Han Tombs of Tianzhen County

Han Tombs of Tianzhen County

The Han Tombs of Tianzhen County are a cultural tourism attraction.

Han Tombs of Tianzhen County

The Han Tombs of Tianzhen County are the Shaliangpo Han Tomb Cluster, which consists of 41 burial mounds. Originally one of Tianzhen County’s protected cultural heritage sites, it was designated as a National Cultural Heritage site in May 2006.

The tomb cluster is situated on Shaliangpo Hill, about 8 li (approximately 4 kilometers) south of the county town, and is commonly known as "Huangliangdui" (literally "Piles of False Grain"). In 1973, a flood washed out one of the tombs, which was confirmed to be from the Eastern Han Dynasty and contained artifacts such as a bronze mirror decorated with grass-leaf patterns. In 1989, during the construction of the national defense highway connecting Tianzhen and Zouma Yi, three tombs were excavated along the route. The largest of these was the burial site of an Eastern Han prefectural-level official. Artifacts unearthed included swords and “liubo” game pieces, all of which were transferred to the Yanbei Cultural Relics Management Office. According to Eastern Han funerary customs, the higher an official’s rank, the larger their burial mound. The concentration of so many sizable tombs here reflects either the frequent battles fought by the Han Dynasty to repel invasions from northern ethnic groups or the casualties suffered by military officers during territorial expansion. These soldiers shed blood on the battlefield and were often unable even to be buried in their hometowns with the honor of being wrapped in horsehide — truly echoing the lines, “Do not laugh if you see me lying drunk on the battlefield; how many soldiers ever return from ancient wars?”

Further south along the Shaliangpo Han Tomb Cluster lies another burial site at the border between Yangjiazhuang and Gucheng. To the west of Zhangxihé Village, on Mǎtílǐáng (Horse Hoof Ridge), there are currently four Han tombs, standing 3.5 to 7 meters tall, with the largest having a diameter of 21 meters. Seven Han tombs, about 5 meters high with circumferences ranging from 35 to 80 meters, are located east of Hòuchuānpíngyuǎnbǎo to the north of the county town. The earthen mounds of these Han tombs reflect, from another perspective, the frequent warfare that took place in the ancient battlefields of Yánlíng (the area around Tianzhen was part of Yánlíng in the Han Dynasty) during the time of the Han Empire. Existing tombs within the county also include burial sites of local military commanders from the Ming and Qing Dynasties, such as the tomb of Gāo Cè, Deputy General of Jizhen to the north of the county town; the tomb of Luó Guāngqián, Deputy General of Jizhen in Sānlǐtún; the tomb of Mù Shēnghuī, Commander-in-Chief of Yunxiang to the northwest of the county town; and the tomb of Wáng Qiānzǒng, a military officer at Xinping Fort — all relatively large burial sites.

To the west of the Shaliangpo Han Tombs lies the Sānshā River, a perennial waterway that flows from the southern side of this sand ridge, continuing westward to the county town before joining the Nányáng River. At the southwestern foot of the Han Tomb Cluster is the Gūfēngshān Reservoir, built in 1961, which no longer retains water. It was originally designed to store both clear and flood waters from the Sānshā River. To the east of Shaliangpo, there is also a stream, now dried up. This shows that the site of these ancient Han tombs was once surrounded by green hills and flowing streams, facing the open plains of Qianchuan with a broad and bright view — a prime example of a geomantically favorable burial site. It also reflects a cultural custom of the frontier garrisons.

Address: Shaliangpo, Tianzhen County, Datong City, Shanxi Province