Empress Sunmok
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Empress Sunmok (Korean: 순목황후; Hanja: 順穆皇后; lit. accomplished and majestic empress; died 830) of the Tae clan (태씨; 泰氏) was a queen consort of Balhae as the wife of King Kan.[1][2]
Her tomb and epitaph were discovered at the Ancient Tombs at Longtou Mountain, China. She was queen of Balhae for only a short period, during her husband's brief 817 CE - 818 CE reign.[3] He died in 818, and she outlived him for twelve years, until her death in 830 CE. She was buried in Longtou Mountain not long after that.[4][5]
From 2004 to 2005, at least 14 tombs dating from the Balhae period were unearthed from Longtou Mountain.[6] Chinese government officials revealed that one of these tombs, M3, which is a large stone tomb, belonged to Sunmok.[1] Her tomb featured a gravestone, which consisted of reddish-brown sandstone 34.5 cm wide, 55 cm high, and 13 cm thick.
