China Classification Tourism Atlas · Beauty

Author: Han Shi
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-05-01
Features: The rolling river of history has washed away many great figures. Standing by the river, scooping up a handful of ancient waters, the stunning beauties of past dynasties flash before one's eyes—some tragic and beautiful, some magnificent and sorrowful, some enchanting and alluring. In the blink of an eye, they become fleeting clouds, yet beauty remains. The peerless beauties, like pearls nurtured by millennia of history, shine through time and space, echoing across the corridors of the universe. Beauty always delights the eye. The Map of Beauties encompasses the courtesans, empresses, concubines, and exquisite women of ancient times, from the prehistoric era to the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, as well as the Qin, Han, Sui, Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. There are the mythical Nüwa and Chang'e; the "Four Great Beauties of China"—Xi Shi, Diaochan, Wang Zhaojun, and Yang Guifei; and the renowned women like Lü Zhu, Xue Tao, Chen Yuanyuan, and Qiu Jin. Each beauty represents a piece of history, with untold stories and passionate love-hate fates. Guided by these beauties, we can feel Bao Si's "hundred beauties' smile" beneath the smoke of the ancient Great Wall; immerse ourselves in the exotic charm of Xiang Fei's homeland; wander through the Huaqing Pool where the empresses bathed; and "gallop" across the ancient battlefields where Hua Mulan fought. In doing so, we step into a "Map of Beauties."
Throughout history, beautiful women have often been linked to the terms "calamity-bringers" and "fated to suffer." Dynasties have unilaterally blamed them for the downfall of nations, as seen in Yang Guifei, who was forced to commit suicide at Mawei for the sake of "a single horse carrying red dust, the empress laughs, yet no one knows it's for lychees." Wu Sangui's "furious rage for a beauty" reflects a beauty that is heartbreakingly moving. They were merely pawns in the struggles for power, playthings, decorations, or excuses for emperors and generals to shift blame. From this perspective, the "fated suffering" of beautiful women is inevitable. Born as beauties, they are to live tragic lives: Yu Mei and the great warrior Xiang Yu committed suicide after their defeat at Gaixia, a tale both sorrowful and moving; Diaochan, who plotted to eliminate the villain Dong Zhuo, also perished, a story both heroic and tragic. Beauty itself is not wrong; what is wrong is using it as a veil to mask inner cruelty, as seen in figures like Empress Lü and Daji—false beauty that cannot withstand the "wash of time."
Throughout history, beauty has often altered the course of events. In the collision of reality and history, The Map of Beauties will fill your life with beauty.