- Index - Exhibition
- The Exhibition OF Mawangdui Han Tombs
- 1.A Great Archaeological Discovery
- 2.Walking into the Family of the Marquis of Dai
- --Li Cang’s Family
- --An Extravagant Life
- --The Beauty of Lacquerware
- --The Brilliance of the Silk Country
- --The Treasure on Silk and Inscribed Slips
- 3.Set of Painted Coffins with a Big Outer Coffin
- 4.Everlasting Remains
- 5.Gallery
- The Exhibition of Shang and Zhou Bronzes Found in Hunan
- The Exhibition of Ceramics from Famous Kilns in Hunan
- Exhibition of Calligraphies in the Ming and Qing Dynasty
- Exhibition of Paintings Created in the Ming and Qing Dynasties
- Exhibition of Ten New Major Archaeological Discoveries in Hunan
Set of Painted Coffins with a Huge Outer Coffin
A set of coffins was used for holding the corpse, while an outer coffin contained the set of coffins and funeral objects. The outer coffins of Tombs No.1 and No.3 were well preserved. The outer coffin of Tomb No.1 was composed of a central coffin chamber and four partitions along the four sides. Laid in the central chamber was a set of coffins in four layers. All together, 70 planks, measuring about 52 cubic meters of wood, were used for the construction. The construction of the outer coffin of Tomb No.3 was similar to that of Tomb No.1, but it was slightly smaller in size and there was a set of just three coffins. A huge wooden outer coffin containing a magnificent set of coffins bears testimony to the advanced production technology as well as the romantic and mysterious nature of the art and culture of the Western Han dynasty.
Coffin with Painted Design on Black Lacquer Coating
Length 256cm width 118cm height 114cmUnearthed from Tomb No.1
This is the coffin of the second layer. Its inside is coated with vermilion lacquer. Its outside, coated with black lacquer, is painted with patterns of dynamic flowing cloud scrolls. Amid the scrolls are over 110 mythical scenes such as “An immortal subduing a leopard”, “A mythical deity catching a snake”, “A big bird holding a fish” or “An immortal playing music” etc.
Coffin with Painted Design on Vermilion Lacquer Coating
Length 230cm width 92cm height 89cmUnearthed from Tomb No.1
This is the coffin of the third layer. The coffin is coated with vermilion lacquer both inside and outside. The outside is further painted with auspicious patterns of dragons, tigers, pheasants, deer and immortals in bluish green, light brown, russet, yellow and white.
Innermost Coffin Decorated with Brocade
Length:202cm Width:69cm Height:63cmUnearthed from Tomb No.1
This is the innermost coffin used to contain the corpse of the Marquis of Dai’s wife. The inside of the coffin is coated with vermilion lacquer, and the outside with black lacquer. Two bands of silk ribbons,12cm in width and in 6 to 7 layers, are twined across the outside of the coffin. The lid and the four sides of the coffin was decorated with piled embroidery and thin silk pasted fine feathers.
Wooden Outer Coffin from Tomb No.1
Length: 672cm Width: 488cm Height: 280cmThe outer coffin with a double cover and a double bottom was placed on three sleepers at the base of the tomb when it was unearthed. It is composed of a central coffin chamber and four side boxes in the shape of the Chinese character “井”, thus it was known as a 井-shaped outer coffin according to the ancient documents. The side boxes, which contain more than 1,000 cultural relics, cover an area of 6.8 square meters and occupy a volume of 917 cubic meters. In the central chamber is a set of coffins arranged in four layers, one containing another: a coffin coated with black lacquer, a coffin undercoated with black lacquer and painted with designs, a coffin undercoated with vermilion lacquer and painted with designs and a coffin ornamented with brocade. Such a huge outer coffin is joined by mortises and tenons without using any metal rivets. This is the most exquisite outer coffin of the Han Dynasty.