Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum
It is the tomb of Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of Ming Dynasty, which is one of the biggest Emperor Mausoleums existed now. The construction of the mausoleum began in 1383 and has more than 600-year history.
The mausoleum consists of two parts: front and behind part, surrounding by 45-kilometer stonewall. The mausoleum was heavily constructed and planted. The front part begins from the place of jumping off the horse at that time to Sifangcheng (Rectangular city). You can enjoy the stone animals guarding the tomb, a pair of decorative columns, couples of ministers and generals have been standing there for centuries to accompany their Majesty beneath along the way and the sacred way. The behind part includes portal, stele inscribed with 4 Chinese characters, which was written by Emperor Kangxi in his third inspection tour, Xiaoling Hall, Bao City and so on. Emperor Zhu and his queen just were buried behind Bao City.
The sacred way started from Sifangcheng, which was a pavilion where a splendid carved stone stele was inscribed by his fourth son, Zhu Di to praise emperor's contribution. The stele is 8.78 meters high with 2746 words in it. Now, the top of the pavilion was gone, just left the walls.
The red portal of the mausoleum lies in the north and face to the south, which is the best direction for Chinese. The name of the tomb "Mingxiao Ling" was printed on the head of the gate. Two pavilions behind it were destroyed, but you can still imagine the fantastic scale from the relics.
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