The Self-Representation of tomb builders in East China, 1st to 3rd Century CE

Abstract

ABSTRACT Along with merchants, craftsmen occupied the two lowest socioeconomic positions among the four peoples, the scholars, farmers, craftsmen, and merchants in early Chinese society. However, in some Eastern Han (25–220 CE) tombs in Shandong in East China, some deities were depicted with the tools used by tomb builders, suggesting that the tomb builders were consciously establishing a link between their careers and the creators of the world. Such a phenomenon was confined to a relatively short period and limited area. This research explores how the tomb builders represented themselves and the driving forces behind these representations.