The ''Six Steeds of Zhao Mausoleum'' () are six

Tang Tang or TANG most often refers to: * Tang dynasty * Tang (drink mix) Tang or TANG may also refer to: Chinese states and dynasties * Jin (Chinese state) (11th century – 376 BC), a state during the Spring and Autumn period, called Tang (唐) b ...

(618-907) Chinese stone

relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that the ...

s of horses (1.7m x 2.0m each) which were located in the Zhao Mausoleum,

Shaanxi Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see #Name, § Name) is a landlocked Provinces of China, province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichu ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. Zhao Mausoleum is the mausoleum of

Emperor Taizong of Tang Emperor Taizong of Tang (28January 59810July 649), previously Prince of Qin, personal name Li Shimin, was the second emperor of the Tang dynasty of China, ruling from 626 to 649. He is traditionally regarded as a co-founder of the dynasty ...

(r. 626–649). By tradition the reliefs were designed by the

court painter A court painter was an artist who painted for the members of a royal or princely family, sometimes on a fixed salary and on an exclusive basis where the artist was not supposed to undertake other work. Painters were the most common, but the cour ...

, and administrator for public works,

Yan Liben Yan may refer to: Chinese states * Yan (state) (11th century – 222 BC), a major state in northern China during the Zhou dynasty * Yan (Han dynasty kingdom), first appearing in 206 BC * Yan (Three Kingdoms kingdom), officially claimed inde ...

, and the relief is so flat and linear that it seems likely they were carved after drawings or paintings. Yan Liben is documented as producing other works for the tomb, a portrait series that is now lost, and perhaps designed the whole structure. The steeds were six precious war horses of Taizong, which he rode during the early campaigns to reunify China under the Tang, and all bear names which are not Chinese but rather transliterations of Turkic or Central Asian terms, indicative of the horses' probable origin as gifts or tributes from the Tujue to the Tang forces. They are: * Quanmaogua (), Taizong's steed during the campaign against

Liu Heita Liu Heita () (died 623) was an agrarian rebel leader during China's transition period from Sui Dynasty to Tang Dynasty, who initially successively served under Hao Xiaode (), Li Mi, and Wang Shichong. He eventually followed Dou Jiande the Prin ...

. * Shifachi (), ridden during the

Battle of Hulao The Battle of Hulao () or Battle of Sishui (汜水之戰, Wade–Giles: Ssŭ Shui), on 28 May 621 was the main and final battle of the Luoyang–Hulao campaign between the rival Tang, Zheng, and Xia regimes during the transition from Sui to Tan ...

against

Dou Jiande Dou Jiande (; 573 – 3 August 621) was a leader of the agrarian rebels who rose against the rule of Emperor Yang of Sui near the end of the Chinese Sui dynasty. Generally considered the kindest and most able of the agrarian rebel leaders ...

. Its name derives from the Turkic term

Shad The Alosinae, or the shads,Alosinae

, * Baitiwu (), ridden during the campaign against

Xue Rengao Xue Rengao (; died 618), also known as Xue Renguo (),The ''Old Book of Tang'' and the ''New Book of Tang'' both gave his name as Xue Rengao, but the ''Zizhi Tongjian'' gave his name as Xue Renguo. was an emperor of the short-lived state of Qin, ...

. * Telebiao (), ridden during the campaign against Song Jingang. Its name is originally 特勤 ''Teqin'', derived from the Turkic term

Tegin Tegin ( otk, 𐱅𐰃𐰏𐰤, Tegin, also tigin, Middle Chinese, MC *''dək-gɨn'' > Pinyin: ''Tèqín''; , erroneously ''Tèlè'' ) is a Turkic peoples, Turkic title, commonly attachable to the names of the junior members of the Khagan's fami ...

. * Qingzhui (), ridden during the campaign against Dou Jiande. * Saluzi (), ridden during the campaign against

Wang Shichong Wang Shichong (; 567– August 621), courtesy name Xingman (行滿), was a Chinese military general, monarch, and politician during the Sui dynasty who deposed Sui's last emperor Yang Tong and briefly ruled as the emperor of a succeeding state ...

. Its name derives from the Turkic 'Isbara', itself a derivation from the Sanskrit 'Isvara' meaning prince. The sculptures are regarded as ancient

Chinese art Chinese art is visual art that originated in or is practiced in China, Greater China or by Chinese artists. Art created by Chinese residing outside of China can also be considered a part of Chinese art when it is based in or draws on Chinese ...

treasures. They were stolen by

smuggler Smuggling is the illegal transportation of objects, substances, information or people, such as out of a house or buildings, into a prison, or across an international border, in violation of applicable laws or other regulations. There are various ...

s in 1914 and two of them were successfully exfiltrated out (Quanmaogua and Saluzi) and today are exhibited at the

Penn Museum The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology—commonly known as the Penn Museum—is an archaeology and anthropology museum at the University of Pennsylvania. It is located on Penn's campus in the University City neighb ...

University of Pennsylvania The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...

, USA. The remaining four are exhibited in the

Stele Forest The Stele Forest or Beilin Museum is a museum for steles and stone sculptures in Beilin District in Xi'an, Northwest China. The museum, which is housed in a former Confucian Temple, has housed a growing collection of Steles since 1087. By 194 ...

museum of

Xi'an Xi'an ( , ; ; Chinese: ), frequently spelled as Xian and also known by #Name, other names, is the list of capitals in China, capital of Shaanxi, Shaanxi Province. A Sub-provincial division#Sub-provincial municipalities, sub-provincial city o ...

Gallery

File:Emperor Taizong Horse Relief Saluzi.jpg, One of the reliefs, very likely after a drawing by Yan Liben, at the

. Here a general removes an arrow from the horse Saluzi ("Autumn Dew")Loehr, 33 File:Emperor Taizong Horse Relief Quanmaogua.jpg, Limestone relief of Quanmaogua ("Curly"). Nine arrows penetrate Quanmaogua, six in front and three in back. On display at the

in Philadelphia. File:Stone Relief Panel of Zhaoling- Battle Steed of Tang Emperor Taizong 1.jpg, One of the steeds. A copy displayed at the

Great Hall of the People The Great Hall of the People is a state building located at the western edge of Tiananmen Square in Beijing. It is used for legislative and ceremonial activities by the government of the People's Republic of China (PRC) and the ruling Chinese Co ...

in Beijing. File:Stone Relief Panel of Zhaoling- Battle Steed of Tang Emperor Taizong 2.jpg, One of the steeds. A copy displayed at the

in Beijing. File:Stone Relief Panel of Zhaoling- Battle Steed of Tang Emperor Taizong 3.jpg, One of the steeds. A copy displayed at the

in Beijing. File:Stone Relief Panel of Zhaoling- Battle Steed of Tang Emperor Taizong 5.jpg, One of the steeds. A copy displayed at the

in Beijing.

Notes

References

* Loehr, Max, ''The Great Painters of China'', 1980, Phaidon Press, *, p. 171 7th-century sculptures Chinese sculpture Stone sculptures in China Horses in art Tourist attractions in Xi'an Tang dynasty art Emperor Taizong of Tang {{China-sculpture-stub