At a distance of 50 km
northwest of Beijing stands
an arc-shaped cluster of
hills fronted by a small
plain. Here is where 13
emperors of the Ming dynasty
(1368-1644) were buried, and
the area is known as the
Ming Tombs.
Construction of the tombs
started in 1409 and ended
with the fall of the Ming
Dynasty in 1644. In over 200
years tombs were built over
an area of 40 square
kilometres, which is
surrounded by walls
totalling 40 kilometres.
Each tomb is located at the
foot of a separate hill and
is linked with the other
tombs by a road called the
Sacred Way. The stone
archway at the southern end
of the Sacred Way, built in
1540, is 14 metres high and
19 metres wide, and is
decorated with designs of
clouds, waves and divine
animals.
Beijing served as the
national capital during
the Yuan, Ming and Qing
dynasties. Unlike Ming
and Qing rulers who all
built massive tombs for
themselves, Yuan rulers
left no similar burial
grounds. Why the
difference?
This has to do with
people's different views
on death. Beijing nomads
came from the Mongolian
steppe. Mongols who
established the Yuan
Dynasty held the belief
that they had come from:
earth. they adopted a
simple funeral method:
the dead was placed
inside a hollowed nanmu
tree, which was then
buried under grassland.
Growth of grass soon
left no traces of the
tombs.
By contrast, during the
Ming Dynasty established
by Han Chinese coming
from an agricultural
society in central
China, people believed
the existence of an
after-world, where the
dead "lived" a life
similar to that of the
living. Ming emperor,
therefore, has grand
mausoleums built for
themselves. Qing rulers
did likewise.
Stone
Archway
The stone archway at the
southern end of the
Sacred Way, built in
1540, is 14 metres high
and 19 metres wide, and
is decorated with
designs of clouds, waves
and divine animals.
Well-proportioned and
finely carved, the
archway is one of the
best preserved specimens
of its kink in the Ming
Dynasty. It is also the
largest ancient stone
archway in China.
Stele
Pavilion
The Stele Pavilion, not
far from the Great
Palace Gate, is actually
a pavilion with a
double-eaved roof. On
the back of the stele is
carvedpoetry written by
Emperor Qianlong of the
Qing Dynasty when he
visited the Ming Tombs.
Sacred
Way
The Sacred Way inside
the gate of the Ming
Tomb is lined with 18
pairs of stone human
figures and animals.
These include four each
of three types of
officials: civil,
military and meritorious
officials, symbolizing
those who assist the
emperor in the
administration of the
state, plus four each of
six iypes of animals:
lion, griffin, camel,
elephant, unicorn and
horse.
Yongling Tomb
Yongling, built in 1536,
is the tomb for Emperor
Shizong, Zhu Houcong
(1507-1566). He stayed
in power for 45 years.
Dingling Tomb
The
Dingling Tomb is the
tomb of Emperor Wanli
(reigned 1573-1619), the
13th emperor of the Ming
Dynasty, whose personal
name was Zhu Yijun, and
of his two empresses,
Xiao Duan and Xiao Jing.
The tomb was completed
in six years
(1584-1590), it occupies
a total area of 1,195
square meters at the
foot of Dayu Mountain
southwest of the
Changling Tomb.
Maoling Tomb
Emperor
Xianzong, Zhu Jianshen,
and his three empresses
are entombed within
Maoling. Zhu Jianshen
(1447-1487) was the
first son of Emperor
Yingzong. He stayed in
power for 22 years.
We have covered some
of the most
significant tombs of
the 13 Ming tombs in
the tour. If you are
also interested in
the other tombs, the
best way is to come
and experience
yourself.
Changling Tomb
Changling is the
tomb of emperor
Yongle (reigned
1403-1424), the
third emperor of the
Ming Dynasty whose
personal name was
Zhu Di, and of his
empress. Built in
1413, the mausoleum
extends over an area
of 100,000 square
metres. The soul
tower, which tells
people whose tomb it
is, rests on a
circular wall called
the "city of
treasures" which
surrounds the burial
mound. The "city of
treasures" at
Changling has a
length of more than
a kilometre.
Underground
Palace
The underground palace at
Dingling Tomb consists of an
antechamber, a ceniral
chamber and a rear chamber
plus the left and right
annexes. One of the pictures
shows the central chamber
where the sacrificial
utensils are on display. Two
marble doors are made of
single slabs and carved with
life-size human figures,
flowers and birds. More than
3,000 articles have been
unearthed from the tumulus,
the most precious being the
golden crowns of the emperor
and his queen.
