Sima Guang's Tomb

　　  Sima Guang (1019–1086), courtesy name Junshi, also known as Yusou, was a native of Sushui Township, Xia County, and was widely referred to as "Mr. Sushui." He became a Jinshi (advanced scholar) during the Baoyuan era of the Northern Song Dynasty and was a renowned historian and statesman of the Song Dynasty. He authored important works such as the "Zizhi Tongjian" (Comprehensive Mirror to Aid in Government) and "Sushui Jiwen" (Records of Sushui).

　　  The tomb complex covers an area of nearly 30,000 square meters, bordered by the remaining ridges of the Taiyue Mountains to the east and the Tongpu Railway to the west. Many members of Sima Guang’s ancestral family are buried here. The site has been renovated multiple times during the Ming, Qing, and Republican periods. The central part of the mausoleum grounds is the ancestral hall, with the burial area to the left and the Yuqing Chan Temple to the right. In front of the tomb are more than twenty stone sculptures including stone figures, horses, tigers, pigs, and sheep. The surrounding walls of the tomb area are built from red bricks and encircle the entire site.

　　  The ancestral hall was built in the ninth year of the Huangtong era of the Jin Dynasty (1149). Originally, a statue of Sima Guang stood at the center of the hall, surrounded by stelae, but today the statue no longer exists. In front of the hall are five stele pavilions, housing four spirit way stelae of Sima Guang, commonly known as the "Apricot Blossom Stelae." The original stelae were inscribed and penned by Su Shi, with the imperial inscription carved by Emperor Zhezong of Song. They were once buried underground and later unearthed beneath an apricot tree—hence the name—but have since become heavily eroded and illegible. The current stelae were carved during the Jin Dynasty. During the Ming Dynasty's Jiajing era, massive stones were selected to replicate the Song Dynasty stelae in style, with new inscriptions engraved and pavilions erected. The Ming stele stands 7.33 meters tall, with the tortoise base and stele top being original Song Dynasty pieces. The stele’s top bears the imperial inscription “Zhongqing Cuide Zhi Bei” (Steles of Loyal, Pure, and Exemplary Virtue) in six large characters, while the middle smaller characters read “Yuanyou Wu Chen Chongqing Dian Shu” (Written in the Chongqing Hall in the Wu Chen year of Yuanyou), in bold and vigorous script. The stele pavilion has a brick pagoda structure, with a double-eave hip-and-gable roof, exquisitely carved beams and painted decorations.

　　  To the left of the ancestral hall lies the burial ground, which contains five large tombs aligned along an east-west axis. On both sides stand over ten pairs of stone figures and beasts. Three stone stelae remain in the burial area, among which the stele from the third year of the Xining era (1070) by Sima Zhu and the one from the eighth year of the Xining era (1075) by Sima Hao were both written by Sima Guang.

　　  The Yuqing Chan Temple served as the ancestral temple for the Sima family graves. It was first built in the second year of the Zhiping era of Emperor Yingzong of the Northern Song Dynasty (1065), established at Sima Guang’s request to protect the family tombs. In the first year of the Yuanyou era (1078), an imperial decree was issued to build the Yuqing Chan Monastery as a family ancestral shrine, with the decree still preserved in stone at the back of the temple. In the eighth year of the Yuanyou era (1085), the temple was officially bestowed the name “Yuqing Chan Monastery.” Inside the hall are three large Buddhist statues: Sakyamuni, Dipankara, and Maitreya. The statues are solemn and dignified, with delicate craftsmanship, and are considered masterpieces of the Song Dynasty. Flanking the main statues are two attendants and two guardians, with sixteen disciples sculpted along the side walls.

　　  In January 1988, Sima Guang's Tomb was designated by the State Council as part of the third group of Major Historical and Cultural Sites Protected at the National Level.