Ming Tombs

Near Beijing, in a valley that conforms to Feng Shui principles, 13 of the 16 Ming Dynasty emperors are buried in elaborate tombs. Like the Valley of the Kings in Egypt, but not nearly so old, the location of the tombs was created in 1420 when the capital of the Ming was moved to Beijing from Nanking by the Yongle Emperor.

We drove in along the "Spirit Way," the long road that leads into the midst of the tombs. We visited the tomb of the Wanli Emperor, who had the longest reign of all the Ming, 1572-1620.

In fact, there are only two tombs open. To summarize a longer story, the excavation was supposed to be a model of archaeology in the late 1950s but it was caught up in politics and incompetence, thereby losing a good deal of valuable information and materials. And then in the 1960s, some fervent Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution, attacked the tomb, dragged the remains of the emperor and his wives out to the fromt of the tomb where they were burned. Other items were destroyed as well.

This caused a decision made by the Chinese government to not continue the excavation at the other tombs unless necessary to preserve them.

The Wanli tomb is a grand thing, surrouded by buildings, monuments and woods, leading to the underground vault where the bodies of the emperor, his wives, and his concubuines were entombed.

These photos are of our approach to the tomb. If you click the photos, you should be able to read the information on the signs if you are interested.