Recently, the Hunan Museum unveiled a 3D digital avatar of Lady Xin Zhui, captivating enthusiasts of traditional Chinese attire. This legendary figure has always sparked endless discussions. Currently on display at the Hunan Museum's “Women of the Han Dynasty and the Roman Empire” exhibition is a 48-gram Quju robe that has never been exhibited before, adding a touch of legendary charm.
Let's journey back to the summer of 1972. Lady Xin Zhui, the wife of Li Cang, the first Marquis of Changsha from the early Western Han Dynasty, was unearthed from the Mawangdui Han tombs in Changsha, Hunan. Upon excavation, Xin Zhui's face was well-preserved, and she was dressed in intricately decorated silk garments, exuding an aura of grace and nobility. However, due to prolonged submersion in the waterlogged tomb, the silk fabrics wrapping her body had fused together.
After much discussion, the archaeological team decided to follow the advice of Hunan Provincial Museum's then-deputy director Hou Liang. They inserted a large wooden board into the side of the wooden coffin, then slowly tilted the coffin towards the board until it was completely flat, allowing them to transfer Xin Zhui onto the board. This method enabled the safe extraction of the silk fabrics on the board. It took a week to carefully peel off the twenty layers of silk wrapped around her body. Given that silk is an organic material rich in animal proteins and highly susceptible to decay, the fact that these Han Dynasty silks survived in relatively good condition after being submerged in underground water for over two thousand years is truly miraculous.
The Archaeological Marvel of Mawangdui
In the October 2009 issue of “Chinese Heritage: The 100 Most Civilization-Significant Archaeological Discoveries,” the renowned archaeologist Xiong Chuanxin, who led the excavation of the Mawangdui Han tombs in Changsha, Hunan, praised the site: “The silk fabrics unearthed from the Mawangdui Han tombs are of exceptional quality and exquisite craftsmanship. They fully demonstrate the advanced weaving techniques of ancient China. Not only is China the earliest country in the world to raise silkworms and produce silk, but it is also the first to adopt various weaving patterns. As early as three thousand years ago, the Chinese were weaving twill, brocade, and multi-colored embroidered fabrics. These inventions have significantly contributed to human civilization and progress.”
As a discoverer, Xiong Chuanxin has also written about the excavation stories of Mawangdui. On the last day of December 1971, heavy snow blanketed the city of Changsha, creating a scene of pure white. Xiong Chuanxin and several veteran workers were warming themselves by the fire in the reception room of the Hunan Provincial Museum when the phone suddenly rang. A worker answered and heard the caller say, “The military hospital is digging an air-raid shelter at Mawangdui, and a ‘ghost fire' emerged from a small hole at the bottom of the shelter. They are too scared to continue digging…” As soon as the call ended, discussions broke out. One veteran worker speculated, “The laborers must have encountered an ancient tomb while digging the air-raid shelter at Mawangdui. This tomb must be very well-preserved.”
The next day, braving the cold, the team went to the Mawangdui construction site for a preliminary investigation. They found two ancient tombs sealed with white clay, both in excellent condition, beneath the air-raid shelter. They immediately reported the findings to the provincial cultural team, recommending an urgent excavation of the tombs. However, the provincial leaders at that time were unfamiliar with archaeology and reluctantly agreed to the excavation without fully understanding the significance of the artifacts. In 1972, Xiong Chuanxin and his team discreetly carried out what was then the only ongoing archaeological excavation in the country. In less than three months, they uncovered the massive tomb pits. The news of the Mawangdui excavation spread quickly in Changsha, attracting curious onlookers from all directions. The tomb entrance and steps were crowded with people.
For the safety of both personnel and artifacts, the archaeologists decided to clear the artifacts at night, extracting each item from the side boxes. Sometimes, it took two to three hours to safely and scientifically remove a single artifact. The team worked from seven in the evening for more than ten hours straight each night. After nearly half a month, they finally cleared all the items from the side boxes within the inner coffin.
Another unforgettable incident for Xiong Chuanxin occurred after they transferred the body of Lady Xin Zhui to the Hunan Provincial Museum. Countless curious people flocked to the museum to see the mummified body. To meet the public's demand, the archaeologists displayed a few well-preserved and durable artifacts alongside the mummy. However, due to the overwhelming number of visitors, the exhibition was halted after a few days.
At that time, Yao Wenyuan, a member of the Central Cultural Revolution Group, learned about the mummy unearthed at Mawangdui and the large number of visitors. He ordered the mummy to be sent to the crematorium for cremation. Upon hearing this, the archaeologists insisted that Yao Wenyuan must issue a formal written directive if he wanted to cremate the mummy; they would not comply with a mere verbal order. They also argued that the mummy was a valuable artifact, a product of ancient medical preservation techniques, and should not be destroyed. Eventually, the Hunan Provincial Museum did not follow Yao Wenyuan's instructions but instead preserved the mummy at the Hunan Medical College. This decision allowed future generations to witness the beauty of Lady Xin Zhui.
Other Silk Artifacts in Mawangdui
The Han tombs of Mawangdui yielded hundreds of exquisite silk artifacts. Tomb No. 1 contained six large square bamboo containers (笥, sì) filled with silk, totaling over a hundred pieces when including the silk found outside the containers. Tomb No. 3 contained even more silk, with ten containers filled with different types of silk. Besides the silk in the containers, there was also a large amount of loose silk.
To understand the richness of the silk unearthed from the Mawangdui tombs, we need only look at the clothing and accessories of Lady Xin Zhui. She had garments for all four seasons: padded robes for spring and autumn, cotton-padded robes for winter, single-layered clothing for summer, as well as silk hats, gloves, shoes, and socks. Even her bedding, such as pillows, pillowcases, and quilts, were made of silk. Additionally, various daily items, including books, paintings, sachets, bundles, handkerchiefs, sewing kits, mirror covers, musical instrument covers, and different types of bags, were all made of silk.
The types of silk discovered in Mawangdui include brocade, embroidery, plain silk, gauze, silk cloth, patterned silk, netted silk, chiffon, fresh silk, silk damask, fine silk, coarse silk, and more, with over a dozen categories in total. Each category can be further subdivided. Even the silk, familiar to most of us, comes in over ten varieties. Without an inventory list, it would be nearly impossible to know all these types. The famous Han Dynasty primer “Jiu Ji Pian” mentions thirty to forty types of silk, and Xu Shen's “Shuowen Jiezi” records over thirty varieties. However, the silk unearthed from Mawangdui surpasses these records, with fifty to sixty types.
The vibrant colors of Han Dynasty textiles are beautifully described in “Jiu Ji Pian”: “Spring grass green, chicken tail green, and duck neck green; yellow like turmeric, pale and faint, tender like newly sprouted mulberry leaves, with white as bright as frost.” This vivid depiction comes to life when you see the exquisite and radiant embroidered and printed fabrics from Mawangdui. The diversity of patterns on the Mawangdui silk indicates that the textile techniques used today were already mastered by ancient Western Han artisans to an astonishing degree of proficiency.
Among the artifacts unearthed from the Mawangdui tombs is an ancient Chinese plucked instrument called the “Se”, popular during the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. The Mawangdui Se is a 25-stringed instrument, perfectly preserved with all its strings intact. Remarkably, the strings are not made of metal but silk. During the early Western Han period, iron smelting technology was not advanced enough to produce such long metal strings, so silk was used instead. Each string was meticulously twisted from numerous single silk threads. Experts from the Shanghai Textile Research Institute examined a medium-thickness string under a microscope and discovered it was composed of 377 single threads twisted together, and then multiple such threads twisted again to form a single string. In total, a single string contained four to five thousand individual silk threads, yet it appeared uniform and smooth.
If the string were uneven, the sound produced would be off-key. After various studies and tests on these strings, experts concluded that the twisting technique of the silk strings from the 25-string se of Mawangdui matched the precision of modern electronic twisting techniques. This finding amazed many, as any slight variation in hand strength or a small stain could affect the string's pitch. Yet, ancient artisans achieved what seemed impossible, making this an extraordinary testament to their craftsmanship.
Unique Susha Danyi
Among all the silk textiles unearthed from the Mawangdui Han tombs, the most famous is undoubtedly the “Susha Danyi (Plain Gauze Gown, 素纱襌衣)”. Weighing less than one tael (approximately 37 grams), this garment is incredibly light and thin. Calculations show that this fabric weighs only 12-13 grams per square meter, making it as thin as a cicada's wing and as light as smoke. Among the numerous types of ancient Chinese silk, gauze was one of the earliest to appear.
Its simple structure is a plain weave with evenly distributed square holes. Qing Dynasty scholar Lei defined “gauze” in “Ancient and Modern Clothing” as “fabric with holes large enough to pass sand through.” The relatively loose weave and large gaps make the fabric light and airy. The lightest and most transparent gauze is known as “Qing Rong (轻容),” and the material of the Susha Danyi is likely this type.
High-quality gauze is not defined by the number of gaps but by the evenness and fineness of the silk threads. In textile science, fineness is measured using a unit where one gram of fiber per 9 kilometers is termed “Yi Dan (一旦).” The smaller the dan, the finer the fiber. Modern high-grade silk fabrics like georgette have a fineness of 14 denier. In contrast, the Susha Danyi has a fineness of only 10.5-11.3 denier. This exceptional artifact demonstrates that by the early Western Han Dynasty, the Chinese had already developed superior silkworm breeds capable of producing such fine and uniform silk, along with advanced reeling and weaving techniques, to create this extraordinarily light gauze gown.
Clothing was originally invented for warmth and modesty, yet the Susha Danyi serves neither purpose. So what was its use, and how was it worn? The name “Susha Danyi” reflects both its material and construction. “Susha (素纱)” indicates that the fabric is undyed white gauze, while “Danyi (襌衣)” refers to a garment without lining. The “Book of Rites” mentions “Dan,” which Eastern Han scholar Zheng Xuan explained as “clothing without lining.” Thus, “Danyi” signifies a single-layer garment.
Susha Danyi was worn by ancient brides over their wedding attire. During the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, specific colors were favored: black for Xia, white for Shang, and red for Zhou. The Han Dynasty, like the Zhou, also favored red. Imagine a bride dressed in a red brocade garment with elaborate decorations, covered with a plain white gauze gown. The contrast would be stunning, highlighting the vibrant red through the sheer white overlay. Given the custom of treating the deceased as if they were alive, it is reasonable that Lady Xin Zhui's wedding attire was included in her burial goods.
China is the world's earliest producer of silk, with archaeological evidence showing sericulture and silk weaving as early as six to seven thousand years ago. For four to five thousand years, China remained the only country capable of producing light and beautiful silk, and by the Han Dynasty, the Silk Road facilitated extensive silk trade. This earned China the ancient moniker “Silk Country.”
Over the past half-century, numerous exquisite ancient silk textiles have been unearthed across China. Among the most significant discoveries are the Chu tomb No. 1 in Mashan, Jiangling, Hubei, the Han tombs in Xinjiang, and the Mawangdui Han tombs in Changsha. However, the Mawangdui finds stand out for their quantity, quality, variety, and preservation. They vividly showcase the enchanting splendor of ancient China's “Silk Country.” Although the glory of the “Silk Country” has faded over the millennia, the silk artifacts from Mawangdui revive its radiant brilliance, offering a glimpse into the majestic past.
