Tomb of An Bei
ancient tomb in China
The Tomb of Ān Bèi (Chinese: 安備墓), is a 589 CE (Sui dynasty) funeral monument of a Sogdian man named "An Bei" in his Chinese epitaph. The tomb was looted in 2006-2007, and its content sold in the art market. Part of the base of the tomb as well as the epitaph are now in the Tang West Market Museum (大唐西市博物館) in Xi'an.
Life
An Bei was probably a third generation Sogdian immigrant to China. His family originated from the city of Bukhara, as suggested by the name "An". An's family came to China during the Northern Wei dynasty, and some of his relatives served in the Bureau of Tributaries. Anbei's father was named An Zhishi, and he served as a middle-ranking officer in the honour guards of the court.
According to the epitaph, An Bei lived in Luoyang. He became a low-level clerk in the military headquarters of a vassal of the emperor, during the Northern Qi period. When the Northern Qi were replaced by the Northern Zhou in 577 CE, An Bei returned to Luoyang where he died at the young age of 34, in 589 CE. An Bei followed the Confucian moral principles of filial piety, and practiced Zoroastrianism.
The public source identifies “Tomb of An Bei” as ancient tomb in China. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Tomb, ancient and tomb.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Tomb of An Bei”, the useful work is to connect “ancient tomb in China” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Dec 9, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q112129638. Authority coordinates are 34.617, 112.450. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2006 and 2007.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Tomb of An Bei”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Tomb of An Bei primary sources, Tomb of An Bei archive and Tomb research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Tomb of An Bei”?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
- What terminology or title could unlock a more precise catalogue search?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Tomb of An Bei” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.