Inscription of Yanran
45°10′40.3″N 104°33′14.7″E / 45.177861°N 104.554083°E
The Inscription on the Ceremonial Mounding of Mount Yanran (Chinese: 封燕然山銘; pinyin: Fēng Yānránshān Míng) is an inscription written by the Eastern Han dynasty Chinese historian Ban Gu and carved by the general Dou Xian on a cliff in the Yanran Mountains (modern Khangai Mountains) in 89 AD, to commemorate Dou's victory against the nomadic Northern Xiongnu empire. Recorded in the 5th-century official history Book of Later Han, it was rediscovered by archaeologists in modern Inil Hairhan, Dundgovi Province, central Mongolia.[1][2]
History
In the first year of Yongyuan (89 AD), the imperial brother-in-law, General of Chariots and Cavalry Dou Xian, led the joint army of the Han and its allies (Southern Xiongnu, Wuhuan, Di and Qiang) in a battle against the Northern Xiongnu at the Altai Mountains. The battle was a decisive victory for the Han.
After the battle, Dou Xian held a memorial ceremony for the Tian at Mount Yanran. He ordered inscriptions to be carved on the cliff face to commemorate the victory. The text was composed by the historian Ban Gu, a member of his staff. The full text was recorded in the Bibliography of Dou Rong (great-grandfather of Dou Xian), chapter 23 of Book of the Later Han. The inscription starts with a relatively long account of the battle, and concludes with five lines of Chu Ci style poetry.[3]
Cultural significance
Cliff inscriptions were commonly used to record military success in ancient China. The inscription of Yanran is one of the best known. The expression "to carve a stone on Yanran" (Chinese: 勒石燕然) was regarded as one of the highest achievements for military generals.
Rediscovery
Mongolian archaeologists found a cliff with inscriptions in the 1990s, but they were unable to decode the text. It was finally identified in August 2017 by a joint team from Chinggis Khan University, Mongolia, and Inner Mongolia University, China.[2][4] The lead archaeologist was Professor Chimeddorji of Inner Mongolia University.[1] Written in typical Han clerical script, the inscription comprises 260 Chinese characters, of which 220 are legible. The text is identical to the recorded text in the Book of the Later Han.[1]
References
- ^ a b c Laurie Chen (21 August 2017). "Archaeologists discover story of China's ancient military might carved in cliff face". South China Morning Post.
- ^ a b Yu Shujuan (14 August 2017). "中蒙考察队中方专家齐木德道尔吉：发现《封燕然山铭》". Thepaper.cn (in Chinese).
- ^ Chang, Kang-i Sun; Owen, Stephen (2010). The Cambridge History of Chinese Literature. Cambridge University Press. p. 138. ISBN 978-0-521-85558-7.
- ^ "蒙古杭爱山发现班固为大破匈奴所书摩崖《燕然山铭》". Phoenix News (in Chinese). 14 August 2017.