Tomb of Wang Xijue

Tomb of Wang Xijue

The Tomb of Wang Xijue is a cultural tourism attraction.

The Tomb of Wang Xijue is located at Fenghuangdun in Xinzhuan Village, Huqiu, Suzhou.

Wang Xijue, courtesy name Yuanyu and alias Jingshi, was a native of Taicang in the Ming Dynasty. He ranked first in the metropolitan examination during the Jiajing reign and second in the palace examination, after which he was appointed as a compiler. In the early Wanli era, he took charge of the Hanlin Academy and eventually rose to the positions of Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent, Minister of Personnel, and Grand Secretary of Jianji Hall. He was posthumously honored with the title "Wen Su."

Li Genyuan’s “Records of Visiting Antiquities in the Western Hills of Wujun” states: “The tomb of the Ming Grand Secretary Wang Wen Su Xijue is enclosed by an imperial-granted spirit way archway. The hall for offerings has been destroyed… There are stone statues of officials (wenchung), stone lions, stone tigers, and stone sheep. The surrounding wall of the tomb is inscribed with ‘Tomb of Grand Secretary of Jianji Hall, Grand Guardian Wang Wen Su.’ The perimeter is about twenty zhang wide… On the left side, there is a shrine enshrining a statue of Wen Su, with walls inlaid with a stele from the Suzhou government regarding the establishment of sacrificial fields. The entire tomb site spans two hundred mu.” During the survey in 1957, the tomb site still covered approximately 4,510 square meters, with the earthen mound being about two meters high. There were still over twenty items such as stone statues of officials, stone beasts, stone archway pillars, and broken steles, indicating the grand scale of the tomb. It was damaged in the early stages of the Cultural Revolution, and in December 1966, the Suzhou Museum conducted a clearance and excavation.

The exterior of the tomb was sealed with a “lime-soil mixture,” while the interior featured a vertical shaft-style vaulted double-chamber structure built with blue bricks, containing two wooden coffins placed side by side. These belonged to Wang Xijue and his wife, Lady Zhu. Artifacts unearthed included silk garments such as hats, robes, quilts, and skirts, as well as exquisitely crafted funerary objects such as tin cups, plates, basins, and pots; wooden beds, tables, chairs, clothes racks, and washbasins; along with plaques, covers, and fans. Other items included agate hairnets, white jade animal-shaped seals, crystal cups, white jade belt hooks, rings, and gold-sprinkled folding fans. In total, 161 items were found. These burial objects provide valuable references for the study of the development of handicrafts and craftsmanship during the Ming Dynasty, as well as physical materials for researching Ming-style furniture from Suzhou.