‘Her Influence Great, Her Merit beyond Measure’: A translation and initial investigation of the epitaph of Shangguan Wan’er

Abstract

The discovery of a 982-character epitaph for Shangguan Wan’er 上官婉儿 (664–710) – drafter of imperial edicts, tattooed criminal, prodigious poet, master of political intrigue, literary talent nonpareil, and concubine to two rulers – during the excavation of her tomb in September 2013, has prompted scholars to re-assess the nature of her personal and political character. In the Confucian historiographic narrative, Shangguan Wan’er is often lumped together with Empress Wei, the Taiping Princess, and the Anle Princess as part of a notorious quartet of women at the nexus of a seven-year period of misrule, intrigue and havoc. Not only does epitaph contain new evidence that complicates this facile narrative, it offers further insight into her family background and into the murky politics of the early eighth century court of the restored Tang dynasty.