Collected Illustrations of the Three Realms

Volume 14: People

The Kingdom of No-Bellies

original: "無腹國" (Wúfù guó). This mythical land is described in ancient Chinese cosmological texts, most notably the Classic of Mountains and Seas (Shanhaijing), which served as a primary source for this encyclopedia.

The Kingdom of No-Bellies is located in the southeast of the sea. Both men and women there lack abdomens original: "無腹肚" (wú fùdù). In traditional Chinese medical and cosmological thought, the "belly" or "abdomen" was the center of digestion and vital energy. To be "without a belly" suggests a supernatural physiological state where the inhabitants might not require food or have a different internal anatomy entirely..

The illustration depicts a figure with a strikingly hollow or concave midsection. This visual representation emphasizes their "otherness" to the Ming and Qing dynasty readers, categorizing them among the many "extraordinary" peoples believed to inhabit the fringes of the known world.