Tomb of Zhang Chong

Tomb of Zhang Chong

The Tomb of Zhang Chong is a cultural tourism attraction.

The Tomb of Zhang Chong in Liuzhou is located on the hillside near Youzha Village, Liudong Township, on the outskirts of the city. It was built in the ninth year of the Wanli era during the Ming Dynasty (1581). The elevation from the base of the slope to the tomb site is 35 meters. From the first-level terrace to the tomb base, it measures 90 meters in length and 30 meters in width. There are a total of three terraced levels from bottom to top. At the first-level terrace, a pair of stone lions stands on the left and right, with a pair of stone sheep slightly further up, and then a pair of stone tigers a bit higher up. Ascending a series of stone steps leads to the second terrace, where a pair of stone horses stands on the left and right, and slightly above them are stone figures of officials holding ceremonial tablets, facing each other. Finally, at the third terrace, a pair of stone turtles stands on the left and right. The right-side stone turtle carries the “Imperial Edict Stele of the Ming Dynasty,” which is about 2 meters tall, and there is another pair of stone turtles near both sides of the tomb. The upper part of the three terraces has rubble retaining walls on the left and right sides. The tomb body is 1.92 meters high and 6 meters in diameter, built with cut stones. Its top features a spherical finial. The inscription on the tomb stele reads: “Tomb of the Late Zhang Gong, Distinguished Father, Scholar of the Ministry of Punishments and Censor-in-Chief, Honorable Advisor of the Imperial Court, of the Crane Tower,” with the signature: “Erected with blood tears by his filial sons Shi and Pei, grandson Jichang, and great-grandson Bingzhong, on an auspicious day in the Year of Xin Si, the ninth year of Wanli.” The stele is 1.45 meters high and 0.85 meters wide. The Tomb of Zhang Chong has been robbed multiple times, and the tomb base along with various stone carvings have suffered damage and loss due to long-term weathering. In recent years, it has been restored by the office of the Municipal Cultural Relics Management Committee.