Museum of the Battle of Maling

Museum of the Battle of Maling

The Museum of the Battle of Maling is a cultural tourism attraction.

The Museum of the Battle of Maling is the iconic building of the scenic area. It displays the battle process of the ancient Battle of Maling and showcases the life story of Sun Bin, serving as an important domestic research base for Sun Bin.

The ancient battlefield site of the Battle of Maling is located between Maling Village in Dazhangjia Town, Shenxian County, and Daokou Village in Yingtian Town, both in Liaocheng City, Shandong Province. The two villages, Maling and Daokou, are six kilometers apart. Their houses, alleys, and roads all follow the direction of the river, built at odd angles with numerous turns, making the layout extremely winding—so much so that visitors can easily lose their way even today, hence the nickname “Maze of Souls.”

A vivid description of the site was recorded in the poem “On the Road to Maling” by Meng Zhipu, the magistrate of Fan County during the Yuan Dynasty: “A vast stretch of the eastern plain, not the peak of Mount Emei. Embankments accumulate impact, collapsing into a great river. Houses mostly slant and twist, paths wind round in many turns. Marvelous indeed is Sunzi’s wisdom, reducing cooking hearths to capture Pang Juan.” In 341 BC, the famous military strategist Sun Bin made full use of these favorable conditions, ambushing troops along the Maling Road and defeating the arrogant Wei forces in one fell swoop. This forced the Wei army commander, Pang Juan, to commit suicide on a high earthen mound north of Maling, known as Huangsanggang. Legend has it that there was once a towering yellow mulberry tree under which Pang Juan took his own life. To the west of Huangsanggang, there used to be a temple dedicated to Sun Bin, with flying eaves, carved rafters, glazed tile roofs, and resplendent splendor, making it quite a spectacular sight.

In front of the temple stood a stele, with a well on each side, known as “One Hundred (Steles) and One (Load of) Two Wells.” Legend says these wells were dug by local people to aid the ambush when Sun Bin laid out his battle formation. Dazhangjia Town planned and constructed the Ancient Maling Battlefield Scenic Area based on the site. The Museum of the Battle of Maling is the iconic building of the scenic area. It displays the battle process of the ancient Battle of Maling and showcases the life story of Sun Bin, serving as an important domestic research base for Sun Bin. The museum name was inscribed by General Li Lai Zhu, former commander of the Beijing Military Region. On either side of the entrance are seal-script couplets: “An everlasting example of warfare in history, a volume of military strategy enlightening future generations.”