Ministers › Statesman / Official
Ma Yan
Eastern Han official and nephew of the general Ma Yuan who helped compile the Jianwu records and served as palace censor, governor of Chenliu and court architect.
In the courtyard of a district government hall, a line of petitioners waits before a raised bench with a long table and document boxes; a blue umbrella stands beside it, a large drum stands at the gate where a few people wait, and a lake with sailboats lies beyond.
Also known as Zi Weiqing · Ma Weiqing
- Roles
- Statesman / Official
Ma Yan, courtesy name Weiqing, was the son of Ma Yu, elder brother of the general Ma Yuan; orphaned young, he mastered the Zuo Commentary. While campaigning in Jiaozhi, Ma Yuan wrote to him and his brother Ma Dun urging restraint in speech and conduct: the Letter Admonishing Nephews Yan and Dun. Under Emperor Ming he worked with Ban Gu on the Jianwu court records, and under Emperor Zhang he served as palace censor, governor of Chenliu and court architect. Distrusted by the Dou consort clan, he retired to teach his family and died at home in 98, aged eighty-one by Western count.
Life and times
Dates 17–98 CE