T型帛画——汉代古人怎么看“生死”与“宇宙”

This T-shaped silk painting, also known as "Feiyi," or "non-garment," is one of the most astonishing discoveries from the Mawangdui Han tombs in central China's Hunan Province. It depicts an end to which souls were believed destined. Measuring 205 centimeters in length, the painting is laid out in a distinctive T form and organized into three realms: the heavens above, the human world in the middle and the netherworld below. Most strikingly, the tomb occupant, an old woman holding a stick cane, was positioned at the center of the painting, poised to ascend towards the sky. In the funeral rites of the Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 220), this was no mere decoration but a central ritual object. The piece is now held in the Hunan Museum. It reveals how people imagined the soul's destination and the structure of the cosmos, making it a crucial piece of evidence for understanding Han views of life, death and the universe.

这幅T形帛画，又称“非衣”，是中国中部湖南长沙马王堆汉墓最令人惊叹的出土文物之一。画作描绘了古人心中灵魂的最终归宿。该帛画全长205厘米，整体呈独特的T字形构图，自上而下分为天界、人间、地下三大境界。画面最核心位置，绘有持杖而立的墓主老妇人，神态安然，正准备飞升天界。在汉代丧葬礼仪中，它并不是一件普通装饰，而是核心祭祀礼器。目前，该文物收藏于湖南省博物馆。它直观展现了古人对灵魂归宿与宇宙结构的想象，是研究汉代生死观念、宇宙认知的珍贵实物史料。