MING TOMBS

History

The tomb of the first Emperor of Ming, Hongwu, is located in Nanjing. Subsequently, the capital was transferred to Beijing, and Emperor Yongle conceived the Forbidden City to rule and chose this valley north of Beijing to rest after his death. The ensemble consists of the tombs of the thirteen Ming emperors who followed on on the throne (except Daizong, which was deprecated and buried in the west suburbs of Beijing). The tombs are scattered in a natural circus with an area of forty square kilometers. The entrance of the tombs is marked by two hills (Tigris Hill, left, and Dragon Hill, right). The access road to tombs is a true initiatic journey (Shendao, in Chinese or «Spirit Road»). No one had the right to walk her on a mount, even the emperor. The arc of white marble triumph was erected in 1540. You have to walk 7 km before arriving at the main tombs door. Designed in 1426, this structure once had three solid wooden doors, and only the body of the deceased emperor could go through that of the center. Then the traditional stone driveway welcomed the funeral procession. The series of twelve animals is followed by two rows of six statues of soldiers, ministers and officials.

Visit

Dingling. Dingling is the tomb of Wanli (1563-1620), the 13 ^th Emperor of Ming. It was the first tomb to have been searched and opened to the public in 1958. The tomb is preceded by a tower in which a commemorative stent was deposited. In the back, a tumulus under which the underground chamber is located, in the coffin of the emperor and its two wives, Xiaoduan and Xiaojing. A staircase and a gallery drive underground to a set of five rooms. In the sacrifices room, we see offerings, incenses and oil lamps in front of the three trones representing the emperor in the center, framed by his two wives. The largest room houses the three imperial coffins surrounded by objects, ceramics and coffers filled with clothing, treasures and funerary objects. Some objects are copies, the originals being in the Forbidden City. The tomb of Emperor Wanli asked for six years of work and eight million taels of money. He was finished in 1690.

Changling. Changling, the tomb of Yongle, 3 ^rd Emperor of Ming and his concubine Empress Xu, was finished in 1427 after eighteen years of work. According to the archives, sixteen imperial concubines were buried alive in pools on both sides of the tomb. Right after you went under a big vaulted porch, we arrived in the Sacrifice Yard. By heading towards the right, one can see in a first pavilion, a stun, a camel and a stone dragon, dating from the Qing. Then, on the other side of the door of the distinguished favors, one finds in another courtyard at the bottom of which, behind the large pines, on a white marble terrace surrounded by balustres, stands the palace of eminent favors. This beautiful building is cut in one trunk of cedar, 32 pillars of one meter in diameter support ten meters higher a double roof covered with glazed tiles. This palace welcomed, once a month, ceremonies in honor of the deceased. Offerings and prayers were presented in front of the red wooden tablet marked with its name, then burned in ceramic ovens, which are still seen at the foot of the steps. In the last courtyard rises a marble altar on which a burner and other ritual objects are exposed. A little further, the Tower of Ame houses the emperor's funerary stent, and even further a 900-meter tumulus hides the imperial vault that is said to have not been excavated yet.

The ensemble has been classified as UNESCO World Heritage since 2000.