SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS Number 187 April, 2009 Zhaoling: The Mausoleum of Emperor Tang Taizong by Xiuqin Zhou Victor H. Mair, Editor Sino-Platonic Papers Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations University of Pennsylvania Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305 USA [email protected] www.sino-platonic.org SINO-PLATONIC PAPERS is an occasional series edited by Victor H. Mair. The purpose of the series is to make available to specialists and the interested public the results of research that, because of its unconventional or controversial nature, might otherwise go unpublished. The editor actively encourages younger, not yet well established, scholars and independent authors to submit manuscripts for consideration. Contributions in any of the major scholarly languages of the world, including Romanized Modern Standard Mandarin (MSM) and Japanese, are acceptable. In special circumstances, papers written in one of the Sinitic topolects (fangyan) may be considered for publication. 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Issues from no. 1 to no. 170, however, will continue to be sold as paper copies until our stock runs out, after which they too will be made available on the Web at www.sino-platonic.org. _______________________________________________ Zhaoling: The Mausoleum of Emperor Tang Taizong by Xiuqin Zhou University of Pennsylvania Xiuqin Zhou, “The Mausoleum of Emperor Tang Taizong,” Sino-Platonic Papers, 187 (April, 2009) For Jinming, and in memory of my parents iii Xiuqin Zhou, “The Mausoleum of Emperor Tang Taizong,” Sino-Platonic Papers, 187 (April, 2009) Acknowledgments This study, an offshoot of my job at the University of Pennsylvania, would not have been realized without immeasurable support from many people. I owe much to all those who contributed to my intellectual development, most of all to my advisor, Professor Nancy Steinhardt, whose guidance was essential throughout these years. Not only for academic training, but also for her persistent encouragement when I was tempted to give up and her meticulous comments in precisely presenting my ideas in the drafts, brought this project finally to fruition. I wish to express my sincere thanks to Professor Victor Mair and Professor Paul Goldin for their stimulating courses, where some ideas in this project were developed, and for Professor Mair’s constructive comments on the draft of this work. I am especially beholden to Zhang Jianlin, deputy director of the Shaanxi Archaeological Institute, Shaanxi, China and the excavator of Zhaoling, for his exceptional generosity in sharing the excavation data. Thanks also go to the Xi’an Beilin Museum and Museum of Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Emperor Qin Shihuang, both in Shaanxi, China, for assistance and exchange of ideas. I wish to extend my gratitude to the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, its administration and my office colleagues, for their support in my research trips to Shaanxi and so many other ways. Many thanks go to Linda, Peggy and Diane of the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilization, whose smiles and assistance were a great comfort during this long journey. I am also grateful to Jidong and Juliana for their reference help and beyond. Thanks also go to my fellow schoolmates, Wu Xin, Wang Shen, Erin, Sarah, Songja, Jiajia, Lala, Sijia, Aurelia, Alexandra, Joshua, Neil, Roy, Brian, Hyunsook and others, for their support and friendship. I am deeply indebted to Karen Vellucci, who enthusiastically plunged in to help with editing and indexing to meet the deadlines. Her professional editing skills have greatly improved the readability of this volume. I alone am responsible for the entirety of the content and expression of all ideas and any errors that appear in this work. iv Xiuqin Zhou, “The Mausoleum of Emperor Tang Taizong,” Sino-Platonic Papers, 187 (April, 2009) Many thanks go to several institutions for kindly granting me permission for using images in this volume. Institutions and individuals from the People’s Republic of China include Beilin Museum, Museum of the Terracotta Warriors and Horses of Emperor Qin Shihuang, Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology, Shaanxi History Museum and Zhaoling Museum from various cities in Shaanxi province; Shanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology and Cultural Relics and the Shanxi Municipal Institute of Archaeology and Cultural Relics, both in Taiyuan, Shanxi province; and Zhang Jianlin, deputy director of the Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology. Institutions from the United States and the United Kingdom include the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago, Chicago, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C., University of California Press, Berkeley, the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Philadelphia and the British Museum, London. I am most grateful to my family members in China, who rendered me constant love, particularly during the most difficult time of the loss of my beloved mother, whose unswerving confidence and pride in me served as an infinite impetus to strive toward many goals in my life. Final gratitude goes to my spouse, Jinming, and son, Reagan, for their unconditional love and support. Reagan learned to cook and shouldered many household chores all these years; Jinming inspired and supported me in every aspect of my life including this project. I could not have completed this project without all the people mentioned above. v Xiuqin Zhou, “The Mausoleum of Emperor Tang Taizong,” Sino-Platonic Papers, 187 (April, 2009) Abstract Zhaoling: The Mausoleum of Emperor Tang Taizong Xiuqin Zhou and Nancy Steinhardt Zhaoling is one of the very few imperial mausolea that have received considerable attention in its 1,400-year history. This attention has largely been confined to general description and limited individual subjects. This study launches an effort to comprehensively investigate Zhaoling in the context of the multi-ethnic and multi-cultural background of the early Tang, and by comparison with ancient Iran, the steppes and China. It examines Zhaoling’s general layout, its architectural features, stone monuments and auxiliary burial complex. It also conducts a detailed study of the six stone horse reliefs. The study reveals that Zhaoling followed Chinese traditional concepts and replicated the capital city of Chang’an and its palatial scheme. The ratio of auxiliary tomb occupants indicates that Zhaoling was built not as a royal graveyard, but rather a complex for holding a political entity. Auxiliary tombs were used as tools to extract loyalty from high officials, Chinese and non-Chinese, to form Taizong’s “political family” for his political concept of tianxia weigong (empire is open to all). The erection of stone monuments of the six horses and fourteen officials, traced to Turkic custom, manifests another fulfillment of Taizong’s political concept. The duality of Taizong’s titles — the Chinese emperor and Heavenly Qaghan for western tribal states — brought integration into the design of Zhaoling, a blend of Chinese imperial mausoleum traditions with Turkic burial customs. An element-by- element study of the stone horse reliefs demonstrates that the development of an effective Chinese cavalry, initiated in northern China in 307 BC, necessitated a systematic importation of equestrian elements from the nomads on the Chinese border. The horse’s mane, tail, saddle, armor, bow and arrows, which show strong nomadic influences, can all be traced to ancient West Asian sources. The sculptural form of the six horse reliefs could also be inspired by Sasanian rock relief. The seeds receptive to interaction and assimilation of foreign elements were sown during the early dynastic period from pre-Qin into Sui. Emperor Taizong continued this course, expanded his political concept and made the early Tang a dualistic empire of international spirit. vi Xiuqin Zhou, “The Mausoleum of Emperor Tang Taizong,” Sino-Platonic Papers, 187 (April, 2009) Contents Acknowledgments iv Abstract vi List of Tables ix List of Figures ix List of Abbreviations xxvii Chapter One: An Overview 1. Introduction 1 2. The World of Tang Taizong 3 Chapter Two: Previous Scholarship on Zhaoling 1.