The Four Beauties of China

Chinese women are well known throughout the world for their feminine beauty and if one were to ask who are the prettiest Chinese girls of China, you’d be flooded with answers of personal favourites. But if you were to ask who are the 4 great beauties of China…then you will get the names of only four. Four women who through lived centuries apart, in different dynasties of ancient China, all possessed beauty so insurmountable not even time would wash their existence from the minds of modern civilization.

So who were these four women blessed with such legendary beauty that until today, the world still can find no others to relinquish their titles to?

The legendary four beauties of ancient China. They have a very rich history and legend behind them, which I try to honor while giving them my own take.

From left:
Xi Shi |

The king of Yue searched his lands for a beauty, and Xi Shi, the daughter of a humble tea trader was sought after for her extraordinary beauty. The king trained her in espionage and court etiquette and sent her, richly dressed to the prince of the Kingdom of Wu as a tribute gift. The prince was so charmed by her bewitching that he neglected his kingdom and duties and easily, the King of Yue invaded during the political chaos and overtook the kingdom of Wu. The prince committed suicide and Xi Shi lived happily ever after with her lover, the minister Fan Li. She's said to be so beautiful that when she was washing silk by the river, the fish was so entranced by her beauty that they forgot to swim and drowned.

Wang Zhaojun |

Emperor Yuan used painted portraits to choose his concubines, so naturally, the girls bribed the court painter to make each of their portraits more flattering. Wang Zhaojun was confident in her beauty and refused to bribe him, and in anger, the artist painted her especially badly. One day, the emperor wanted to send one of his court ladies to the Huns as a political bride. Based on her misleading, bad portrait, Wang Zhaojun was chosen. When she turned to go, Emperor Yuan saw her and realized that she's actually the most beautiful in his court. But it's too late.. as Wang Zhaojun walked out of the palace into the winter day, the flock of birds flying overhead saw her and was so struck by her beauty and selflessness that they forgot to fly and fell to their deaths. Emperor Yuan put the dishonest court painter to death, but Wang Zhaojun never returned to her homeland.

Diaochan |

She helped orchestrate a war between two warlords and ended the rule of a tyrant, but at the end she was put to death by the tyrant's followers. The legend goes that one autumn night as she was worshipping the moon, the moon was so awed by her beauty that it hid behind some clouds out of shame. 

Yang Guifei |

Yang Guifei was a high ranking, privileged beauty, and the Emperor Xuanzong was so in love with her that he neglected his state affairs and indulged in their pleasures, feasting and drinking all day long. The legend is that shes so beautiful that the spring flowers would refuse to bloom out of embarrassment. Yang Guifei also loves to take baths, and the Emperor built lavish, splendid lakes and baths for her. One day, a rebellion was staged and the Emperor fled the palace with Yang Guifei, but his soldiers refused to go on and demanded the death of the beauty, whom they believe had ruined the country. Towards the end, Yang Guifei killed herself.

in short:

Xi Shi (c. 770-476 BC, Spring and Autumn Period)

Her beauty would put the most beautiful of fish to shame and make it shyly sink away in her presence.

Wang Zhaojun (c. first century BC, Western Han Dynasty)

Said to be so beautiful that her appearance would leave the birds so awed, they’d forget their flight and fall from the skies.

Diaochan (c. third century, Three Kingdoms period)

Famed to possess such luminous beauty that put even the moon itself could not compare to.

Yang Guifei (719–756, Tang Dynasty)

Her legendary beauty was said to put all flowers to shame.