Ming Tombs and Sacred Way

Located 50 kilometers northwest of Beijing, the Ming Tombs built from 1409 A.D. -1644 A.D is where 13 emperors of the Ming (1368-1644) and their empresses and concubines were buried.
Thirteen tombs spread over 40 kilometers in circumference. A 7-kilometer-long sacred way flanked by 18 pairs of giant stone statues leads to the Changling - the tomb of Emperor Yongle, the most powerful emperor in the Ming dynasty. The up-turn-cornered marble Stone Arch with beautiful bas-relief carvings of lions, dragons and flowers - the first on your way to the tomb was erected in 1540. The Great Palace Gate built in 1426 marks the beginning of the Sacred Way to Changling. The Great Palace Gate used to have three passageways and the central one was used by the deceased emperor only while the living emperor used the side ones. Officials and civilians had to dismount before the gate. About 460 meters from the gate stands the vermilion Stele Pavilion with an exquisitely engraved 7-meter-high stone column called as huabiao - similar to the one on the Tian'anmen Square. Inscriptions from Qing Emperor Qianlong's Reign on the back recorded the reconstruction of the tombs. Next along the path are bizarre, mythical stone monsters standing guard. At the end of road stands Changling and on half the way a sideway to the left leads to Dingling a prior for visitors - the tomb of Emperor Wanli. To get to the tomb itself, you have to walk down many flights of stairs till you are deep inside the mountain. It is kind of creepy and cool to go down and down.

The Sacred Way and Stone Statues

In the front part of imperial necropolises there is usually a "sacred way" or "divine road" for the spirits of the royal dead-- in which the ancients believed to walk on. This road is often lined with stone statues of men and animals as important decorations of the grounds.

The traditional name for the giant-sized statues of men, popularly called "stone men", is strictly wengzhong. It is said that a herculean giant by the name of Ruan Wengzhong lived in the Qin Dynasty (221-207 B. C.) and distinguished himself with great service in garrisoning the borders in Gansu and in fighting the Huns. After he died, Emperor Qin Shi Huang, to commemorate him, had a bronze statue carved in his likeness and erected at his palace in Xianyang. It is also said that, when Huns came to Xianyang and saw the statue, they thought Wengzhong was still alive. After that, all bronze men (and then stone statues) standing guard at palaces and imperial tombs came to be known as Wengzhong.

As for the stone animals, they have their origin in the following historical event:

Huo Qubing (140-117 B. C.) was a young military genius in the period of the Western Han. Distinguished in archery and horsemanship, he became an imperial attendant at age 17 and was several times sent on expeditions under his uncle Wei Qing, a famous commander, to fight the marauding Huns. He was given a command himself at 19 and twice led government forces to what was present-day Gansu and dealt telling blows to the Huns. He died at the age of 23 only. Emperor Wudi built for his beloved young general a magnificent tomb at Maoling and, to perpetuate the fame of his exploits in the northwest, had the mausoleum grounds landscaped like the Qilian Mountains where the battles had been fought. And as the mountain range is marked by rugged rocks that resemble wild beasts, so Huo's tumulus was strewn with grotesque rocks;furthermore, masons building the tomb sculptured many stone statues of animals-- leaping and squatting horses, resting tigers, kneeling elephants, piglets and fish, bears and other wild beasts preying on sheep... Of the sculptures, the most renowned is one showing a Hun under the hoof of a galloping horse, a work of art aptly summing up the achievements of the young general in his meteoric career.

The group of statues are the earliest giant-sized stone sculptures known to stand in front of an ancient tomb in China.

Emperors in later epochs, taking their cue from this, had stone men and animals made for their own tombs, and they are now a common sight to greet visitors to imperial mausoleums of the Tang, Song, Ming and Qing dynasties.

The group of giant stone figures that stand on the grounds of the Ming Tombs near beijing are the best preserved, the most true-to-life and most skilfully carved of their kind.

Erected where they are in A. D. 1435 (or the 10th year of the reign of the Ming Emperor Xuande), they consist of 12 human figures (civil and military officials and courtiers with meritorious records) and 24 animals (lions, camels, xiezhi, elephants, qilin, and horses-four of each, two standing and two squatting). The human figures were meant to imply firm and popular support to the imperial house, while the animals in different postures signified alternate day and night services to the dead monarchs.

Besides, different animals had each their symbolic significance:

The lion, ferocious in nature and lording it over the animal kingdom, symbolized awesome solemnity.

The camel and elephant, being dependable means of transport in the deserts and tropics, put together at the imperial tombs, were meant to suggest the vastness of the territory controlled by the court.

The xiezhi, a mythological unicorn which was supposed to possess a sixth sense to tell between right and wrong and which, when two men were embroiled in a fight, would gore the wicked one, was put there to keep evil spirits away.

The qilin, one of the four "divine animals" (the other three are dragon, phoenix and tortoise), was represented at the tombs as an auspicious symbol.

The horse, being the emperor's mount on many occasions, was of course indispensable.