Jinling Tombs Site

Jinling Tombs Site

The Jinling Tombs Site is a National Key Cultural Relics Protection Unit.

The Jinling Tombs Site is located at the foot of Yunfeng Mountain in the area from Chechang Village to Longmenkou in Fangshan District, about 48 kilometers from downtown Beijing. Yunfeng Mountain, also known as Jiulong Mountain, derives its name from its nine ridges that resemble nine dragons soaring. Originally located in Acheng, Heilongjiang Province, the Jinling Tombs were moved in 1155 to the foot of Taihuishan after the establishment of the capital in Yanjing (Beijing) in 1153. The imperial tombs of Emperor Taizu and Emperor Taizong were relocated here, where the first imperial mausoleum in the Beijing area was built. In 1156, the tombs of ten emperors including the founding ancestors were also moved to this location. Later, Emperors Xizong, Shizong, Zhangzong, Ruizong, and Xianzong were also buried here successively, which is how the site got its name, “Jinling.” The mausoleum area also contains the burial grounds of princes and important ministers known as the “Various Princes’ Tomb Zones.” In 1985, cultural relics authorities began investigation and trial excavations of the Jinling Tombs Site, uncovering a wealth of valuable artifacts including stone carvings, inscribed stelae, imperial pathways, architectural components, and ruins.

The Jinling Tombs Site in Fangshan District, Beijing, at the foot of the Greater Fangshan Mountain, is one of the few imperial mausoleums of ethnic minority dynasties in Chinese history and the earliest imperial tomb complex in the Beijing area.

During the Tianqi era of the Ming Dynasty, due to the rise of the Later Jin regime (which later became the Qing Dynasty), Ming Emperor Zhu Youjiao (the elder brother of the last Ming emperor, Chongzhen Emperor Zhu Youjian), influenced by the words of fortune-tellers, believed that the prosperity of the Later Jin was “connected to the spiritual energy” of the Jinling Tombs. As a result, he ordered the destructive demolition of the structures within the tomb area, bringing catastrophic ruin to the Jinling Tombs. In the early Qing Dynasty, some of the tombs were restored, and special tomb-guarding households were assigned to conduct seasonal sacrifices. However, after centuries of changes and human destruction, all above-ground structures in the tomb area have now vanished, and the site is completely unrecognizable.

Location

At the foot of Yunfeng Mountain (also known as Jiulong Mountain), Fangshan District, Beijing

Further Reading:

· Fifth Batch of Municipal-Level Cultural Relics Protection Units in Beijing

· Sixth Batch of National Key Cultural Relics Protection Units