Tomb of Lai Shouguan and His Wife

Tomb of Lai Shouguan and His Wife

The Tomb of Lai Shouguan and His Wife is a cultural relic protection unit of Guangdong Province.

The Tomb of Lai Shouguan and His Wife is located at Shaqianling in Changdong Village, Changtan Town, Jiaoling County. It is the burial site of the sixth-generation ancestors of the Lai family from Biejiao. According to the Jiaoling County Annals (first edition, October 1992), it was built during the Ming Dynasty and renovated in the 32nd year of the Republic of China (1943). The tomb faces southwest and is oriented from the northeast. It comprises a protective ridge, circular mound, side walls, hanging niches, boot-shaped structures, tomb hall, worship platform, and offering table. It is a first-level protective ridge armchair-style tomb, built with lime-consolidated sand and plastered with a sand-lime finish. The total width is about 30 meters, the depth about 45 meters, and the overall area approximately 1,350 square meters. The grave itself is about 9.4 meters wide and 15.7 meters deep, covering an area of roughly 147.58 square meters. The tombstone is made of coarse stone, rectangular in shape, 0.88 meters high and 0.5 meters wide, with a semi-circular top. On the reverse side is inscribed: “The Tomb of Lai Gong, Sixth-Generation Ancestor, Honored for Literary Virtue and Title ‘Shouguan’, and His Wife, Zeng Da Ruren, Renowned for Compassion, ‘Shou’.” The base of the offering table features stucco carvings of cloud patterns and diamond-shaped swastika motifs. Circular column bases decorate the left and right sides of the protective ridges. About 40 meters in front of the tomb are ten stone ceremonial pillars, the upper animal figures of which are now missing. This tomb complex is quite large and holds certain value for studying the ancient tomb architecture culture within Jiaoling County. In October 2012, it was designated as a provincial-level cultural relic protection unit by the People’s Government of Guangdong Province.

Further Reading:

· Seventh Batch of Guangdong Provincial Cultural Relic Protection Units