Diary of a Rambling Antiquarian

Monday, 22 August 2016

Western Xia Tombs

On Friday we visited the 108 Stupas 20 km south of Yinchuan, and over the weekend I attended (but did not actively participate in) a Tangut studies conference held at the Research Center for Tangut History and Culture of Beifang University of Nationalities 北方民族大学西夏研究所. Today is my last day in Yinchuan, and an excursion to the Western Xia imperial mausoleums has been arranged. There are over two hundred Western Xia tombs of various sizes located on the plain between the Helan mountains to the west and the city of Yinchuan (the erstwhile capital of the Western Xia empire) to the east. The nine biggest tombs have been identified as the final resting places of the emperors of the Western Xia, with their consorts and family members buried in smaller tombs nearby.

Location of Nine Western Xia Imperial Tombs

Click on the image to open my Google Maps map showing the location of all 200+ Western Xia tombs Yinchuan.

(Image of map showing all Western Xia tombs)

Background Discussion of the Western Xia Tombs

The nine imperial tombs are designated "L1" through "L9" from south to north, as shown on the plan below ("L" stands for Líng 陵 "mausoleum"), and the minor tombs are designated "M1" through "M207" ("M" stands for Mù 墓 "tomb").

Plan of Nine Western Xia Imperial Tombs

Source: Xǔ Chéng and Dù Yùbīng, Xīxià Líng Fig. 1 on p. 7

For ease of discussion, the table below lists the Western Xia emperors, including the father and grandfather of the first emperor, who were posthumously given imperial titles.

Emperors of the Western Xia
No.	Personal Name	Imperial Name	Posthumous Title	Tomb Name	Dates	Reign
	Lǐ Jìqiān 李繼遷	Tàizǔ 太祖	Shénwǔ Huángdì 神武皇帝	Yùlíng 裕陵	963–1004	(990–1004)
	Lǐ Démíng 李德明	Tàizōng 太宗	Guāngshèng Huángdì 光聖皇帝	Jiālíng 嘉陵	981–1032	(1004–1032)
1	Lǐ Yuánhào 李元昊	Jǐngzōng 景宗	Wǔliè Huángdì 武烈皇帝	Tàilíng 泰陵	1003–1048	1038–1048
2	Lǐ Liàngzuò 李諒祚	Yìzōng 毅宗	Zhāoyīng Huángdì 昭英皇帝	Ānlíng 安陵	1047–1068	1048–1068
3	Lǐ Bǐngcháng 李秉常	Huìzōng 惠宗	Kāngjìng Huángdì 康靖皇帝	Xiànlíng 獻陵	1061–1086	1068–1086
4	Lǐ Qiánshùn 李乾順	Chóngzōng 崇宗	Shèngwén Huángdì 聖文皇帝	Xiǎnlíng 顯陵	1083–1139	1086–1139
5	Lǐ Rénxiào 李仁孝	Rénzōng 仁宗	Shèngzhēn Huángdì 聖德皇帝	Shòulíng 壽陵	1124–1193	1139–1193
6	Lǐ Chúnyòu 李純佑	Huánzōng 桓宗	Zhāojiǎn Huángdì 昭簡皇帝	Zhuānglíng 莊陵	1177–1206	1193–1206
7	Lǐ Ānquán 李安全	Xiāngzōng 襄宗	Jìngmù Huángdì 敬慕皇帝	Kānglíng 康陵	1170–1211	1206–1211
8	Lǐ Zūnxū 李遵頊	Shénzōng 神宗	Yīngwén Huángdì 英文皇帝		1163–1226	1211–1223
9	Lǐ Déwàng 李德旺	Xiànzōng 獻宗	Xiào'āi 孝哀		1181–1226	1223–1226
10	Lǐ Xiàn 李晛	(Mòdì 末帝 "Last Emperor")	*		?–1227	1226–1227

* Lǐ Xiàn was posthumously titled Shidurghu ᠱᠢᠳᠤᠷᠭᠤ "simple, right, just" by the Mongols, and is referred to as Schidascou or Shidaskû in 18th-century European sources.

The imperial tombs were originally identifiable by steles with inscriptions in Chinese and Tangut erected to commemorate and eulogize the occupants of the tombs, but when the Western Xia was defeated by the Mongols in 1227 they burned the imperial tombs and smashed to pieces all the steles, so it is difficult to be sure who the tombs were built for. The imperial tombs each have the remains of two or three stele pavilions (only L1, L2 and L5 have three), which were built to house steles with Tangut or Chinese inscriptions, and about 60–70 of the minor tombs also have the remains of stele pavilions. Ten stele pavilions from four imperial tombs (L3, L5, L6, L7) and two minor tombs (M177, M182) were excavated during the 1970s and 1980s, resulting in the recovery of several thousand fragments of steles, some blank, some with decoration, and some with Chinese or Tangut text. The fragments with writing excavated from tombs L6, L7, M177 and M182 were published in Lǐ 1984. Some of the inscribed fragments from tombs L3 and L5 were published in Xǔ and Dù 1995. The second stele pavilion at L3 was excavated in 1998, resulting in the discovery of a further 711. Additionally, 111 Tangut and Chinese fragments have been found at various other locations at the Western Xia tombs site between 1971 and 2005, and 197 Tangut fragments are in the private collection of Jiǎ Jìngyán 賈敬顏.

Excavated Stele Fragments
Tomb	Pavilion	Date Excavated	Fragments	Language
L3	East	1987	360 fragments	Tangut
L3	West	1998	711 fragments	Tangut
L5	East (north)	1977	26 fragments	Chinese
L5	West	1977	63 fragments	Tangut
L6	East	1974	338 fragments (48 large characters; 290 small characters)	Tangut
L6	West	1974	709 fragments	Tangut (388) Chinese (321)
L7	East	1975	510 fragments	Chinese
L7	West	1975	1,284 fragments (including 19 fragments of seal script stele heading)	Tangut
L8	West	1972	49 fragments	Tangut (47) Chinese (2)
M161	West	1972	18 fragments	Chinese
M177	East	1977	81 fragments	Tangut (55) Chinese (26)
M177	West	1977	35 fragments	Tangut (20) Chinese (15)
M182		1975	361 fragments	Tangut (133) Chinese (228)
Elsewhere		1971–2005	111 fragments	Tangut (29) Chinese (82)
Jiǎ Jìngyán			197 fragments	Tangut

Based on these stele fragments, Lǐ Fànwén 1984 was able to identify the occupants of tombs L6, L7, M177 and M182, although two of his identifications have not been widely accepted.

Lǐ tentatively identified the occupant of L6 (old number M8) as Emperor Shenzong, but this identification has since been rejected.
Lǐ identified the occupant of L7 (old number M2) as Lǐ Rénxiào (Emperor Renzong), and this identification is now accepted as certain.
Lǐ identified the occupant of M177 (old number M101) as Lǐ Rénxiào's younger brother Lǐ Rényǒu 李仁友 (c. 1126–1196). Xǔ and Dù do not support this identification, and suggest the occupant was born circa 1150 and died circa 1220 (the occupant's skeleton is dated to about seventy years old).
Lǐ identified the occupant of M182 (old number M108) as Wéimíng Ānhuì 嵬名安惠, chief minister of Lǐ Qiánshùn, who enfeoffed him as Prince Zhengxian of Liang (梁國正獻王). He died in 1129, but the stele fragments record the date 1215, so the steles cannot have been written until some 86 years after his death. Lǐ Fànwén's explanation (which Xǔ and Dù agree with) is that Wéimíng's family lost favour after his death, and it was only when the family were rehabilitated after Lǐ Zūnxū acceded to the throne that it was possible to erect steles in his memory.

As there were ten emperors of the Western Xia, and there would be no tomb for the last emperor who was killed by the Mongols, Lǐ Fànwén postulated that the nine large-scale tombs are for the first nine emperors, from Emperor Jingzong (Lǐ Yuánhào) through Emperor Xianzong (Lǐ Déwàng). To fit with his identification of Tombs L6 and L7 as belonging to the eighth and fifth emperors respectively, he hypothesized that the tombs for the first six emperors were built from south to north away from the edge of the Helan Mountains (i.e. L1, L2, L3, L5, L7, L8 for Emperors Jingzong through Huanzong), and the tombs for the last three emperors were built from south to north along the edge of the Helan Mountains (i.e. L4, L6, L9 for Emperors Xiangzong through Xianzong).

However, this hypothesis has not gained acceptance, for two main reasons. Firstly, Lǐ Yuánhào made his father and grandfather posthumous emperors, and it is recorded that they were buried by the Helan Mountains. The two southernmost tombs (L1 and L2) are in the position of greatest respect, and are the only two tombs to have a tomb platform of nine steps (the other tombs only have seven or five steps), so according to Dù Yùbīng they should be the tombs of Lǐ Yuánhào's father and grandfather. Secondly, there would not have been enough time to build a tomb for Emperor Xianzong before the Western Xia was overthrown in the year following his death, and during this period of war there may also not have been enough time to build a tomb for Emperor Shenzong. Therefore, the currently accepted hypothesis is that the nine large-scale tombs were built for the grandfather and father of Lǐ Yuánhào (L1 and L2 respectively), and for the first seven emperors (L3 through L9), with the tombs zigzagging up the plain from south to north.

Identification of Western Xia Imperial Mausoleums
No.	Old No.	Occupant	Role	Death	Tomb Plan *
L1	M15	Lǐ Jìqiān 李繼遷	Grandfather of 1st emperor	1004	Fig. 6
L2	M14	Lǐ Démíng 李德明	Father of 1st emperor	1032	Fig. 7
L3	M11	Lǐ Yuánhào 李元昊	1st emperor	1048	Fig. 8
L4	M12	Lǐ Liàngzuò 李諒祚	2nd emperor	1067	Fig. 10
L5	M10	Lǐ Bǐngcháng 李秉常	3rd emperor	1086	Fig. 12
L6	M8	Lǐ Qiánshùn 李乾順	4th emperor	1139	Fig. 13
L7	M2	Lǐ Rénxiào 李仁孝	5th emperor	1193	Fig. 21
L8		Lǐ Chúnyòu 李純佑	6th emperor	1206
L9	M1	Lǐ Ānquán 李安全	7th emperor	1211

* Tombs L8 and L9 were built over during the 1970s, destroying all of the tomb sites except for the two burial mounds. Tomb L7 has been partially built on, but most of the site is intact.

The imperial mausoleums all share the same basic plan, oriented south to north, as illustrated for Tomb L2 shown below. They have the following features:

Outer Wall (wàichéng 外城). L1, L2, L5, L6 and L7 have an outer wall that encloses all or most of the tomb, with corner towers (jiǎotái 角臺). Tombs L3 and L4 are unexpectedly missing an outer wall.
Gate Tower, literally "magpie terrace" (quètái 鵲臺). The entrance to the tomb complex is from the south, and all tombs have a pair of towers, up to 6 m in height, made of rammed earth just inside the south outer wall, flanking the "spirit road" leading up to the tomb. These towers are called "magpie terraces" because of an anecdote that in 773 a pair of magpies was seen to be repairing the observatory platform at the Qianling Mausoleum where Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu Zetian of the Tang dynasty were buried. In fact they might not be gate towers at all, but the remnant cores of Buddhist stupas.
Stele Pavilion (bēitíng 碑亭). All tombs have at least one stele pavilion, which is a raised platform of rammed earth on which steles with epitaphs for the dead were placed (whether not the steles were inside a pavilion built on the platform is debatable). Tombs L3, L6 and L7 have two stele pavilions, one on each side of the spirit road, directly between the gate towers to the south and the outer enclosure to the north. Tombs L1, L2 and L5 have an additional smaller stele pavilion on the east side, between the main stele pavilion and the gate tower. Tomb L4 only seems to have a single stele pavilion, on the west side.
Outer Enclosure, literally "moon walled city" (yuèchéng 月城). A protective wall or barbican encloses a rectangular area in front of the entrance to the inner enclosure.
Inner Enclosure, literally "mausoleum walled city" (língchéng 陵城). A square wall encloses the main tomb area, with watch-towers (jiǎoquè 角闕) at the four corners, and fortified entrances in the middle of the wall on all four sides.
Tomb Mound (língtái 陵臺). The main feature of the whole tomb is a huge mound, up to 30 m across and 23 m in height, positioned off-centre in the north-west part of the inner enclosure. The mounds are constructed from rammed earth, and are octagonal in shape (L5 has been eroded to circular rump), with five or seven levels. The mounds have holes for wooden beams, and vast numbers of tiles have been recovered from the vicinity, which indicates that the surviving mounds are only the cores of a more substantial architectural feature. They would originally have been coated with bricks, and have tiled eaves at each level, forming an impressive building somewhat similar to a wide-based pagoda. Although it now looks like a burial mound, and is called a burial mound, this structure is solid, and does not actually house the burial chamber, which is deep underground. This pagoda-style 'burial mound' is unique to the Tanguts, and is completely different to other imperial mausoleums in China.
Hall of Offerings (xiàndiàn 献殿). The hall is situated in the south-west part of the inner enclosure, about 50 m directly south of the tomb mound. All that remains of the hall is a square platform of rammed earth.
Fish-back Ridge (yújǐliáng 魚脊梁). Running south to north between the hall of offerings and the tomb mound is a low ridge, up to 50 m in length, with its highest and widest point (c. 12 m wide and 2 m high) at the north, tapering narrower and lower towards the south. The ridge covers the sloping passageway (mùdào 墓道) from the surface to the burial chamber (mùshì 墓室) deep beneath the earth. For Tomb L3 the stepped passageway is 46 metres in length and slopes at 24°.
Central Platform (zhōngxīntái 中心臺). In the exact centre of the inner enclosure of Tombs L1 and L2 (and also some minor tombs) there is a square platform of rammed earth, about 5 m × 5 m, and 5 m in height, with broken tile fragments scattered around. The purpose of this structure is unknown.
Robber Tunnel (dàokēng 盗坑). Obvously not part of the original tomb layout, but unfortunately a ubiquitous feature of the Western Xia tombs is a pit situated between the north end of the fish-back ridge and the tomb mound, which is the remains of a robber tunnel dug by grave robbers in centuries past, directly above the entrance to the burial chamber.

Plan of Tomb L2

Source: Xǔ Chéng and Dù Yùbīng, Xīxià Líng Fig. 7 on p. 17

The minor tombs copy this general layout, but on a smaller scale. Most have a square or rectangular wall forming an inner enclosure, in northwest part of which the tomb mound and a fish-back ridge are sited. Some enclosures have two or three tomb mounds, presumably representing a family group. Some of the large tombs have an outer enclosure, and one or tw stele pavilions. A minority of tombs have no enclosure at all. The following six types of minor tomb layout have been identified:

Classification of tomb types

Source: Xǔ Chéng and Dù Yùbīng, Xīxià Líng Fig. 22 on p. 40

Tombs M177 (Type AI) and M182 (Type C) were excavated in the 1970s, and the diagram below shows the location of the burial chamber below the burial mound, and the sloping passageway that leads from the surface to the entrance to the burial chamber.

Photograph of Tomb M177 showing the excavated tomb passageway

Source: Xǔ Chéng and Dù Yùbīng, Xīxià Líng Plate IV.3

Cross-sectional view of Tomb M177

Source: Xǔ Chéng and Dù Yùbīng, Xīxià Líng Fig. 42 on p. 74

(Cross-sectional view of Tomb M182)

Stone horse excavated from Tomb M177

Diary of a Rambling Antiquarian

Western Xia Tombs

Background Discussion of the Western Xia Tombs

Note on my Map of the Western Xia Tombs

Back to Today's Visit

An Early Return

Bibliography