Tomb of Wu Jintang

Tomb of Wu Jintang

The Tomb of Wu Jintang is a cultural tourism attraction.

Mr. Wu Jintang passed away at his Yanghe Villa in Kobe, Japan, on January 14, 1926, at the age of 72. On his deathbed, he repeatedly instructed his descendants to bring his remains back to his homeland and bury him in his hometown. On the tenth day of the fourth lunar month in 1929, his son Qifan and others transported the coffin via Shanghai and Ningbo by waterway all the way to Cibei. A grand memorial and burial ceremony was held at Jinxian Temple. Reflecting on his noble virtue of “not wishing to accumulate wealth for his descendants,” a large crowd from Cibei, young and old alike, spontaneously came to pay their respects and mourn.

The tomb of Mr. Wu Jintang is located by Baiyang Lake in Minghe, Guanhaiwei Town, Cixi City, and consists of two parts: the tomb garden and the tomb hall, covering an area of 1,354 square meters. A lake embankment runs east-west in front of the tomb, connecting to Jinxian Temple to the east, Hukou Village to the west, Du Lake to the southeast, and Yangtang to the northwest. It is situated at the center of the key water conservancy projects that benefited the local community during Mr. Wu’s lifetime.

The tomb garden is built on a raised platform surrounded by stone slabs, forming a rectangular platform measuring 38.3 meters north-south and 25.4 meters east-west, elevated above the road surface. The front is enclosed by a stone fence, while the east, west, and north sides have cement railings. Entering through the gate into the tomb garden, there are drum-shaped stones on both sides of the tomb path, stone lions guarding the outer courtyard in front of the tomb, and stone drums aligned in the inner courtyard. Long stone slabs around the area also serve as benches. At the center stands a conical tomb mound, 4.81 meters high, surrounded by 32 flower stands planted with pines, cypresses, and flowers, creating a serene environment. The tombstone is inscribed with six large characters, “Tomb of Mr. Wu Jintang,” written horizontally by Zhang Jian, the top imperial scholar of the late Qing Dynasty. The epitaph was inscribed by Zhang Taiyan, a Chinese democratic revolutionary thinker. On both sides are engraved a couplet composed by Mr. Wu himself — “To love the hills and lakes is reason enough to be buried here; I care not for feng shui but follow my heart” — expressing his deep attachment to his homeland.

The tomb hall is a five-bay, two-courtyard structure with side rooms, forming a square layout. It is a high-rise single-story building with a flush gable roof, constructed of grey bricks laid in staggered courses. The main facade bears the inscription “Tomb Hall of Mr. Wu” on the lintel. In front lies a flagstone-paved courtyard of about 390 square meters, connected to the tomb garden. The second bay of the inner courtyard serves as the memorial hall. The horizontal plaque above the gate bears the inscription “Fame Lasts for Millennia,” bestowed by the Cixi County People’s Government. The central bay displays a plaque awarded in August of the fifth year of the Republic of China, inscribed with “Dedicated to Public Welfare,” bestowed by the then President. At the center is a portrait of Mr. Wu Jintang, flanked by a couplet: “By dredging lakes and ponds, rice and cotton crops flourish year after year; by revitalizing education, many talented youths emerge.” This expresses the remembrance of later generations. The left secondary bay displays a plaque inscribed with “Blessing the Hometown,” awarded in the fourth year of the Republic of China by Qu Yingguang, the Zhejiang Provincial Governor, in special recognition of Mr. Wu Zuomuo’s charitable relief funding. The right secondary bay displays a plaque inscribed with “A Paradise Beyond the World,” written by Feng Huan of Jiangyin in the autumn of the year of Jiwei.

During the Cultural Revolution, the tomb and bronze statue were damaged. In 1984, the Cixi County People’s Government rebuilt the tomb garden to its original state to honor Mr. Wu Jintang’s patriotism and love for his hometown. In the autumn of 1986, Chen Deren, a leader of the overseas Chinese business community in Kobe, Japan, visited Mr. Wu’s tomb and built the “Ze Xiang Pavilion” and erected the “Ze Xiang Stele” on the east side of the tomb. In August 1986, the Cixi County People’s Government designated the Tomb of Wu Jintang as a third batch cultural relics protection unit.

Guanhaiwei Town: Located in the eastern part of Cixi City, Guanhaiwei Town covers an area of 150.20 square kilometers and has a total population of 200,000, including 50,000 migrants. Guanhaiwei is the eastern wing of Cixi City’s “one body, two wings” urban development strategy, and is recognized as a central town at both the municipal and provincial levels in Ningbo, as well as a pilot town for comprehensive reform in small towns across the province.

Guanhaiwei Town enjoys favorable conditions for economic development, with significant progress made in its economy and various social endeavors. In 2001, the town’s GDP reached 2.064 billion yuan, per capita GDP was 13,760 yuan, and fiscal revenue was 114 million yuan. Guanhaiwei... More details about Guanhaiwei Town++