Yinqueshan Han Slips
Encyclopedia
The Yinqueshan Han Slips are ancient Chinese writing tablets, made of bamboo strips
and were discovered in 1972. The tablets contain many important writings that were not previously known, and important copies of existing work.
Discovered in 1972 in Tombs no. 1 and 2 at the foot of Yinqueshan (Silver Sparrow Mountain), located southeast of the city of Linyi
in the province of Shandong
. Discovered in Tomb no. 1 were 4942 bamboo strips covered in closely written words and included portions of known texts, as well as a number of previously unknown military and divination texts, some of which were shown to resemble chapters in Guanzi and Mozi. The occupant had been identified as a military officer bearing the surname Sima.
Tomb no. 2, unearthed the same year, contained 32 strips of bamboo writings which clearly represent sections of a calendar for the year 134 BC
.
The time of burial for both tombs had been dated to about 140 BC
/134 BC
and 118 BC
, the texts having been written on the bamboo slips before then. After restoration and arrangement, the slips were organised into a sequential order of nine groups and 154 sections. The first group included 13 fragment chapters from Sunzi's The Art of War
, and 5 undetermined chapters; the second group were the 16 chapters of Sun Bin
's Art of War, which had been missing for at least 1,400 years; the third included the 7 original and lost chapters from the Six Strategies (before this significant find only the titles of the lost chapters were known); the fourth and fifth included 5 chapters from the Weiliaozi and 16 chapters from the Yanzi; the rest of the groups included anonymous writings.
Bamboo and wooden slips (writing material)
Bamboo and wooden slips were one of the main media for literacy in early China. The long, narrow strips of wood or bamboo typically carry a single column of brush-written text each, with space for several tens of Chinese characters. For longer texts, many slips may be bound together in sequence...
and were discovered in 1972. The tablets contain many important writings that were not previously known, and important copies of existing work.
Discovered in 1972 in Tombs no. 1 and 2 at the foot of Yinqueshan (Silver Sparrow Mountain), located southeast of the city of Linyi
Linyi
Linyi is a prefecture-level city in the south of Shandong province, People's Republic of China. The largest prefecture-level city in Shandong both by area and total population, Linyi borders Rizhao to the east, Weifang to the northeast, Zibo to the north, Tai'an to the northwest, Jining to the...
in the province of Shandong
Shandong
' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
. Discovered in Tomb no. 1 were 4942 bamboo strips covered in closely written words and included portions of known texts, as well as a number of previously unknown military and divination texts, some of which were shown to resemble chapters in Guanzi and Mozi. The occupant had been identified as a military officer bearing the surname Sima.
Tomb no. 2, unearthed the same year, contained 32 strips of bamboo writings which clearly represent sections of a calendar for the year 134 BC
134 BC
Year 134 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aemilianus and Flaccus...
.
The time of burial for both tombs had been dated to about 140 BC
140 BC
Year 140 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Sapiens and Caepio...
/134 BC
134 BC
Year 134 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aemilianus and Flaccus...
and 118 BC
118 BC
Year 118 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Cato and Rex...
, the texts having been written on the bamboo slips before then. After restoration and arrangement, the slips were organised into a sequential order of nine groups and 154 sections. The first group included 13 fragment chapters from Sunzi's The Art of War
The Art of War
The Art of War is an ancient Chinese military treatise that is attributed to Sun Tzu , a high ranking military general and strategist during the late Spring and Autumn period...
, and 5 undetermined chapters; the second group were the 16 chapters of Sun Bin
Sun Bin
Sun Bin was a military strategist who lived during the Warring States Period of Chinese history. An alleged descendant of Sun Tzu, Sun Bin was tutored in military strategy by the hermit Guiguzi...
's Art of War, which had been missing for at least 1,400 years; the third included the 7 original and lost chapters from the Six Strategies (before this significant find only the titles of the lost chapters were known); the fourth and fifth included 5 chapters from the Weiliaozi and 16 chapters from the Yanzi; the rest of the groups included anonymous writings.
Contents
| Group | Chinese | Translation | ## |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | 孫子兵法 （十三篇殘文；佚文五篇） |
Sun Tzu's Art of War (13 chapters and 5 attributed chapters) |
001-018 |
| 02 | 孫臏兵法 （十六篇） |
Sun Bin's Art of War (16 chapters) |
019-034 |
| 03 | 尉繚子 （五篇） |
Weiliaozi (5 chapters) |
035-039 |
| 04 | 晏子 （十六篇） |
Yanzi (16 chapters) |
040-055 |
| 05 | 六韜 （七篇殘文；傳本佚文七篇） |
Six Strategies (7 original and attributed chapters) |
056-069 |
| 06 | 守法、守令十三篇 （十篇） |
Keeping Peace and Order (10 chapters) |
070-079 |
| 07 | 論政論兵之類 （五十篇） |
Discourses of Politics and Wars, etc. (50 chapters) |
080-129 |
| 08 | 陰陽時令占候之類 （十二篇） |
Yin Yang and Divination, etc. (12 chapters) |
130-141 |
| 09 | 其他之類 （十三篇） |
Other, etc. (13 chapters) |
142-154 |
See also
- Bamboo and wooden slips (writing material)Bamboo and wooden slips (writing material)Bamboo and wooden slips were one of the main media for literacy in early China. The long, narrow strips of wood or bamboo typically carry a single column of brush-written text each, with space for several tens of Chinese characters. For longer texts, many slips may be bound together in sequence...
- Guodian Chu SlipsGuodian Chu SlipsThe Guodian Chu Slips were unearthed in 1993 in Tomb no. 1 of the Guodian tombs in Jingmen, Hubei. The archeological team suggested the tomb should be dated to the latter half of the Warring States period...
- Mawangdui Silk TextsMawangdui Silk TextsThe Mawangdui Silk Texts are texts of Chinese philosophical and medical works written on silk and found at Mawangdui in China in 1973. They include some of the earliest attested manuscripts of existing texts such as the I Ching, two copies of the Tao Te Ching, one similar copy of Strategies of the...
- ShuangguduiShuangguduiShuanggudui is an archeological site located near Fuyang in China's Anhui province. Shuanggudui grave no. 1, which belongs to Xiahou Zao , the second marquis of Ruyin , was sealed in 165 BCE in the early Han Dynasty and excavated in 1977...
- Shuihudi Qin bamboo textsShuihudi Qin bamboo textsThe Shuihudi Qin bamboo texts are early Chinese texts written on bamboo slips, and are also sometimes called the Yúnmèng Qin bamboo texts. They were excavated in December 1975 from Tomb #11 at Chéngguān Shuìhǔdì , Yunmeng County, Hubei Province, China. The tomb belonged to a Qin administrator....
- Zhangjiashan Han bamboo textsZhangjiashan Han bamboo textsThe Zhangjiashan Han bamboo texts are ancient Han Dynasty Chinese written works dated 196–186 BCE. They were discovered in 1983 by archaeologists excavating tomb no. 247 at Mount Zhangjia of Jiangling County, Hubei Province . The tomb was built for an early Western Han era official who had...