Among the silk manuscripts excavated from tomb at Mawangdui is a small diagram that has been overlooked by art historians.
The Drawing Of “Taiyizhu”《太一祝图》
Silk | Western Han Dynasty (202 BC – 9 AD) | 43.5 cm long and 45 cm wide | Unearthed in 1973, Han Tomb No. 3, Mawangdui, Changsha City, Hunan Province | Hunan Provincial Museum Collection. 丝帛质地｜西汉（公元前202年-公元9年）｜长43.5厘米，宽45厘米｜1973年湖南省长沙市马王堆三号汉墓出土｜湖南省博物馆藏1
The Drawing Of “Taiyizhu”, aka “太一将行”, was excavated from Mawangdui Tomb No. 3. The owner of the tomb was a general, estimated to be between 30 and 40 years old.2 Understand that these briefs should be closely related to the social situation at that time. First of all, in the early Han Dynasty, Taoism was respected, and Laozi’s philosophy prevailed. He believed in “quiet and doing nothing” and “rest and live”, which provided ideological support for the Rule of Wen and Jing “文景之治”.3
The silk painting about witchcraft is related to “Taiyi” and other gods. However it is not conclusive which one is “Taiyi”. A god with antlers is drawn in the middle of the upper part. According to the inscription on its left, it may be the “Taiyi”; if it is inferred from the word “shè” “社” under its armpit, it may be just a house god. Below this god, there are two more gods on each side.4
There is also a yellow-headed blue dragon under the crotch of Taiyi, and a dragon is painted on the left and right sides of this dragon. The whole picture shows the scene of the gods travelling, with a strong mythical atmosphere. The meaning of this silk painting is still controversial in the academic community. Some scholars believe that its purpose is to pray to the god “Taiyi” for blessing and victory before going to war. The word “Taiyi” appeared during the Warring States Period (c. 475 – 221 BC) in “the Songs of Chu” 《楚辞》. In the Han Dynasty, he became a god with supreme status. The unearthing of this silk painting proves the existence of “Taiyi” worship since the Warring States Period.5
About Mawangdui Tomb No. 3
Mawangdui Tomb from the Han dynasty is one of the most important archeological discoveries in the 20th century. Initial excavations at the Mawangdui tombs in Hunan province took place between 1972 and 1974. As of 2024, 26,937 relics were unearthed and show us a colourful and vivid picture of social life in the Han Dynasty.6
The tombs contain the well-preserved remains of the Marquis Dai’s wife, Lady Xin Zhui, who was buried more than 2,000 years ago during the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24). The large number of silk books unearthed from Tomb No. 3 is like a small library of the Han Dynasty, opening a door for us to understand the ideological world of the Han Dynasty.7
Fifty years after excavations began at the Mawangdui Han Tombs, new technologies such as artificial intelligence and big data are bringing the ancient society to life and giving people a closer and more immersive interaction with history.
Photos taken in Hunan Provincial Museum, Oct 2025 unless otherwise mentioned.
About Chinese National Treasure Series
中華國寶系列 Chinese National Treasure series feature specific artefacts and relics from museums all around the world that are historically significant to be considered a National Treasure. The series covers the 5,000 years of Chinese civilisation from Neolithic periods before the Xia dynasty (c. 2070-1600 BC) to modern day.
Footnotes :
- 图分三层：上层为太一、雷、雨、风等天神；中层为四个执兵器的武神；下层有三条神龙。有学者认为其是基主出征前祭祷“太一”神、祈求战争胜利、保佑自己战中不受伤害的兵猜，回为基主生前统兵作战的实用物. Museum Information Card, Oct 2025 ↩︎
- 出土帛书的三号墓，墓主是一名将军，据推测年龄在30至40岁之间。当时长沙国与南越国接壤，长沙是军事前沿，所以墓中随葬了很多跟兵家有关的书。很显然，这些书是墓主生前经常使用的。如《相马经》，后世的四部分类归为小学的“农家”，但在汉代，应属于兵书。我们看后世的兵书，几乎都有相马和治马病的内容。又如《战国纵横家书》，很容易被当成纯粹的历史记载，其实它涉及游说和权变，跟战争和谈判有关，也可以算作兵权谋略类著作。http://www.xinhuanet.com/ci/20240919/ad6977ad5e944883a5fecbef066476c0/c.html ↩︎
- 理解这些简帛要密切联系当时的社会状况。首先，汉初尊崇道家，黄老思想盛行，信奉“清静无为”“休养生息”，为“文景之治”提供了思想支撑。当时社会安定，百姓富足，这一社会形势与马王堆汉墓中出土的《老子》及黄老道家著作相合。道家都讲究养生，这一特点跟马王堆汉墓简帛中有大量的医药养生内容也有关联。不止道家，兵家也跟医药养生有关。《五十二病方》中有不少治疗如“金伤”“刃伤”和动物蚊虫咬蜇造成的伤病的方药，一定程度上都跟战争有关，可算作军事医学的范畴。http://www.xinhuanet.com/ci/20240919/ad6977ad5e944883a5fecbef066476c0/c.html ↩︎
- 该帛画是一幅与“太一”等神祇有关的巫术图画。上部正中绘一个头戴鹿角的神祇，据其左侧题记推断，可能为“太一”神；如据其腋下的“社”字推断，则又可能是社神。在这位神祇的下方，每边有两个神祇。“太一”胯下还有一黄首青龙，此龙的左右两侧还各绘一龙。整个画面表现神祇出行景象，具有浓厚的神话气氛。此帛画的寓意，学术界尚存争议。有学者认为它的用途是墓主人生前出征打仗前祭祷“太一”神，以祈求战争胜利的兵祷。“太一”一词出现在战国中期。从传世文献来看，“太一”出现最早的应该是在《楚辞》等书中。至汉代成为具有至高无上地位的神。此帛画的出土证明了战国中后期以来“太一”崇拜的流行。 ↩︎
- “太一”一词源于道家学说，《庄子•天下》称老子的学说“主之以太一”。《吕氏春秋•大乐》这样解释太一：“道也者，至精也，不可为形，不可为名，强为之名，谓之太一。”后经方士推阐，太一成了创造宇宙，衍生万物的至上神。在楚汉人心目中具有主宰天地的无上权威。《楚辞•九歌》中就有东皇太一。按照王逸的注解，太一是星名，天之尊神，祠在楚东，以配东帝，故称东皇。《淮南子•本经训》中说：“太一者，牢笼天地，弹压山川，含吐阴阳，伸曳四时，经纲八纪，经纬六合。” 洪兴祖《楚辞补注》中则说得更具体：“太一一星，次天一南，天帝之臣也，主使十六龙，知风雨，水旱，兵革，饥谨，疾疫……。”又有一说云太一神即北极星神。在古人信仰中，星宿主宰着人间万物的生长繁殖和人类的生命。太一即北极星为众星之首，古人认为太一神作为星空之帝，主管着对农业丰收至关重要的风雨、水旱、灾害，以及关系到生活安定幸福的兵戈、饥馑、疾疫。太一俨然成了最受楚汉人崇拜的保护神。汉武帝时，“太一神”的祭祀活动定在每年正月十五，被后人视作元宵节庆习俗的先声。正月为春季万物生机萌动之时，植物生长发芽，动物开始发情交配，古人在此时祭祀星宿尊神太一，祈求一年内风调雨顺、庄稼丰收，并祈求人的生殖繁衍。https://www.hnmuseum.com/zh-hans/zuixintuijie/西汉帛画《“太一将行”图》 ↩︎
- Decades of excavation brings Han Dynasty back to life, By Zou Shuo in Changsha Published: 11:21, August 29, 2024
Unearthed artifacts include Xin Zhui’s remains, as well as lacquerware, textiles and bamboo and silk manuscripts.
Of the 1,017 lacquerware pieces recovered, 869 are still intact. Of the textiles — mainly silk and hemp — only 212 of the 24,490 pieces unearthed remain intact. There are also 1,430 bamboo and silk manuscripts items, including silk books and paintings, wooden tablets and bamboo slips, the museum said. https://www.chinadailyhk.com/hk/article/591762 ↩︎ - 马王堆汉墓是20世纪世界上最重大的考古发现之一，出土的26937件文物，为我们展现了一幅丰富多彩、生动立体的汉代社会生活图景。而三号墓出土的大量的简牍帛书，犹如一座汉代的小型图书馆，为我们打开了认识汉代思想世界的一扇大门。http://www.xinhuanet.com/ci/20240919/ad6977ad5e944883a5fecbef066476c0/c.html ↩︎
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