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Ban Gu
Eastern Han historian who wrote the History of the Han, the first dynastic history covering a single dynasty, and died in prison after Dou Xian's fall
In an archive hall, tall wooden shelves hold scrolls and bound books with small tags, and one person climbs a ladder with their back turned; a long table in front holds an unrolled river map, a bronze lamp and a copper jug, with a city wall seen through the window.
Also known as Zi Mengjian · Ban Meng Jian
Ban Gu, courtesy name Mengjian, came from Anling in Fufeng, near modern Xianyang; he was the son of Ban Biao and the elder brother of Ban Chao. His father died before finishing a sequel to the Records of the Grand Historian, and when Ban Gu took up the work he was denounced for privately revising state history and jailed, until Ban Chao petitioned the throne and Emperor Ming, having read the draft, made him a clerk of the Lantai archive. Over twenty years he wrote the History of the Han (Hanshu), from the founder to Wang Mang and creating the model for single-dynasty histories. After the White Tiger Hall conference of 79 he compiled the Baihu tong, and he also wrote the Rhapsody on the Two Capitals. In 89 he joined Dou Xian's campaign against the northern Xiongnu, and in 92, when Dou Xian fell, he died in prison at Luoyang. His sister Ban Zhao and Ma Xu completed the eight tables and the treatise on astronomy.
Life and times
Dates 32 CE–92 CE
- 92Ban Zhao Continues HistoryPrecursorage 60