Xi'an Stele
The Xi'an Stele or the Jingjiao Stele (Chinese: 景教碑; pinyin: Jǐngjiào bēi), sometimes translated as the "Nestorian Stele," is a Tang Chinese stele erected in 781 that documents 150 years of early Christianity in China. It is a limestone block 279 centimetres (9 ft 2 in) high with text in both Chinese and Syriac describing the existence of Christian communities in several cities in northern China. It reveals that the initial Church of the East had met recognition by the Tang Emperor Taizong, due to efforts of the Christian missionary Alopen in 635. According to the stele, Alopen and his fellow Syriac missionaries came to China from Daqin (the Eastern Roman Empire) in the ninth year of Emperor Taizong (Tai Tsung) (635), bringing sacred books and images. The Church of the East monk Adam (Jingjing in Chinese) composed the text on the stele. Buried in 845, probably during religious suppression, the stele was not rediscovered until 1625. It is now in the Stele Forest in Xi'an.
| Xi'an Stele | |||||||||||||||
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The stele entitled 大秦景教流行中國碑 was erected in China in 781. | |||||||||||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 大秦景教流行中國碑 | ||||||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 大秦景教流行中国碑 | ||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Stele to the Propagation in China of the Jingjiao (Luminous Religion) of Daqin (Roman Empire) | ||||||||||||||
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| Alternative Chinese name | |||||||||||||||
| Chinese | 景教碑 | ||||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | Luminous Religion Stele | ||||||||||||||
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