looking back from the pavillion
the original vases were filled with oil for illuminating the area. This vase is a replica
inside the tomb, the place is roomy but mostly empty
our guide explains what we are going to see
there are several courtyards at different levels.
children go for the turtle head
one of the large stone relics on display
when above ground again we move on to stairs of the large pavillion
the entrance to the underground tomb
Emperor WanLi's Tomb of Stability (Dingling)
13
Ming emperors had their mausoleum built in a valley near the Tianshou Mountain, some 40 km north of Beijing.
This site
was carefully selected on the principles of
Feng Shui.
A Spirit Way, lined wit stone animals leads to the mausoleums, of which only
three are open to the public, and only one of the tombs has been dug out.
In 1957
Dingling, emperor
Wan Li's tomb, was excavated
and found intact, with many treasures including the remains of the emperor and his two empresses.
At that time technology and mindset
for proper conservation was absent in China and many items quickly deteriorated or were stolen, so that today mostly replicas are
on display.
In 1966 the
Red Guards of the
Cultural Revolution entered the tomb, set the royal remains on fire and destroyed
or looted many of the items in the tomb.
Since then the Chinese government has become very reluctant to excavate any
of the many historical sites.
We visited Dingling in May 2004.
a Google Earth's view on the Dingling Mausoleum. To the lower left is the Zhaoling Tomb
a huge stele is mounted on the back of a turtle
moving on to the next courtyard
the emperor's throne is covered by money, people think it will bring them wealth
the throne of the empress clearly holds less money
