Tomb of Grand Secretary Song

Tomb of Grand Secretary Song

The Tomb of Grand Secretary Song is a cultural relic protection unit of Henan Province.

The Tomb of Grand Secretary Song is located in Nansonglin Village, Huaxian County, and is the family cemetery of Song Nie, who was specially appointed as the National University Sacrificial Official in the early Ming Dynasty. The cemetery lies about one li west of Nansonglin Village. It features ancient, sturdy cypresses, numerous stone stelae, and rows of stone statues lining the spirit way, creating an imposing and majestic scene. Of particular interest are two massive spirit way stelae: one is called the “Great Yuan Dongjun Song Family Virtuous Deeds Stele,” and the other is called the “Great Yuan Dongjun Song Family Virtuous Deeds Commendation Stele.” The former has a stele head carved with nine coiled dragons, exquisitely detailed, and a base in the shape of a giant bixi turtle; the latter has a roof-shaped stele head and a four-sided prism-shaped body. Both stelae were erected by the Yuan Dynasty emperor to commend the official achievements of Song Nie’s father, Song Chonglu. Song Chonglu once served as the Censorate Commissioner of Yan-Nan Hebei Circuit and as an Imperial Censor of the Jiangnan Regional Censorate, where he earned a reputation for effective governance. In recognition, the imperial court posthumously honored three generations of his family and ordered the construction and maintenance of the family burial grounds. The “Virtuous Deeds Commendation Stele” was composed by Wang Yi, a Doctor of Calligraphy at the Xuanwen Pavilion, concurrently a Hanlin Academician and Translator for the Imperial Lectures; calligraphed by Kangli Nao, a Hanlin Academician and Director of Edicts, concurrently Compiler of National History and Supervisor of the Imperial Lectures; and engraved with a title cartouche by Geng Huan, a Hanlin Academician and Director of Edicts, concurrently Compiler of National History. The Song family cemetery and its stelae are designated as provincial-level cultural relic protection units. Tomb of Grand Secretary Song – Basic Introduction The tomb is located in Nansonglin Village, Niutun Town. The cemetery is expansive, with numerous stelae and lush green cypresses. Grand Secretary Song, whose name was Song Nie, served as the Sacrificial Official of the National University in the early Ming Dynasty. He passed away at the age of 80, and Emperor Taizu of Ming, Zhu Yuanzhang, wrote a eulogy in his honor, dispatched officials to oversee his funeral, and personally inscribed the words “Founding-Era Renowned Teacher” on the stele dedicated to the Grand Secretary. During the national cultural survey in 1985, two additional tall stone stelae were discovered in this cemetery: one is a massive dragon stele, standing 440 cm high, 50 cm thick, and 110 cm wide, erected in October of the fifth year of the Yuan Dynasty's Yanyou era (1318); the other is a massive four-sided pillar stele, with inscriptions on all four sides written by historical figures, erected in March of the second year of the Yuan Dynasty's Zhiyuan era (1342). This stele has a roof-shaped head and a lotus-petal-shaped base, stands 390 cm high, 77 cm wide, and 77 cm thick, and bears an inscription handwritten by Kangli Kui, a calligrapher from the late Yuan and early Ming period. This site is a county-level key cultural relic protection unit.