A Chronicle of Beijing ⑧ The Imperial Tombs and Royal Mausoleums of Beijing

Author: Wang Deheng
Publisher:
Publication Date: 1999-12-01
Features: The contents introduce the ancient imperial mausoleums and royal tombs, which embody the essence of ancient Chinese culture. Beijing has been the capital for over three thousand years, with numerous imperial mausoleums and royal tombs scattered throughout the region, forming five major royal mausoleum clusters in the southwest (Shang-Zhou ruins), west (Jin Imperial Tombs), northwest (Qing Western Tombs), east (Ming Thirteen Tombs), and east (Qing Eastern Tombs). The Jin Imperial Tombs, which carry the artistic style of the ancient Jurchen people, are an important archaeological discovery in recent years. This book presents this discovery to readers for the first time. It breaks away from the traditional expository writing style used to describe cultural relics and historical sites, employing vivid and lively language to narrate the anecdotes and causes of death of emperors and empresses, guiding readers into the aesthetic journey of the mausoleums and their courtyards. Through this, readers not only gain knowledge but also enjoy aesthetic pleasure.
Excerpt: From that time on, when there were kings in Beijing during the Han Dynasty, there were naturally royal tombs as well. After the Eastern Han Dynasty, Beijing also produced several "emperors." By the Jin Dynasty, Beijing became a nationally significant capital, and at this time, Beijing saw the emergence of its first cluster of imperial mausoleums—the Jin Imperial Tombs located at the foot of Dafang Mountain in the western suburbs. Although the Yuan Dynasty once established its capital in Beijing, the tombs of its emperors were not located in Beijing but in Qilin Valley in Outer Mongolia. The imperial mausoleums of the Ming and Qing dynasties, as the largest and most magnificent clusters of tombs remaining today, attract worldwide attention. Thus, we can see that Beijing:
- Zhou and Warring States periods: Royal tombs existed.
- Han Dynasty: Royal tombs existed.
- Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui and Tang dynasties: Unclear, except for the excavation of Shi Siming's tomb, which holds great significance.
- Liao Dynasty: Imperial (or royal) tombs (unknown).
- Jin Dynasty: Imperial mausoleums and royal tombs (burial grounds of the princes).
- Ming Dynasty: Imperial mausoleums and royal tombs.
- Qing Dynasty: Imperial mausoleums and royal tombs (although according to the current administrative divisions, the Qing Eastern and Western Tombs are located in Hebei Province, they were within the scope of Beijing at the time, and the modern Eastern and Western Tombs are also extensions of Beijing, serving as major tourist attractions).
The (threads) of imperial mausoleums and royal tombs in Beijing from the Zhou, Han, Jin, Ming, and Qing dynasties are clear, with abundant remains, so we will take these as the threads to explore the depths of history.
The Constellations in the Underground Starry Sky—the Research and Appreciation Value of Mausoleums
Someone made a vivid and striking comparison: countless underground cultural relics, like the stars in the sky, are brilliant, captivating, and attention-grabbing. A book titled Underground Starry Sky is dedicated to introducing cultural relics. If the countless buried cultural relics are likened to the stars in the underground sky, then each imperial mausoleum and royal tomb is a constellation in that sky. This is because the cultural relics buried in imperial mausoleums and royal tombs are most numerous, most concentrated, most abundant, most representative, and most precious. By following the evolutionary trajectory of the mausoleums, we can discover vivid scenes of the past history.
Graves are originally the final resting places of human life, places where the dead are buried. In early primitive societies, when people died, they were not buried but rather hidden in caves to be eaten when food sources ran out. Even in the late Paleolithic era, the dead were carelessly discarded or hastily buried, hardly qualifying as a "burial." The spirit of history guided humanity out of ignorance, and with the emergence of the concept of souls, the burial of the dead gradually developed into a significant matter, eventually forming a system that became increasingly strict in later feudal societies. It is precisely because of this that many major cultural relics and historical sites have been preserved in the form of graves, such as the pyramids of ancient Egypt, which were the tombs of Egyptian slave owners. The famous ancient Indian Great Stupa of Sanchi, built in the third century BCE, became the ancestor of the later Vajra Stupa. The Great Stupa of Borobudur in central Java, Indonesia, is also a tomb structure.
Postscript: The postscript for the second edition coincided with the spring of the Bingzi year, when peach and plum blossoms were in full bloom. Over the course of several days, I was invited by three or five friends to visit Jinling. The visit itself was fine, but what was awkward was that some newly acquainted friends asked me for this little book I had written. However, there were no copies left in my home cabinets, and when I asked several friends to check the bookstores, they found none either. I then thought that if this book could be reprinted, I could settle my "book debts" of dozens of copies. It would also be interesting to prepare a hundred copies as a unique "business card." The editor and publisher of this book then called and requested a second edition, which I happily agreed to. During this time, I supplemented and corrected the section on Jinling. If I am given more time in the future, I will definitely treat "Jinling" as a separate book.
March 28th, Spring of the Bingzi Year
Author at the Beijing Western Anthropological Site