Tags: Confucius | Han dynasty | Lao Tzu | rubbing | shrine | tomb

This rubbing was made from a Han stele by Tung Tso-pin in Shantung in l933. It is the other side of the same stone (no. 27073). In the two lower grids Confucius is depicted meeting with Lao Tzu and Hsiang T'o. This is one of the most frequently seen motifs in Han dynasty tombs and shrines of Shantung. It has multiple meanings. It represents the humble Confucius treating Lao Tzu as his teacher. It probably also indicates that the tomb owner, himself a Confucian, also admired Lao Tzu.

Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica
Digital Resources and Archived Images Application