A ruler who ushered in an era of prosperity

As the result of a royal coup, 27-year-old Li Shimin, a prince who once campaigned to help his father impose stability across the country and establish the Tang Dynasty (618-907), ascended to the throne, taking the place of his elder brother, Li Jiancheng.

This dramatic moment is perhaps controversial. Nonetheless, when viewed over the long term, this detour in history led to an era of prosperity.

The 23-year reign of Li Shimin, posthumously known as Emperor Taizong of Tang, left a long list of impressive achievements to admire, including battlefield triumphs, a receptive attitude towards good advice in politics and national governance, even from followers of former rivals, and an inclusive policy towards ethnic groups from afar.

Consequently, the name given to his reign, Zhenguan, is widely seen as symbolic of a peaceful and flourishing time in ancient China.

An exhibition in Beijing at the National Library of China offers intriguing insight into this time as it guides visitors through the Zhenguan era.

Organised by Art Exhibitions China, the national library and several other institutions, Zhenguan: Li Shimin’s Saga of Prosperous Era is the first major exhibition in Beijing to focus on this iconic figure and includes 249 exhibits from 15 museums around the country, including pottery figurines, gold and silver artefacts, stone statues, and epigraphs. It will run until 25 August.

It seeks to show the human side of its subject. “Through this exhibition, we will not just portray Li Shimin as a ruler with ambition and great expectations,” explains Art Exhibitions China’s Feng Xue, who is curator of the exhibition. “We also want to present him as someone with emotions just like everyone else.

“Looking back on the civilisation of the Tang Dynasty from various perspectives, we can sense the continuous innovation and creativity that define the cultural ethos of the era.”

About 43.5 miles from the Tang capital Chang’an — today’s Xi’an in Shaanxi province — lies the Zhaoling Mausoleum in Xianyang, Li Shimin’s resting place. It is the largest Tang Dynasty royal mausoleum.

Although the main grave where the emperor and his empress are buried remains mostly untouched, about 200 satellite graves, which belonged to concubines, princes and high officials, have yielded a trove of items, as if from a time capsule, key examples of which can be seen in the ongoing exhibition.

A mural portraying a smiling court lady is one such example. Dressed in a blouse with exquisite decorative patterns on its sleeves, a long skirt, and a knot of silk tied in across the front of her chest, the woman not only demonstrates the fashion and aesthetics of the Zhenguan period, but also provides an important academic reference for how attire evolved.

Another exhibit from the mausoleum, a blue-glazed pottery figurine of a standing woman, also reveals elegance and a sense of nobility, while the rarely seen colour of the time indicates cross-cultural influences, as the ingredients for the dye may well have been brought to China along the Silk Road, Feng says.

The Tang Dynasty is generally considered to be a golden era in China’s imperial period, when national strength reached its zenith around the mid-8th century during the reign of Li Longji, Li Shimin’s great-grandson.

Scholars throughout Chinese history tended to credit the Zhenguan era as the beginning of a boom that lasted about a century.

“The Tang Dynasty is known for its well-functioning politics, successful economy, flourishing cultures, and the shared development of many ethnic groups within a united nation,” Sun Xiaobing, deputy director of Art Exhibitions China, says.

According to ancient records, Li Shimin received envoys from all over the world in a grand ceremony in Chang’an in 639, adding a new chapter to the tale of the city as a crossroads of the ancient Silk Road.

“The light of the Tang Dynasty shone brightly on the stage of world civilisation,” Feng says. “It left references for national governance during dynastic periods.”