Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents v
3. Acknowledgments ix
4. Translation Conventions xi
5. Chronology of Imperial China with Subjects of Epitaphs xiii
6. Introduction 1
7. 1. Three Short Eastern Han Funerary Biographies 23
8. 2. A Chinese General Serving the Northern Wei State 30
9. 3. A Twice-Widowed Xianbei Princess 39
10. 4. Authoring One’s Own Epitaph 47
11. 5. Wives Commemorating Their Husbands 59
12. 6. A Married Daughter and a Grandson 66
13. 7. A Nun Who Lived through the Huichang Persecution of Buddhism 75
14. 8. An Envoy Serving the Kitan Liao Son of Heaven 83
15. 9. Epitaphs Made Widely Available Funerary Biographies for Three Men from Luzhou: Liang 101
16. 10. A Friend and Political Ally 111
17. 11. Preserving a Father’s Memory 122
18. 12. A Gentleman without Office 130
19. 13. Wives and In-Laws 138
20. 14. A Clerk Promoted to Official under the Mongols 158
21. 15. A Mongol Rising to the Defense of the Realm 172
22. 16. A Merchant Aspiring to Gentlemanly Virtue 182
23. 17. A Ming General Turned Warlord 190
24. 18. A Brother Remembers His Sister 212
25. 19. A Chinese Bannerman Expert in Waterworks 222
26. 20. A Woman Determined to Die 241
27. 21. A Wife’s Sacrifices 250
28. 22. A Wife’s Moving Tribute 259
29. Teaching Guide 269
30. Contributors 276
31. Index 281