UW Libraries Blog

December 30, 2019

What We Can Learn from Ancient Chinese Inscription Rubbings:

Lizabeth (Betsy) Wilson, vice provost for digital initiatives and dean of University Libraries

I have been working at the UW East Asia Library  since I was a freshman. With a strong interest in ancient Chinese history and some good fortune, I got the opportunity to work on a collection of epigraph rubbings rich with historical information from the Northern Wei, Tang, and Song dynasties. The East Asia Library received these valuable rubbings from a previous donation. The set includes approximately thirty-six complete inscriptions from the Tang (618-907), Zhou (690-705, led by China’s only female emperor Wu Zetian), and Song (960-1279) dynasties.

Student employee Xianda “Nick” Hou examines Chinese stelae inscription rubbings

Many of them preserve historical information and literary texts not found in contemporary historical writings, enriching our understanding of events like the An Lushan Rebellion, linguistic phenomena such as the distinctive characters associated with Empress Wu,demographic trends such as Iranians resident in China, and religions such as Buddhism, Daoism, and Zoroastrianism. One interesting inscription records that a Samarkand chief/king led his people, comprising 5000 “tents,” to commit their allegiance to the Tang empire. It also provides evidence of Zoroastrian religious practices such as sun and moon worship. Another records the life of afemale Buddhist devotee from Samarkand who married a man from Bukhara (modern Buxoro) and lived in Shendu (Luoyang). One portrait tablet of a warrior from the Northern Wei dynasty (386-534) depicts the dress of a military officer from the dynasty. An inscription commemorating Emperor Wu Zhao’s cousin reveals details about the Wu family and Tang dynasty political structures.

There is much more interesting information to explore. Inscription rubbings hold a special place in Chinese culture and history. These examples enrich the East Asia Library’s collections, and provide fruitful material for historical and literary research. I learned traditional stone rubbing techniques in China, and have studied medieval Chinese arts since primary school. I am impressed by the quality of these rubbings and the clarity with which they render the inscriptions. I feel very fortunate to have had the chance to help catalog them over the summer.

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Coveted link to China’s past found in a basement at UW – Seattle Times, 2005