Daji (Chinese: 妲己; pinyin: Dájǐ; Wade–Giles: Ta2-chi3) was the favourite consort of King Zhou of Shang, the last king of the Shang dynasty in ancient China. In legends and fictions, she is portrayed as a malevolent fox spirit who kills and impersonates the real Daji.[2] Her identification as a fox spirit seems to have originated from at least the Tang dynasty.[3] These accounts have been popularized in works such as the Wu Wang Fa Zhou Pinghua (武王伐紂平話), the Fengshen Yanyi, and the Lieguo Zhi.[4] She is considered a classic example of how a beautiful femme fatale can cause the downfall of a dynasty in Chinese culture. In the Song dynasty, fox spirit cults, including those dedicated to Daji, became outlawed, but their suppression was unsuccessful.[5] For example, in 1111, an imperial edict was issued for the destruction of many spirit shrines within Kaifeng, including those of Daji.[6]
