's take a closer look at the picture above and see if we can clearly identify it. You can clearly press your fingerprints on the paper.

What is fingerprint identification? Everyone will think of the current mobile phone. Fingerprint identification is used to turn on the mobile phone.

Then let's think about it carefully. What is the essence of fingerprint identification? It is comparison. Compare the fingerprints stored in your mobile phone with those generated by scanning, and you will succeed if they are the same, but fail if they are different.

In ancient times, there was just no high-tech scanning recognition created by modern civilization. It doesn't mean that people can't identify manually, nor does it mean that they don't have the skills to identify fingerprints. Maybe it's just lost or not found by archaeologists.

Just because there was no fingerprint identification instrument in ancient times doesn't mean you can't identify someone's fingerprint. You press with your left thumb, and then press with your right thumb. If you compare it carefully, you will find it is different. Do you think the ancients couldn't see things as big as fingerprints and thick lines? Have you forgotten the story of the nuclear ship? You carved a boat on the walnut core. The ancients signed and signed. Why didn't you say that the ancients didn't have handwriting analysts?

Let's talk about why we should draw lots and press fingerprints.

It is wrong to say that there was no fingerprint identification technology in ancient times. According to the literature, there were primary fingerprint identification and comparison in ancient times.

According to documents, its identification technology began in the Tang Dynasty. There are also corresponding records in the literature of the Tang Dynasty. For example, on July 12, the third year of Tang Jianzhong, the soldier Ma Lingzhi was in urgent need of money and borrowed 1,000 yuan from the Jianying monk in Guobao Temple, with a monthly interest rate of one point; If monk Jianying needs it, he can recover the principal and interest at any time; If Ma Lingzhi cannot be returned, the sword shadow monk can take all the property of Ma Lingzhi away; I'm afraid there is no voucher, so I'll seal it right away. (Excerpted from the famous German Dr. Robert dactylography? Fingerprint identification published by Haindl 1927.

What information can we know from this incident? Both contracts and vouchers should be handprinted. Why? Because if you don't admit it, it's easy to compare.

In ancient times, most people had a low education level, and few people could read and write, otherwise they would not have a high social status in ancient times. In this case, both parties need to complete the contract or show good faith. In ancient times, the ancients thought that the hair and skin of the body came from parents, and things that respected and kept faith were naturally physical things, so there was a way to cut off the hair and feelings, and cut off the robe. That general promise will naturally be confirmed by the imprint on yourself, so there is a way to press the handprint.

I also have to say that many people in ancient times were illiterate, but the ancients found that everyone's fingerprints and palm prints were different. It became a symbol of ancient people's own identity.

Make a bet, it becomes a kind of evidence.

In fact, in the Qin Dynasty more than 2,000 years ago, China had a record of using fingerprints to solve crimes. The article "The Thief who Closed the Cave" unearthed in Yunmeng records: "There are knees, characters, knees and hands everywhere inside and outside the cave". This shows that the judicial personnel in Qin dynasty have regarded "handwriting" as a method to solve the case and as a kind of material evidence for judicial inspection of the crime scene.

Since then, all previous dynasties have followed the habit of taking finger mold and palm mold as mirrors in literature. The ancient army of China had a jump book to register the fingerprints of soldiers for inspection. This shows that fingerprints can be correctly classified by morphology and structure at that time, and this classification feature and knowledge have been applied to social practice.

Signing or taking personal notes on documents, calligraphy and paintings, contracts was called "pledge" at that time, but today it is called "signature" and "signature", which has existed since the kingdom period. At the beginning of the Tang Dynasty, because Emperor Taizong had ordered his ministers not to sign the memorial in cursive script, there were many cursive scripts on other documents. The cursive script is fancy, which is called "flower first". In the Song Dynasty, when people presented official documents or letters to others, they did not put their own names at the end of the official documents, but only wrote their own words, which were called "pledge words" or "cursive words". It is a difficult problem for illiterate people to sign or erect characters, so people change the circle and call it "painting" or "painting". Wang Anshi of the Song Dynasty should be the founder of Huabeite. Wang Anshi's signature habit is to write only the word "stone", write a horizontal line and draw a circle from the middle of the waist. Because of its impatience, "the circle is not round, it is often flat and inexhaustible", so it is natural for future generations to hear private discussions about its "opposition" and "add meaning to make it round". This is the signature. To write an oath, we must first say signature, which originated from the original imprint and some handmade products. In clan society, many totem symbols carved on pottery are symbols of a tribe. In our country, signature has been used as a personal symbol since the appearance of writing. The seal originated from the Asian-shaped badge in Shang and Zhou Dynasties. In addition to decoration, Asian modeling may also have the function of sustenance. Therefore, Asian words are used as pledge words. The blank of the cross in the sub-word is the original symbol for future generations to mark the cross. At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, the political power in feudal society was complicated, and certificates were needed to show identity, perform functions and communicate with each other. Because the recognition ability was not high at that time, the handwriting was easily imitated by others, which reduced the anti-counterfeiting function of the signature. As a result, the inspection certificate representing individuals and state power institutions has been replaced by a seal with higher technical level, greater difficulty in making, stronger anti-counterfeiting, simpler use and stronger symbol. Since ancient times, there are many kinds of seals, including official seals, including emperor seals, vassal seals, official seals of civil and military officials at all levels and so on. It is a symbol of power and status in hierarchical society; As a substitute for personal signature, private seal plays a very important role in social life and has irreplaceable legal effect. Later, with the rise of literati management printing, the anti-counterfeiting function of seals is also weakening. In the Song Dynasty, a kind of flower card appeared. This handwritten flower card is something similar to a scholar's ghost symbol, which connects several words together to write a word. Many people find it difficult to tell what the original words are. Because it is difficult to imitate, it becomes unique, but it becomes an authentication. There were no photos in ancient times, and portraits could not reflect the appearance well. But the authenticity of the flower pawn is easy to identify and difficult to imitate. This has been gradually accepted by the broad literati class and even the bureaucratic system. Therefore, China began to design and set up a special signature museum in the Song Dynasty. Anyone who is admitted to the Jinshi will go to the signature museum in Beijing to buy signatures, commonly known as buying flowers. Then practice behind closed doors for a few days, hand over the practiced flowers to the official department for the record and change the official seal. From then on, no matter where this person goes to be an official, he must have his own flowers on the documents submitted to the court and compare them to verify his identity.

In the specific history, I don't know how people can determine whether some signed agreements and contracts are true by pressing their fingerprints.

However, if the handprint on the contract agreement is really so clear, I think this question is not difficult to answer. The ancient population was not as large as it is now, and the ancient people were hierarchical. The ruler's jurisdiction over the ruled is in place, so there must be relevant institutions to collect and manage the basic information of the people. In other words, the ancient yamen and other administrative agencies are willing to give you every basic file similar to the census.

And why did the ancients press their fingerprints to ensure that the agreement was meaningful? That is to say, there must be relevant institutions to put on record. After breaking the contract, you go to the yamen. As long as there is a contract, the relevant laws must be followed after the breach. For punishment.

To put it bluntly, it is not much different from the current fingerprint identification, but the database has evolved from paper to network disk.

Then, in this way, many trust problems in ancient times have been solved. First, people who can't write can have a way to complete the contract; Second, people who can imitate other people's handwriting cannot get in the way; Third, the ruling class can better control everyone, including those in high positions. After angering the emperor, he can let your fingerprints appear on any contract as conclusive evidence to inform others.

(1) In the old days, official documents, contracts or confessions were all painted with flowers or written with the words "pledge" and "ten" to show recognition.

It is quite difficult for a novice or inexperienced writer to write the same handwriting. Because seals are mostly used by folk businessmen and ordinary people, signers or many people who can't hold the strokes must rely on seals to show the letters to others. The Song Dynasty also had exchanges with the neighboring countries of Liao, Jin and Xixia at that time, so these brothers were even less familiar with Chinese characters, not to mention the use of calligraphy and printing, which greatly improved their use market.

(3) The reason for the popularity of pledge seal is undoubtedly that during the period after Mongolia entered China, Mongolians entered the Central Plains. Among the four ethnic classes divided by the Yuan Dynasty, the Mongols and Semu people with the highest status don't know Chinese characters, so they "can't write an oath" in their ruling exchanges, and they don't know the seal script of the Han people like a sealed book. In the Yuan Dynasty, Tao mentioned in Volume II of the Record of Dropping out of Farming in Nancun: "Today, most Mongolian Semu officials can't write flowers, for example, they can print with ivory or woodcut. Those who assist the slaughter and serve the official to the first grade can use the jade book as a pledge, but they dare not use it unless they are specially given. According to Tao's explanation, the Mongolian Semu people are a nomadic people. It is easy to hold a knife and a gun, but it is especially difficult to write Chinese characters. Therefore, calligraphy was replaced by fixed calligraphy, which led to the heyday of calligraphy in Yuan Dynasty. Just as a single spark can start a prairie fire, the pawn seal, which was slightly used between the Tang and Song Dynasties, was quickly loved by officials and people.

You press two handprints, cut one in half, and then cover the whole handprint with half a handprint. The fingerprints of the two pieces of paper match, and they are the fingerprints of the same person. This is indigenous fingerprint identification, and so is the seal. Cut it in half, hand it out, and hand it out by imperial edict or document. If you are in doubt, use that half to verify whether the lines match and the fonts are harmonious, which proves that it is not a fraud.

I didn't know it was in Europe. In China, fingerprint identification technology existed as early as ancient times. Before there was paper, someone read fingerprints professionally to predict fortune. Nowadays, with the proliferation of science, palm reading is a feudal superstition. We don't know how the ancients recognized fingerprints. Those ancient appraisal techniques were burned to death on the column of shame by science, just as Copernicus was burned to death at the stake by the church.