The mubei and muzhi are two different things that serve the same purpose. The Chinese tombstone (mubei), like its Western counterpart, is an oblong piece of stone, erected vertically in front of the tomb and engraved with an inscription (beiwen). The muzhi is usually in the form of a square stone tablet which is buried in the grave with the coffin and placed in front of it. The practice of burying a tablet as part of the Chinese funerary rites appeared later than the tombstone.

The earliest Chinese tombstone had no inscriptions. They were but simple rectangular slabs with small holes, through which ropes were run to lower the coffin into the pit. Some of the very ancient tombstones still show vestiges of the holes on them.

The inscription, which appeared later, generally gives a brief account of the dead person, listing the major events he experienced and the lofty qualities he possessed to perpetuate his name to later generations. Important inscriptions or epitaphs, penned by eminent statesmen, men of letters or other public figures and engraved by master masons, are cherished as valuable relics important to the study of ancient literature, calligraphy and art in general.

Other tombstones carry no inscriptions at all. A typical one, and also the best known, is the tall stele standing at the front of Qianling Mausoleum in Shaanxi Province.

There seemed to be no fixed form for the muzhi (buried tablet) at the beginning. Some were square at the bottom but round on top, rather like usual tombstones, but most are square. During the Sui and Tang dynasties (6th to 10th century), the muzhi became finalized in form. As a rule, it consists of two square slabs of identical dimensions, placed one on top of the other. The top piece bears the name, native place and rank of the deceased, while the bottom one his epitaph or biographical account.

Tombstones and buried tablets with their inscriptions, as part of the country's cultural legacy, are an important help to the study of various subjects - history, ancient geography, development of the Chinese script, the art of calligraphy and of course the dead themselves if they were important figures in their lifetime.