Introduction of Ming Tombs

Location:

Ming tombs located northwest of Beijing city, about 45KM away, it is also named thirteen tombs, the tombs covered 40 square kilometers for 13 Ming Dynasty Emperors. Each of which was built between a hill and a stream.The site was chosen with the greatest care,taking the Feng Shui into account.

The first one built here was Changling Tomb, also the most popular one for tourists, as it is preserved better than others, especially the buildings on the ground.

History:

The Ming Tombs also one of the seven world cultural heritage in Beijing, there are 13 Tombs for emperors and 23 tombs for concubines as well as princes. The first tomb built by the third emperor of Ming dynasty in 1409, built it for his wife and himself lived there in the after-death life. All the tombs for emperors here built same layout, just different size, mostly emperor built their own tomb smaller than his father’s tomb.

Layout:

In the tomb area, every single tomb is a independent courtyard, with large architectures on the ground for later emperor came for worshiping ancestors, also for the the deceased emperors to handle state affairs and royal family affairs in the another world, they believed something called soul still exist, still need everything like human beings, even servants and concubines. The best preserved wooden architecture for the tombs would be
Changling tomb, also this one is the first one built in this area, the symbolic wooden architecture is more than 600 years old, it is the oldest Nanmu wood architecture in China, also only one preserved in it’s kind, nanmu wood is a kind of very valuable hard and slow growing wood, it is very rare now, can not find another big tree like the pillars are supporting the building.( visiting time about 1 hour, exclude traffic time).

Also another part of each tomb is under ground palace, which was built underground and sealed, without entrance and exit, the coffins for emperor and empress kept inside, as well as valuable treasures as sacrifice.

Among the 13 tombs for emperors, only Dingling  tomb underground palace was excavated in 1957, people can visit the coffin palace by following steps get into 27 meters deep underground. ( visiting time about 1 hour, exclude traffic time).