By Meilin Lyu, an archaeologist living in Athens.
Zeng Zhaoyu, also known as Tseng Chao-yu in English, was one of China’s pioneering female archaeologists, museologists and poets who built her legacy without a spouse’s influence. Descended from the influential Zeng Guofan family, who was a prominent Chinese statesman and military general of the late Qing dynasty, Zeng’s academic journey began against the backdrop of a notable intellectual lineage. Her brothers, who also held prestigious positions—one as a founding figure in Chinese chemistry and another as a Harvard graduate—further contributed to her intellectual environment.
Zeng had widely studied subjects of epigraphy, calligraphy, and history, especially oracle bone inscriptions, bronze inscriptions and artefacts form the Shang and Zhou dynasty in China. Later, Zeng’s pursuit of archaeology took her to the University of London in 1935, marking her as the first
Chinese woman to study the field abroad. Her thesis on <Inscriptions and Patterns on Ancient Chinese Bronze Ware> catalogued over 600 emblems on 2,082 ancient artifacts, setting a new standard for epigraphic study in China. Afterward, she gained practical experience through a rigorous internship at the German National Museum, deepening her expertise in museology.
Upon graduating in 1938, Zeng was offered a post in London, yet she felt compelled to return to China amidst the Sino-Japanese War. There, she joined the Chinese Central Museum Preparatory
Office, working to protect invaluable cultural assets from destruction and theft by Japanese forces. Despite being the only woman in her team, she played a pivotal role in cataloging, securing, and transporting artifacts out of Beijing. Her post-war archaeological contributions included excavations across China—mountain tombs in Dali, cliff tombs in Pengshan, and significant sites in Yunnan.
Zeng’s impact extended to institutional foundations in museology as she co-authored <Museum> with Li Ji, a work essential to China’s developing museum studies. Her scholarly outputs, such as the <Report on the Excavation of the Two Southern Tang Tombs> and <Report on the Excavation of the Ancient Stone Tomb in Yinan>, remain significant references in Chinese archaeology.
In 1955, Zeng became the first female president of Nanking Museum, She instated a strict rule forbidding private collection of artifacts by museum staff, showing her dedication to ethical archaeological practice. Inspired by her cousin, Zeng Baosun, who dedicated her life to educating girls, Zeng committed herself fully to her museum work, famously replying to a marriage question that she was “long married to the museum”. Her prose and poetry reveal an affectionate and sensitive nature, for example, In Rouged Lips, Zeng Zhaoyin expresses: “A small pavilion floating in the air, a pool of green mirroring the willow-lined path; deep in the crimson clouds, the sound of endless rain”. Zeng must have known love and struggled, yet chose to devote herself wholly to Chinese archaeology. Her cousin, Zeng Baosun, once advised her on celibacy, saying, “If you marry, you can only help one family and one person, but if you don’t marry, you can serve millions”.
Tragically, despite her accomplishments, political persecution marred Zeng’s final years. Her family’s association with Zeng Guofan, who played a significant role in quelling the Taiping Rebellion and preventing the fall of the Qing dynasty, was deemed a “traitor” by the Communist Party during that time. Her family faced severe persecution, leaving Zeng psychologically depressed for many years. Zeng ultimately took her life at the age of 55 by leaping from Linggu Cliff. In memory of Zeng, her cousin Cheng Yinke wrote: “Three generations linked by bonds of old, we met first in Chang’an where years slowly dimmed. Brilliant mind yet short-lived—who now feels sorrow’s tide? Pure as jade marred by green flies—how can one but sigh? At Linggu, restless grievance cries at night, dim sky and wet rain have set the world apart”.
Read more about Zeng Zhaoyu
Zeng Zhaoyu’s Collected Works (Museum Volume). 2009. Cultural Relics Publishing House. (In Chinese: 《曾昭燏文集（博物馆卷）》,2009, 文物出版社).
Profile | Zeng Zhaolun: The ups and downs of China’s first generation of female archaeologists. 2022. Sohu News. Retrieved from: https://www.sohu.com/a/560611897_121124743. (In Chinese: 人物志 | 曾昭燏：中国第一代女考古学家的浮沉人生, 2022, 搜狐新闻).
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