Ming Tombs

Thirteen of the sixteen Ming-dynasty emperors were entombed in and around the Shisan Ling Valley, 40km northwest of Beijing. Two of these Ming Tombs, Chang Ling and Ding Ling, were restored in the 1950s and the latter was also excavated, yielding up various treasures to the to the capital’s museum. They are very much on the tour circuit, conveniently placed on the way to Badaling.

The approach to the Ming Tombs, the seven-kilometer Spirit Way, is Shisan Ling’s most exciting feature. This commences with the Dahongmen (Great Red Gate), a triple –entranced triumphal arch, through the central opening of which only the emperor’s dead body could be carried. Beyond, the road is lined to either side with colossal stone statues of animals and men. Startlingly larger than life, the statues all date from the fifteenth century and are among the best surviving examples of Ming sculpture.

The main focus of the tour, however, is Ding Ling, the underground tomb-palace of the Emperor Wanli. Wanli ascended the throne in 1573 at the age of 10 and reigned for almost half a century. He began building his tomb when he was 22, in line with common Ming practice, and hosted a grand party within on its completion. The mausoleum was opened in 1956 and found to be substantially intact, revealing the emperor’s coffin, flaked by those of two of this empresses, and floors covered with the remains of scores of trunks containing imperial robes, gold and silver, and even the imperial cookbooks. Some of the treasures are displayed in the tomb, a huge musty vault, undecorated but impressive for its scale, and other tombs have been replaced by replicas. It’s a cautionary sight of useless wealth accumulation, as pointed out by the tour guides.

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