China-Ming Dynasty Tombs

The Ming Dynasty Tombs are located some 50 kilometers due north of urban Beijing at a specially selected site. The site was chosen by the third Ming Dynasty emperor Yongle (1402 - 1424), who moved the capital of China from Naijing to the present location of northwest Beijing. The Ming tombs of the 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty were located on the southern slope of Mountain Taishou. He is credited with envisioning the layout of the ancient city of Beijing as well as a number of landmarks and monuments located therein. After the construction of the Imperial Palace (the Forbidden City) in 1420, the Yongle Emperor selected his burial site and created his own Mausoleum.

Ming Dynasty Tombs
Youtube-the palace of Ming Dynasty in Beijing
http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=PPZQcw1kFegFrom


From the Yongle Emperor onwards, 13 Ming Dynasty Emperors were buried in this area. The tombs of the first two Ming Emperors are located near Nanjing (the capital city during their reigns). Emperor Jingtai was also not buried here, as the Emperor Tianshun had denied Jingtai an imperial burial, but was instead buried west of Beijing. The last Chongzhen Emperor, who hanged himself in April 1644, named Si Ling by the Qing emperor, was the last to be buried here, but on a much smaller scale than his predecessors.

During the Ming dynasty the tombs were off limits to commoners, but in 1644 Li Zicheng's army ransacked and set many of the tombs on fire before advancing and capturing Beijing in April of that year.

Youtube-Ming Dynasty Tombshttp://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=msAps4zIu6w

Youtube-Kevin and Sue travel to China's Ming Tombs
http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=sfynyPLm4Q0&feature=related

The site of the Ming Dynasty Imperial Tombs was carefully chosen according to Feng Shui (geomancy) principles. According to these, bad spirits and evil winds descending from the North must be deflected; therefore, an arc-shaped area at the foot of the Jundu Maintains north of Beijing was selected. This 40 square kilometer area - enclosed by the mountains in a pristine, quiet valley full of dark earth, tranquil water and other necessities as per Feng Shui - would become the necropolis of the Ming Dynasty

At present, only three tombs are open to the public. There have been no excavations since 1989, but plans for new archeological research and further opening of tombs have circulated. They can be seen on Google earth: Chang Ling, the largest; Ding Ling, whose underground palace has been excavated; and Zhao Ling.

Gate of the tombs The monument of Ming Dynasty Tombs

Statue inside the Ming Dynasty Tombs Ding Ling, one of the tombs at the Ming Dynasty Tombs site, is the tomb of the Wanli Emperor. It is the only one of the Ming Dynasty Tombs to have been excavated. It also remains the only imperial tomb to have been excavated since the founding of the China, a situation that is almost a direct result of the fate that befell Ding Ling and its contents after the excavation.

The lessons learned from the Ding Ling excavation has led to a new policy of the China government not to excavate any historical site except for rescue purposes. In particular, no proposal to open an imperial tomb has been approved since Ding Ling, even when the entrance has been accidentally revealed, as was the case of the Qianling mausoleum. The original plan, to use Ding Ling as a trial site for the excavation of Chang Ling, was abandoned.

Ding Ling

The underground palace of Ding Ling
Youtube-Discovery-Ding Ling
http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=B6GrS3l-flE

I have been to China when I was junior high. During the stay in Beijing, I visited the Ming Dynasty Tombs. The construction of the mausoleum is magnificent and gorgeous and that was why I was surprised and excited. They were constructed with special techniques of China. In particular, there were many mortuary objects which were precious in the mausoleum and that made the tomb like a gorgeous house. Furthermore, the mausoleum is too wide to completely be visited and it was a pity to me. However, the visit in the Ming Dynasty Tombs was still nice and fun.

Before the Ming Dynasty, the emperors of China did not pay much attention to the type of their mausoleums. Until in the Ming Dynasty, the emperors started to emphasize the majesty of the mausoleums and that was why the Ming Dynasty Tombs was so magnificent. Moreover, in 2003, Imperial Tombs of the Ming Dynasties is included into the list of the UNESCO and into the list of World Heritage Site.

References:

"Imperial Tombs of the Ming and Qing Dynasties." Wikipedia: Ming and Qing Dynasties. 3 January,2009.http://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/明清皇家陵寝

"Ming Dynasty Tombs." Wikipedia: Ming Dynasty Tombs. 3 January,2009. http://zh.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%E6%98%8E%E5%8D%81%E4%B8%89%E9%99%B5&variant=zh-tw

"Ding Ling." Youtube: Ding Ling. 7 December, 2007. 3 january,2009.
http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=B6GrS3l-flE

''Ming Dynasty Tombs'' Youtube: Kevin and Sue travel to China's Ming Tombs. 12 January,2008. 3 January,2009.
http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=sfynyPLm4Q0&feature=related

"Ming Dynasty Tombs" Youtube: Travel China Beijing-Ming Tombs. 8 October, 2006. 3 January, 2009.http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=msAps4zIu6w

"Ming Dynasty Tombs" Youtube: The Palace of Ming Dynasty in Beiling. 20 April, 2008. 3 January, 2009.http://tw.youtube.com/watch?v=PPZQcw1kFeg

written by Claire Lin