Li Xian (Northern Zhou general)

For the Tang prince named Li Xian, see Prince Zhanghuai.
Li Xian
李賢
Portrait from the tomb of General Li Xian.
Created569 CE
DiscoveredGuyuan, Northern China
Guyuan is located in China
Guyuan
Guyuan

Li Xian (Chinese: 李贤, Lǐ Xián, 502–569 CE) was a Northern Zhou general and Governor of Dunhuang.[1] He was born in 502 CE in Guyuan, at the time under Northern Wei rule.[2] As a soldier, he served the three dynasties of the Northern Wei, Western Wei, and Northern Zhou.[3] Emperor Yuwen Tai entrusted him with the education of two of his sons during 6 years, as the imperial court had become too dangerous, and one of them, Yuwen Yong, would become Emperor Wu of Northern Zhou.[3] Li Xian was in charge of defenses on the northern frontier of the Chinese Empire, in contact with the Silk Road.[4] He died in Changan at the age of 66, in 569 CE.[1] He was important enough to be mentioned in the Zhoushu and the Beishi.[2] He was the great-grandfather of the famous Sui dynasty princess Li Jingxun.[4]

His tomb, where he was buried with his wife Wu Hui (吴辉), was discovered in Guyuan in 1983 (北周李贤墓).[4] The tomb was built in brick, and composed of a 42-meter sloping ramp leading to a square corbelled chamber.[1] The walls of the whole structure were covered with paintings of officials, soldiers, servants, and musicians, but only a few have remained intact.[1][5] Numerous small statuettes of servants and warriors were also found in the tomb (239 in total).[6][7]

His epitaph suggests that his distant ancestors were of Tuoba-Xianbei, or possibly Turkic, descent.[4][8][9][10] The epitaph of Li Xian contains the following line about his ancestry:

Epitaph of Li Xian, with transliteration
Epitaph of Li Xian, with transliteration

本姓李，漢將陵之後也。十世祖俟地歸，聰明仁智，有則哲之監，知魏聖帝齊聖廣淵，奄有天下，乃率諸國定扶戴之議。鑿石開路，南越陰山，竭手爪之功，成股肱之任，建國㩉拔，因以為氏

"The surname [of the deceased] is Li, a descendant of Han dynasty General Li Ling. His 10th generation ancestor was Yidigui, intelligent, generous and full of wisdom, cognizant of the nature of men, who knew Emperor Shengwu the very holy, ruler of the world, leader of all countries with justice, who opened roads among the rocks, went south across the Yin Mountains, used his skills to the utmost, accomplished major service, built the country of the Tuoba, and thereby achieved a great name."

— Epitaph of Li Xian (extract).[11][12][13]

Although the epitaph states that Li Xian was descended from Li Ling, it also explains that his 10th generation ancestor was named Yidigui ("俟地归"), and that he had migrated south from the steppes across the Yin Mountains ("南越陰山"), so Li Xian himself had visibly not forgotten his origin from the northern steppes.[2] According to the epitaph, Yidigui also was acquainted with the "Saint Emperor of the Wei" ("魏聖帝"), thought to be the Tuoba chieftain Tuoba Jiefen whose similar dynastic name was "Emperor Shengwu" (圣武皇帝), and who led the second Tuoba migration to the south.[14]

Regardless of origin, the Chinese one-syllable name "Li" had been used at least since the time of his great-grandfather, who was Governor of Tianshui and "General of Pacifying the West" (laws had been passed forbidding Xianbei clothing at court, and demanding the adoption of Chinese one-syllable names during the 5th century CE).[2] His tomb contained several Central Asian objects too, such as a ewer with Greco-Roman scenes.[4][1][15] The grave also contained a sword with round pommel and scabbard-type attachement.[16][17] According to the epitaph, he received a posthumous title: "Pillar of the State Great General" (柱国大将军)".[3]

Li Xian claimed descent from the Longxi Li clan through the line of Li Ling. The Longxi Li were also claimed as ancestors by the imperial house of the Tang dynasty (618–907 CE) through a different line, though it was suggested in the 20th century that the Tang imperial house may have actually descended from an eastern lineage, the Zhaojun Li, who intermarried extensively with the "non-Chinese tribal aristocracy."[18] The probable Tuoba-Xianbei origins of Li Xian as revealed by his epitaph has led to some scholars suggesting that the rulers of the Tang dynasty had mixed "barbarian" background, rather than being purely Han as suggested by official Tang records, and that they might have modified their genealogy to conceal their part Xianbei heritage while preserving various Xianbei customs.[19][20]

  • Tomb of Li Xian (plan). 42 meter sloping ramp leading to a square corbelled chamber. Structure similar to the Tomb of Li Shou
    Tomb of Li Xian (plan). 42 meter sloping ramp leading to a square corbelled chamber. Structure similar to the Tomb of Li Shou
  • A ewer with Greco-Roman scenes from the tomb of Northern Zhou general Li Xian.[4][1] It was probably made in Bactria.[21]
    A ewer with Greco-Roman scenes from the tomb of Northern Zhou general Li Xian.[4][1] It was probably made in Bactria.[21]
  • Tomb of Li Xian, panel
    Tomb of Li Xian, panel
  • Tomb of Li Xian, panel
    Tomb of Li Xian, panel
  • Tomb of Li Xian, panel
    Tomb of Li Xian, panel
  • Tomb of Li Xian, panel
    Tomb of Li Xian, panel
  • Epitaph of Li Xian (李賢墓誌).[11]
    Epitaph of Li Xian (李賢墓誌).[11]
  • Tombstone of Li Xian
    Tombstone of Li Xian
  • The expression "建國㩉拔" Jianguo Tuoba ("Built the Country of the Tuoba") in the epitaph.
    The expression "建國㩉拔" Jianguo Tuoba ("Built the Country of the Tuoba") in the epitaph.
  1. ^ a b c d e f Carpino, Alexandra; James, Jean M. (1989). "Commentary on the Li Xian Silver Ewer". Bulletin of the Asia Institute. 3: 71–75. ISSN 0890-4464. JSTOR 24048167.
  2. ^ a b c d Whitfield, Susan (2018). Silk, Slaves, and Stupas: Material Culture of the Silk Road. Univ of California Press. p. 198-. ISBN 978-0-520-95766-4. About the epitaph tablets: "All these tell us that Li Xian was born to a prominent family in the Guyuan area -in present-day Ningxia Province, China, where the tomb is located, then under the rule of the Northern Wei. His family were migrants to this area. The biographies record that his 10th generation ancestor Yidigui had come southwest from the steppes across the Yin mountains. (...) As we see from the biographies, they had not lost knowledge of their northern steppe ancestry"
  3. ^ a b c Wu, Jui-Man (2010). Mortuary Art in the Northern Zhou China (557–581 CE): Visualization of Class, Role, and Cultural Identity (PDF) (PhD dissertation). University of Pittsburgh. p. 109–.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Wu, Mandy Jui-man (2004). "Exotic Goods as Mortuary Display in Sui Dynasty Tombs—A Case Study of Li Jingxun's Tomb". Sino-Platonic Papers. 142.
  5. ^ Shi, Li. The History of Art in Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasty. DeepLogic. p. 18.
  6. ^ Watt, James C. Y. (2004). China: Dawn of a Golden Age, 200–750 AD. Metropolitan Museum of Art. p. 255. ISBN 978-1-58839-126-1.
  7. ^ Dien, Albert E. (2007). Six Dynasties Civilization. Yale University Press. pp. 224–227 (Fig. 40–41). ISBN 978-0-300-07404-8.
  8. ^ Juliano, Annette L.; Lerner, Judith A.; Alram, Michael; Society, Asia; Museum, Asia Society (October 2001). Monks and Merchants: Silk Road Treasures from Northwest China. Harry N. Abrams. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-8109-3478-8. Li Xian was from a prominent family of the Guyuan area where the lacquered coffin cited above was found. There is some question as to the ethnic affiliation of the Li family ; Turkish , Xiongnu , and Xianbei have all been argued. A tenth generation ancestor named Yidigui led the way south through the Yin Mountains. Li Xian's family had been in Guyuan for at least three generations and in the Tianshui area before that , so no doubt there had been a long period of adaptation to Chinese culture.
  9. ^ Holcombe, Charles (2001). The Genesis of East Asia, 221 B.C.-A.D. 907. University of Hawaii Press. p. 140. ISBN 978-0-8248-6475-0.
  10. ^ Ma, Debin; Glahn, Richard von (24 February 2022). The Cambridge Economic History of China: Volume 1, To 1800. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-1-108-55479-4. Before adopting the surname Li, the ancestors of Lixian were Tuoba, the royal Xianbei lineage of the Northern Dynasties.
  11. ^ a b For the Simplified Chinese transcription: Wu, Jui-Man (2010). Mortuary Art in the Northern Zhou China (557–581 CE): Visualization of Class, Role, and Cultural Identity (PDF) (PhD dissertation). University of Pittsburgh. pp. 198–199 B:4.
  12. ^ Original text of the epitaph (portion about ancestry): 本姓李，漢將陵之後也。十世祖俟地歸，聰明仁智，有則哲之監，知魏聖帝齊聖廣淵，奄有天下，乃率諸國定扶戴之議。鑿石開路，南越陰山，竭手爪之功，成股肱之任，建國㩉拔，因以為氏。
    Simplified: 本姓李，汉将陵之后也。十世祖俟地归，聪明仁智，有则哲之监，知魏圣帝齐圣广渊，奄有天下，乃率诸国定扶戴之仪，凿石开路，南越阴山，竭手爪之功，成股肱之任，建国拓拔，因以为氏。
    "墓誌數據庫詳情-浙大墓誌庫". csid.zju.edu.cn.
  13. ^ 文物 (in Chinese). 文物出版社. 1985.
  14. ^ "中国考古集成" (in Chinese). 北京出版社: 3709. 其十世祖"俟地归"氏应为一少数民族姓氏。关于其祖随魏南迁一事,志文较本传为详。魏圣帝指圣武帝拓跋诘玢。鲜卑拓跋部东汉初迁居今内蒙古地带的呼伦贝尔草原一带,在此居七代后,献帝拓眩邻"七分国人"共分八部,让他们放弃大泽牧地继续南迁。 {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  15. ^ Setaioli, Aldo (2020). "Harbingers of the Trojan War on a Gilt Silver Ewer from Guyuan". Giornale Italiano di Filologia. 72: 9–17. doi:10.1484/J.GIF.5.121451. ISSN 0017-0461. S2CID 235005938.
  16. ^ Csiky, Gergely (2015). Avar-Age Polearms and Edged Weapons: Classification, Typology, Chronology and Technology. Brill. p. 316. ISBN 978-90-04-30454-3.
  17. ^ "Guyuan Museum notice". 26 August 2021.
  18. ^ Wechsler, Howard J. (1979). Sui and T'ang China, 589–906. Part 1. Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press. p. 151. ISBN 9781139055949. This genealogy claimed by the T'ang royal house established its claim to be descended from a notable Han clan and to be members of a prominent north-western lineage. However, there is some reason to believe that this line of descent, presented as solid fact by the T'ang histories, was in fact a deliberate fabrication. It has been suggested that the Li clan was not connected with the royal house of Western Liang, or with the prestigious Li clan of Lung-hsi, but was a minor offshoot of an eastern lineage, the Li clan of Chao-chun in Ho-pei, who had settled in the north-west under the Toba Northern Wei, and had intermarried widely with the non-Chinese tribal aristocracy." Two of the men who, it has been suggested, were among the ancestors of Li Hu [grandfather of Li Yuan] were the generals Li Ch'u-ku-pa and Li Mai-te, whose names show that they had either adopted or been granted the Chinese surname Li, but retained alien, perhaps Hsien-pei, personal names.
  19. ^ Chen, Sanping (1996). "Succession Struggle and the Ethnic Identity of the Tang Imperial House". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society. 6 (3): 381. doi:10.1017/S1356186300007793. ISSN 1356-1863. JSTOR 25183243. S2CID 162460345. The official histories compiled during the Tang had been subjected to much political doctoring in order to mask and conceal the imperial house's "barbarian" background. The newest proof is the recent archaeological discovery showing that another contemporary prominent Li clan, namely that of Li Xian, the Northern Zhou Grand General with the same Longxi ancestry claim, was in fact of unmistakable Tuoba Xianbei descent.
  20. ^ Chen, Sanping (2012). Multicultural China in the Early Middle Ages. University of Pennsylvania Press. pp. 5–6. ISBN 978-0-8122-0628-9.
  21. ^ Whitfield, Susan (2018). Silk, Slaves, and Stupas: Material Culture of the Silk Road. University of California Press. p. 174. ISBN 978-0-520-95766-4.