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To view selected panels of the sarcophagus, roll your mouse over the diagram.
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Sarcophagus
Sui dynasty (581–619)
Stone with pigments
Side panels: h. 37 3/4 in. (96 cm); base panels: w. 97 5/8 in. (248 cm)
Excavated from the tomb (dated 598) of Yu Hong, Jinyuan, Taiyuan, Shanxi Province, 1999
Jinyuan Bureau of Cultural Properties and Tourism
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This marble sarcophagus, decorated with relief carvings and paintings, contained the remains of Yu Hong (d. 592) and his wife (d. 597, interred 598). It seems likely that Yu Hong was a high-ranking member of a community of Turkic-speaking Central Asians who had settled on the northern border of China beginning in the fourth century. While barely in his teens, he began his career in the service of another people known as the Ruru and was posted as an emissary to several countries, including Persia (Iran). During the Northern Zhou (557–581) and subsequent Sui dynasty (581–619), he served as a sabao, a term that designates a leader of foreigners, particularly merchants, on Chinese soil.The reliefs carved on the front and back of the panels of his sarcophagus, which was also decorated with paintings, reflect his varied career. The relief in the center of the interior (no. 5 on diagram) shows Yu Hong and his wife feasting in paradise, surrounded by royal luxury. Both the deceased are crowned, as are the female attendants. Below this composition are two nearly identical scenes in which a man and a lion are shown in combat. This motif is a symbolic scene which illustrates that the battle of life does not spare even the most powerful creatures. The other interior panel shows scenes of daily life in the areas west of China. They include three scenes of a lion hunt: Two of the hunters ride camels (no. 4 and no. 9 on diagram), and one rides an elephant (no. 6 on diagram). Only Arabs, not Iranians or Turks, hunted and fought on camelback. Iranians, or possibly Sogdians, identified by their clothing, are depicted in scenes of a royal procession (no. 1 on diagram) and a royal feast, while the figure riding an elephant may be Indian.
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