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Overview
The Shenyijing places Xishu in earth beneath an immense thickness of northern ice. It has a mouse’s form but weighs a thousand jin and feeds on vegetation and flesh. Its hair is eight chi long. The account describes its fur being made into bedding that wards off cold.
Its hide is also said to serve as drum skin, producing a sound heard a thousand li away. The hair attracts other mice wherever it is placed. These exaggerated material effects accompany the immense animal in the named northern setting.
Origins & earliest records
Chinese textual creature traditions; named source setting
Records & interpretation
Identified primary narrative or custodial object record directly read; image pixels verified only where explicitly noted.
Selected bibliography
Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.
- 01
Shenyijing
Northern Wilderness, passage beginning 北方層冰萬里
Family & connections
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Primary records and illustrations
Shenyijing
Chinese textual creature traditions. Northern Wilderness, passage beginning 北方層冰萬里
Actual passage or object record read directly. Museum image bytes not yet visually inspected for these new West Asian objects.
References
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- Primary text transcriptionShenyijing — Northern Wilderness, passage beginning 北方層冰萬里Research access: 2026-10-05
Image credits
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