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No. 183

Fu Hao

Person People
Reconstructed tomb (Original Artifacts in National Museum in Beijing and Henan Museum in Zhengzhou). Yin Ruins Tomb, Chariot Burials, and Museum, Anyang, final capital of Shang Dynasty, c. 1400-1100 BC. Complete indexed
Gary Todd from Xinzheng, China, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Where
Shang China
Culture
Shang China
Lived
about 1200 BCE
Why they matter
A queen and army general whose tomb was found untouched.
Fate
Buried with more than 1,500 objects.
Wu Ding reign, Late Shang, tomb of Fu Hao, Yinxu, Anyang, Henan, 1976. National Museum: China through the Ages, Exhibit 2. Complete indexed photo collection at WorldHistoryPics.com.
Gary Todd, CC0
Reconstructed tomb (Original Artifacts in National Museum in Beijing and Henan Museum in Zhengzhou). Yin Ruins Tomb, Chariot Burials, and Museum, Anyang, final capital of Shang Dynasty, c. 1400-1100 BC. Complete indexed
Gary Todd, CC0
嵌绿松石象牙杯
僧盐, CC BY-SA 4.0
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Background

Fu Hao (traditional Chinese: 婦好; simplified Chinese: 妇好; pinyin: Fù Hǎo) died c. 1200 BC, posthumous temple name Mu Xin (母辛), was one of the many wives of King Wu Ding of the Shang dynasty and also served as a military general and high priestess. Fu Hao's life and military achievements are known almost entirely from the contents of her tomb, rather than from literary records.

The Tomb of Fu Hao was unearthed intact in 1976 at Yinxu by archaeologist Zheng Zhenxiang, with treasures, known as her 700+ jade objects (Fu Hao was a collector, so some were already antiques), and also her collection of more than 500 bone objects, such as oracle bones (they were from her role as a religious priestess, and were used in her many rituals). Along with the jade and bone objects, Fu Hao was buried with 6 dogs, and 16 human sacrifices. Inside the pit was evidence of a wooden chamber 5 metres (16 feet) long, 3.5 metres (11 feet) wide and 1.3 metres (4.3 feet) high containing a lacquered wooden coffin that has since completely disintegrated. The tomb of Fu Hao provides much insight into her life, her relationship with the royal family, and her military role and achievements.

Fu Hao was a close contemporary of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun, whose tomb was also found generally intact. For this reason, she has been described as the "Chinese Tutankhamun".

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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