Yue Ren, Luli, and Anlu: the Tomb Occupant of Yunmeng Shuihudi Han Tomb No. 77 and the Village Where He Resided

Abstract

By examining the excavated bamboo slips and boards of Shuihudi 睡虎地 Western Han tomb no. 77 in Yunmeng 雲夢, it is possible to know that the name of the tomb occupant was Yue Ren 越人 and that he served as an Office Assistant 官佐 in Anlu 安陸 County from the ninth year (171 bce.) of the reign of Western Han Emperor Wendi 文帝 (r. 180–157 bce.) to the seventh year (157 bce.) of the Houyuan 後元 era (163–157 bce.) of his reign. In addition, we can understand a number of the actions and life events of Yue Ren and his colleagues and family members, and know that in the tenth month of the third year of the Houyuan era of Wendi’s reign (161 bce.), Yue Ren and his family moved their residence to Luli 路里. Moreover, by analyzing the slips and boards of tomb no. 77, and viewing these in connection with lacquerware items on which are inscribed two graphs spelling out “Luli” 路里 excavated from the Shuihudi Qin tombs, it can be concluded that from the Qin dynasty to the early Western Han dynasty, residents of Luli were entombed in the cemetery at Shuihudi. This provides what is currently the strongest evidence for arguing that the ancient walled town at Yunmeng 雲夢古城—also referred to as the “Walled Town of the Chu King” 楚王城—is the ruins of the walled town that was seat of Anlu County in the Qin and Han periods.