秦漢時期，石雕一般為大型的墓前石雕。這些墓前石雕造型生動、刀法簡練，但是石雕作品氣魄雄渾，極具動態(tài)感。這些石雕一方面具有極高的美學(xué)價值和社會學(xué)價值，另一方面也體現(xiàn)了墓主人的權(quán)勢和地位。當(dāng)時社會流行厚葬之風(fēng)，所以一些貴族和豪強也極力追求奢華的墓葬建筑及裝飾，并且他們也具備充足的財力、物力條件，于是出現(xiàn)了大量有畫像石的祠堂碑闕和墓室。這些石雕作品的雕刻手法大體可分為陰線刻、淺浮雕、平面雕和透雕等幾種手法。在題材內(nèi)容上也豐富多彩，包括了歷史人物、神話故事、孝義事跡、烈女故事、現(xiàn)實生活、祥禽瑞獸、羽化登仙等。
In the Qin and Han Dynasties, stone carvings were generally large-scale ones in front of tombs. The stone carvings in front of the tombs are vivid and concise in shape, but they are vigorous and dynamic. On the one hand, these stone carvings have high aesthetic and sociological values, on the other hand, they also reflect the power and status of the tomb owner. At that time, the trend of thick burials was popular in the society, so some nobles and powerful people also tried their best to pursue luxurious tomb buildings and decorations, and they also had sufficient financial and material resources. As a result, a large number of ancestral halls and tombs with portrait stones appeared. The carving techniques of these stone carvings can be roughly divided into Yin line carving, shallow relief, plane carving and openwork carving. There are also rich and colorful themes, including historical figures, fairy tales, deeds of filial piety, stories of martyrs, real life, auspicious birds and beasts, emergence of immortals and so on.
漢代的一些石雕工藝品手法獨特，有的還會使用簡單抽象、變形夸張的技巧傳神達韻，以形寫神，達到特殊的藝術(shù)效果。這些石雕運用的抽象技法形成了漢代大型石雕的主流基礎(chǔ)。具有代表性的作品是西漢時期抗擊匈奴的名將霍去病墓的石雕群，這是漢代石雕藝術(shù)的巔峰之作。現(xiàn)存石雕有《馬踏匈奴》 《石入》 《伏虎》 《臥馬》 《臥?！?《臥象》 《野豬》等十余件，都是花崗石作品，其造型古樸、傳神而深刻，體現(xiàn)了漢代石雕的剛強氣魄及深沉雄渾的風(fēng)格特色。
Some stone carving crafts in Han Dynasty have unique techniques. Some of them use simple and abstract techniques, such as deformation and exaggeration, to convey the spirit and rhyme, and to write the spirit in form, so as to achieve special artistic effect. The abstract techniques used in these stone carvings formed the mainstream basis of large stone carvings in the Han Dynasty. The representative works are the stone carvings from the tomb of Huo Qubing, a famous general fighting against Xiongnu in the Western Han Dynasty, which is the peak of the stone carving art of the Han Dynasty. There are more than ten existing stone carvings, such as horse stepping on Xiongnu, Shijin, Fuhu, crouching horse, lying cattle, lying elephant and wild boar. All of them are granite works. Their shapes are simple, vivid and profound, reflecting the strong spirit and deep and vigorous style characteristics of the stone carvings in the Han Dynasty.