A New Example of Early Medieval Multiculturalism: The Tomb of Qu Qing and His Wife in Anyang

Abstract

The materials of a new burial complex in Anyang (Henan Province, China) combining features of the tombs of Northern Qi and Sui, and of the “Sogdian” tombs of the 6th century AD are presented. From the text of the epitaph placed in the burial chamber it is known that aristocrat Qu Qing and his wife Lady Han were buried there. Qu Qing was the grandson of Qu Jia, the founder of one of the ruling dynasties of the Gaochang Kingdom. His wife came from a noble family, possibly with Wuhuan roots. The set of stone items, including door leaves, an engraved panel above them, an engraved screen, and a burial bed decorated with engravings, reliefs and paintings, serves as a valuable source of information about the heterogeneous culture of Early Medieval China. The images on the door and the panel above it are similar in content and style to the murals of the Northern Qi tombs. The plots of the compositions on both sides of the stone screen came from early collections of xiaoshuo prose, that can be classified as zhiguai xiaoshuo (“tales of the miraculous”). The stone bed is similar in design and partly in decorative motifs to the objects from the “Sogdian” burials of the Northern dynasties and Sui. The tomb demonstrates an example of adaptation and transformation of borrowed elements of funeral rites under the influence of Han culture. The combination of Confucian, Taoist, Buddhist and Zoroastrian images and motifs reflects the situation of religious syncretism typical of the early Middle Ages.