Fengyang Royal Mausoleum of the Ming Dynasty

Located in southwest Fengyang County, the mausoleum is the tomb of the parents of Zhu Yuanzhang, the first Emperor of the Ming Dynasty. Construction on the mausoleum began during the Emperor Hongwu's second year (1369 A.D.), and was finished 14 years later.

Being a magnificent complex, the mausoleum is surrounded by three walls named King town, Brick town, and Earth town. In the towns, there are many buildings including main hall, golden gate, Huangtang Bridge, Dismounting Stele, stone-mans and stone-animals.

There are even hundreds of houses for officials to rest when they held their ancestor cult there. At the end of the Ming Dynasty, a peasant uprising ransacked the mausoleum. They only left 32 pairs of stone carvings, the carved stone tablets without any inscriptions, and the Tombstone of the Great Royal Mausoleum of the Ming Dynasty towering there, which is misshapen or ruptured. The 32 pairs of stone carvings are vividly sculpted, which reflects the exquisite carving techniques of the Ming Dynasty.

The tombstone is 7 meters high, 2 meters wide, ranking first among all the emperor's mausoleums in China. He wrote the tablet inscription, which records Zhu Yuanzhang's life experience emotionally. It is of great historical and cultural value and has become one of the national key cultural relic protection units.

Publishes at : 07-10-02 14:47

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