Xiutu

Xiutu' kingdom, west of Wuwei, was attacked by Huo Qubing in 121 BCE. Xiutu (, also romanized as Hsiu-t'u, lit. "The one who puts an end to massacres") was a king in the Hexi Corridor of the Gansu region, west of Wuwei, during the 2nd century BCE. "Xiutu" (休屠) is also an early Chinese transliteration for the name of the Buddha.

King Xiutu, considered as "Hu" (barbarian) by the Han, was positioned between the Xiongnu tribes of the Mongolian steppes to the north, the Han to the east, the Saka to the northwest, the Tocharians to the west, and the Southern Qiang to the south.

Although a vassal, Xiutu was probably not himself a Xiongnu: it is actually reported that his territory was occupied by the Xiongnu as they were pushed westward by the Han.

Kingdom of Xiutu The City of Xiutu (10px) was about 20km north of Wuwei, and about 500km beyond Guyuan and its Great Wall built by King Zhao of Qin in 271 BCE (15px), and by Qin Shihuang (circa 210 BCE, 15px). The Kingdom of Xiutu is closely associated to the Shajing culture (700–100 BCE), which managed to prosper along rivers amid general aridification. The Shajing Culture was able to flourish along the lower Shiyang River as the Zhuye Lake was retreating, while the city of Xiutu prospered along the Hongshui River, permitting a flourishing of nomadic culture within a context of drought. The predecessors of Xiutu in the area of the Hexi Corridor, before the Xiongnu occupation around 176 BCE, were probably the Yuezhi.

The city of Xiutu (休屠城), about north of Wuwei, has left monumental ruins , located on the ancient border of Zhuye Lake. The Minqin Basin along the Shiyang River was named "Xiutuze" (休屠泽, "Lake Xiutu") after the King.

The number of Xiongnus living in the Hexi Corridor at that time is estimated at 50,000 people, and they were living along the rivers, were water resources were naturally abundant.

King Xiutu has a son named Midi, born in 134 BCE, who was also captured and became a close aid to Han Wudi, becoming known as Jin Midi (金日磾) in Chinese.

Gold statues Mogao Caves 8th-century mural depicting Emperor Wu of Han worshipping "golden man" statues. The Shiji records that in 121 BCE, after Huo Qubing defeated the Xiongnu, he "captured golden (or gilded) men used by the King of Xiutu to worship Heaven", and these were then transferred to the Ganquan Temple near the Imperial Palace of Han Wudi. The statue (or statues) measured more than one zhang (about ), and was put on display, incense was burned and prostrations were made.

The expression "金人" ("golden men") may show some unfamiliarity with this kind of free-standing anthropomorphic idol. Sima Qian probably personally saw which was brought back by Huo Qubing in 121 BCE, while he was working on his Records of the Grand Historian. Jin Midi was only said to have worshipped the golden statue, now in the Imperial Palace, and this is the reason why he was given the family name "Jin" ("Gold") by the Emperor Han Wudi.

Still, the term "Xiutu" is also known to have been used in Chinese as an early transliteration for the name of the Buddha and for Buddhist monks. According to Christoph Baumer "it is conceivable that this 'Golden man' was a statue of the Buddha".

A New Account of the Tales of the World claims that the golden statues were more than ten feet high, and Emperor Wu of Han sacrificed to it in the Ganquan palace, which "is how Buddhism gradually spread into (China)." In Cave 323 in Mogao caves (near Dunhuang in the Tarim Basin), Emperor Wudi is shown worshipping two golden statues, with the following inscription (which closely paraphrases the traditional accounts of Huo Qubing's expedition):

The statue(s) were moved to a temple in Yong county, Yunyang prefecture, near the royal summer palace Ganquan (modern Xianyang, Shaanxi), in the former capital of the Qin dynasty. Wei Shou believes it was located in the palace. The Ganquan Palace was a place of worship. Jin Midi, the son of Xiutu, became a favorite of Emperor Wu, who expanded the Ganquan Palace and spent much time there. Due to Emperor Wu's close relations with Jin, both his parents were honored and the golden statue(s) were placed in a temple dedicated to the spirit of Jinglu (a type of precious Xiongnu sword) for the worship of Xiutu. The locale seems to have been devoted to foreign deities as another temple dedicated to Yue practices was located in the same place. The golden statue(s) later disappeared and the temple came to be known for the sword.

Descendants of Xiutu