Epitaph of Pugu Yitu

The epitaph of Pugu Yitu is an inscription found inside the tomb of Pugu Yitu (635-678). It dates to 678 and was found in 2009 by a joint Russian-Mongolian team in Zaamar sum, Tov Province, 160 km west of Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia about 2.5 km north-east from the banks of the Tuul River and close to the 10th-century Khitan town of Khermen Denzh on the banks of the Tuul River. The inscription is currently displayed at the Zanabazar Fine Arts Museum in Ulaanbaatar. The tomb of Pugu Yitu, also called the Shoroon Dov Kurgan, showed signs of attempted looting in ancient times. The nearby tomb of Shoroon Bumbagar was never looted and therefore was found to hold far more artifacts including an intact door, many statues and wall paintings of people, dragons and temples, although there was no inscription. The tomb of Pugu Yitu is unusual in that it has an inscription. Apart from the cover inscription of Pugu Yitu measuring 75 cm x 75 cm with 4 lines of 3 characters each, the main inscription has 28 lines with 31 characters each. The language of the inscription is Classical Chinese and relates the biography of Pugu Yitu the Dudu (都督) or Commander-in-Chief of the Jinweizhou (金微州) protectorate under the Tang dynasty's Jimi system. A photo of the inscription can be found on the Mongol Toli website.

History


Pugu Yitu is not mentioned in the Tang histories, although his grandfather Gelan Bayan is. The Pugu clan was part of the Xueyantuo, a Turkic people who filled the power vacuum in northern Mongolia after the Eastern Turkic Khaganate was defeated by the Tang Dynasty in May 630. In 647 the Pugu clan accepted the suzerainty of the Tang dynasty under the Jimi (loose rein) system and received the title Dudu (Commander-in-Chief). The first Dudu was Pugu Yitu's grandfather Gelan Bayan (歌滥拔延), followed by Pugu Yitu's father Sifu (思匍) who governed till 657. Judging from the epitaph Pugu Yitu was 44 years old when he died in 678. This means he was 22 or 23 years old when he succeeded his father Sifu in the post of Dudu in 657. The inscription was laid flat on the ground in front of the brick-faced main chamber where a number of painted statuettes were found. The main chamber was accessed by three arched passageways. Byzantine-style gold coins were also found. According to the inscription, in the second year of Linde (665) he participated with the Tang Emperor Gaozong in a ceremony on Mount Tai in Shandong Province. The inscription also says he carried out military campaigns against the Mohe in Eastern Manchuria as well as Tibetan Empire (吐蕃). It is notable that General Tonyukuk's Bain Tsokto inscriptions, dated 716, are found eastward in the valley of the same Tuul River in Nalaikh District of Ulaanbaatar. In it he states how Tang influence was still strong in his childhood and how it took him many struggles, including campaigns as far afield as Shandong Province, Tibet and Central Asia to overthrow Tang influence and restore the Turkic Khaganate.

Inscription
The cover inscription has the following text:
 * 大唐金/微都督/仆固府/君墓志 (Memorial inscription of the Gentlemanly Lord of Pugu Prefecture of Jinweizhou of the Great Tang)

The main inscription has the following text: "大唐故右驍衛大將軍金微州都督上柱國林中縣開國公仆固府君墓志銘並序 / 公諱乙突，朔野金山人，蓋鐵勤之別部也. 原夫石紐開基，金峰列構，疏枝布葉，擁 / □塞而推雄，茂族豪宗，跨龍城而表盛. 亦有日磾純孝，泣畫像於漢宮，日逐輸忠， / 委□□於鑾邳. 求諸史諜，代有人焉. 祖歌濫拔延，皇朝左武衛大將軍、金 / 微州都督. 父思匐，繼襲金微州都督. 並志識開敏，早歸皇化，覘風請謁，匪 / 獨美於奇肱，候日虔誠，本自知於稽顙. 公幼而驍勇，便習馳射，彎弧挺妙，得自乘 / 羊之年，矯箭抽奇，見賞射雕之手. 及父歿傳嗣，遂授本部都督，統率部落，遵奉 / 聲教. 回首面內，傾心盡節. 俄以賀魯背誕，方事長羈，爰命熊羆之軍，克剿犬羊之 / 眾. 公乃先鳴制勝，直踐寇庭，無勞拔幟之謀，即取搴旗之效. 策勛敘績，方寵懋官， / 詔授右武衛郎將，尋授護軍，封林中縣開國子，俄除左武衛大將軍. 至麟德二年，/鑾駕將巡岱岳，既言從塞北，非有滯周南，遂以汗馬之勞，預奉射牛之禮. 服既榮 / 於飾玉，職且貴於銜珠，厚秩載隆，貞心逾勵. 及東征靺鞨，西討吐蕃，並效忠勤，亟 / 摧凶丑. 裒錄功績，前后居多，尋除右驍衛大將軍，依舊都督，加上柱國，林中縣開 / 國公，食邑一千戶. 頻加寵授，載踐崇班，邁彼氈裘之鄉，參茲纓冕之列. 光 / 膺啟國，既錫茅土之封，趨步升朝，且曳桃花之綬. 方謂高情壯志，媲金石而同堅，/ 豈圖脆質小年，與風露而俱殞. 奄辭白日，長歸玄夜. 以儀鳳三年二月廿九日遘 / 疾，終於部落. 春秋卌有四. / 天子悼惜久之，敕朝散大夫、守都水使者天山郡開國公麴昭，監護吊祭， / 賻物三百段，錦袍金裝帶弓箭胡祿鞍韉等各一具. 凡厥喪葬，並令官給，並為立 / 碑. 即以其年歲次戊寅八月乙酉朔十八日壬寅，永窆於纈碖原，禮也. 生死長乖，/ 哀榮畢備，深沉苦霧，方結慘於鬆塋，飋[風+日]悲風，獨含淒於薤鐸. 對祁連而可像，寄□勒而有詞，述德表功，乃為銘曰：/西歭蔥山，北臨蒲海，土風是系，英杰攸在. 葉貫箭鋒，花分騎彩，孫謀有裕，祖襲無 / 改. 束發來儀，腰鞬入侍，/ 天德斯溥，人胥以洎. 獻款畢同，輸忠靡異，臨危效節，致果為毅. 疇庸啟邑，疏爵命 / 官，從軍擁旆，拜將登壇. 赫弈光顯，榮名可觀，方奉 / 明時，遽歸幽穸. 壯志何在，瓌容共惜，鶴隴俄封，雞田罷跡. 月落無曉，雲來自昏，鳥 / 切響於鴻塞，人銜悲於雁門，庶清塵而不泯，紀玄石而長存."

Artifacts from the tomb
The epitaph was found within the tomb of Pugu Yitu, also called the Shoroon Dov Kurgan. Many artifacts, especially terracotta statuettes, were found in the tomb.