Tomb of He Shuxuan

Tomb of He Shuxuan

The Tomb of He Shuxuan is a cultural relic protection unit of Zhongshan City.

The Tomb of He Shuxuan is located on the southern slope of Luming Mountain in Huzhua Village, Banfu Town, Zhongshan City. It was built in the 16th year of the Chongzhen reign during the Ming Dynasty (1643) and underwent two renovations during the Qing Dynasty: in the 4th year of the Qianlong reign (1739) and the 1st year of the Guangxu reign (1875).

The tomb complex is built in four terraced levels following the mountain’s contour. The main tomb hall is 21.4 meters wide and 26 meters deep, and the surrounding area is walled with large brown stone slabs. The walls on both sides of each level of the tomb hall are adorned with stone-carved qilin (mythical creatures). A flight of stone steps leads up to the front, built upon plinths engraved with motifs of the “four arts”: the guqin (a seven-stringed instrument), chess, calligraphy, and painting. At the front of the fourth-level tomb hall stands an upright stone stele, 2.05 meters tall and 96 centimeters wide, inscribed with the following: “The joint burial tomb of Mr. He Shunjian, a scholar from Jun’gang, posthumously honored as Grand Master for Splendid Happiness, Left Pillar of State, Grand Tutor, concurrently Grand Preceptor to the Crown Prince, and Minister of Personnel, Rites, and War, as well as Grand Secretary of the Zhongji Hall; his wife, Lady He (née Liu), posthumously honored as First Rank Noble Consort; and his wife, Lady He (née Luo), also posthumously honored as First Rank Noble Consort.” Behind the stele lies an oval earthen mound with a diameter of 9 meters, surfaced with lime sand, topped with a bas-relief carving of clouds encircling the moon. Legend has it that rows of stone figures and horses once flanked the front of the tomb, but they no longer exist.

He Shuxuan, styled Diaoyuan, was a native of Xiaolan and a scholar. As the father of He Wu, who held the first-rank official title, he was posthumously granted the titles of Left Pillar of State, Grand Master for Splendid Happiness, Grand Tutor, concurrently Grand Preceptor to the Crown Prince, Minister of Personnel, and Grand Secretary of the Zhongji Hall. Together with his elder brother He Shuzhong and younger brother He Shuzan, he was known for his literary talent, collectively referred to as the “Three Hes of Xiangshan.”

In 1990, the Zhongshan Municipal People's Government designated it as a cultural relic protection unit.

Banfu Town: Banfu Town is located in the southern part of Zhongshan City, on the eastern side of the Xijiang River, a tributary of the Pearl River. It covers an area of 81.31 square kilometers, governs 10 village committees and one neighborhood committee, with a registered population of 33,300 and a non-registered population of 61,700. There are over 6,000 overseas Chinese residing in the town, making it one of Zhongshan’s hometowns for overseas Chinese. In 2006, adhering to the strategy of “building a strong town through industry,” the town focused on creating a harmonious Banfu. It achieved a gross domestic product of 2.715 billion yuan and a total industrial and agricultural output value of 7.578 billion yuan, representing increases of 16.37% and 21.72% respectively over the previous year.

[Economy…… More details about Banfu Town++]