The Lady with the Phoenix Crown

The undisturbed tomb of Lady Li Chui who had died in AD 736, a descendant of Tang-emperor Gaozu, was excavated in Xi'an in 2001. It took a German-Chinese team six years to restore the intricate grave furnishings.For the first time, it was possible to reconstruct the opulent jewellery assemblage of a Tang-period noblewoman. In conjunction with the results of scientific analyses by a team of specialists from various disciplines it was possible to obtain new insights into Tang-period burial culture. This is the first time that these results are presented to a wider English-speaking public. Richly-illustrated appendices throughout the text provide further insights into Tang-period everyday life.