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CHINA - Beijing |
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Ming Tomb |
As the name implies, these are
the tombs of the Emperors of the Ming Dynasty (AD 1368 to 1644).
Lying 50 km north west of Beijing, it is located in the basin of
the Tianshou Mountains in Changping. Changping is the burial
grounds of thirteen Ming emperors. The Ming Tombs took more than
200 years to build and occupies an area more than 400 square
miles. The construction is magnificent and definitely worth
visiting. The tour include an underground visit to one of the
last Ming Emperor's grave.
As the Emperor was the son of
Heaven, building his tomb was an act of national significance.
The positioning of the tomb was also a matter of great concern,
as defined by the ancient science of fengshui or geomancy. If the
Emperor's spirit were to be dissatisfied, this might result in
the collapse of the dynasty or the Empire. Thus, it was common
for an Emperor's tomb to consume as much as a third of the state
budget. The location of Changping was sufficiently impressive to
persuade the third Ming emperor Yong Le (AD 1403-1424) to build
his tomb there, the first of thirteen such Imperial tombs.
Click
on the picture to have a larger version
| Houses along the
road |
You can go like
an emperor |
The square in
front |
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From the 2004 visit I can
add these pictures
| Various
details from the area |
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| On a
clear day you can see forever |
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