Four Beauties

The Four Beauties or Four Great Beauties are four Chinese women, renowned for their beauty. These were Xi Shi, Wang Zhaojun, Diaochan, and Yang Guifei. The scarcity of historical records concerning them meant that much of what is known of them today has been greatly embellished by legend. They all were said to have in some manner caught the attention of a ruling king or emperor in their respective eras. They gained their reputation from the influence they exercised over kings and emperors and, consequently, the way their actions impacted Chinese history. Three of the Four Beauties brought kingdoms to their knees and their lives ended in tragedy.

The Beauties
The Four Great Beauties lived in four different dynasties, each hundreds of years apart. In chronological order, they are:
 Xi Shi (c. 7th to 6th century BC, Spring and Autumn period), said to be so entrancingly beautiful that fish would forget how to swim and sink below the surface upon seeing her reflection in the water. Xi Shi's hometown is Zhuji, Zhejiang Province. Zhuji was the capital of the Ancient Yue Kingdom. Goujian, the King of Yue Kingdom, endured ten years hardship (sleeping on brushwood and tasting the gall) to accomplish his ambition to beat Fuchai, the King of Wu Kingdom. Xi Shi was part of his plan. Despite that Xi Shi had Fan Li as the man of her dreams, Goujian sent Xi Shi as a gift to Fuchai who was dazzled by her beauty and fell in love with her. Fuchai lost his fighting will after he met Xi Shi but spending his time entertaining with Xi Shi. Finally, Goujian defeated Fuchai.
 Wang Zhaojun (c. 1st century BC, Western Han Dynasty), said to be so beautiful that her appearance would entice birds in flight to fall from the sky.
 Diaochan (c. 3rd century, Late Eastern Han/Three Kingdoms period), said to be so luminously lovely that the moon itself would shy away in embarrassment when compared to her face. Unlike the other Beauties, there is no direct historical evidence of her existence.
 Yang Guifei (719–756, Tang Dynasty), said to have a face that puts all flowers to shame.

Idiom
Well-known idioms describe the Four Beauties.  The exact origin of these idioms is debated.

These separate idioms are sometimes merged to describe especially beautiful women or simply to refer to the Four Beauties' legendary good looks. The merged idiom is 沉魚落雁, 閉月羞花 (sinks fish and entices birds to fall, eclipses the moon and shames flowers); the two parts can also be used separately.

References

Category:Lists of Chinese people
Category:Lists of women
Category:Chinese culture
Category:Female beauty
Category:Articles about multiple people in pre-Tang China
Category:Quartets