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Wu Zetian: the First and Only Empress of Imperial China
Wu Zetian was born in 624 CE to a wealthy family, and her father encouraged her to learn how to read and write, as well as how to play music, the art of public speaking, and how to compose poetry, even though these skills were usually reserved...
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Gate Towers, Chang'an
A wall painting from Prince Yide's tomb, Xian, China, depicting a towered gate of Chang'an, capital of the Western Han and Tang Dynasties, amongst others. Tang Era (618-907 CE).
Article
Armour in Ancient Chinese Warfare
With zinging arrows, powerful crossbow bolts, stabbing swords, and swinging axes all a staple feature of the Chinese battlefield, it is not surprising that soldiers sought to protect themselves as best they could with armour and shields...
Interview
Rubin Museum's Faith and Empire: Tibetan Buddhist Art
Faith and Empire: Art and Politics in Tibetan Buddhism, a new exhibition at the Rubin Museum of Art in New York, explores the dynamic historical intersection of politics, religion, and art as reflected through Tibetan Buddhism. The exhibition...
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Lady Yang Guifei
Statue of Lady Yang Guifei (719-756 CE) at Huaqing Hotsprings.
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Leshan Giant Buddha
Construction of the famous Leshan Giant Buddha, an enormous statue of a Maitreya (a future Buddha) was started in 713 CE under Xuanzong's reign. A Buddhist monk named Hai Tong began the project to ward off evil spirits from the river at the...
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The Emperor Ming Huang Travelling in Shu
One of the most famous of all Chinese landscape paintings, 'The Emperor Ming Huang Travelling in Shu'. Painted silk, a later copy of a Tang dynasty original of the 8th century CE. (Palace Museum, Taipei)
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Empress Wu Zetian
Empress Wu Zetian (r. 683-704 CE) of the Tang Dynasty. Image taken from An 18th-century album of portraits of 86 emperors of China, with Chinese historical notes. Originally published/produced in China, 18th century. (British Library, Shelfmark...
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Li Po's Calligraphy
"Going Up to Sun Terrace", calligraphy scroll by the Tang Dynasty poet Li Bai, the only surviving example of Li Po's own calligraphy, is now housed at the Palace Museum in Beijing, China
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Chinese woodblock print
Woodblock print in the shangtu xiawen format (illustration above, text below) from the 9th century CE, Tang Dynasty. The top part shows the seated Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, flanked by two inscribed cartouches. The bottom part contains a...